Who can apply to DOAB?

DOAB is open to all publishers who publish open access (OA) academic books in any language and discipline and fulfil the requirements listed below. We define open access books as scholarly peer-reviewed books including monographs, book chapters, edited collections, critical editions, and other long-form scholarly works that are available online free of charge, without any registration requirements, and licensed so that it can be further used by readers (under an open access licence such as a Creative Commons licence).

Requirements

The main requirements to be indexed in DOAB are listed below:

Website

  • The publisher should own a dedicated URL and website/webpage that is accessible from any location.
  • The publisher’s website should be properly supported and maintained, with particular attention given to security aspects that help protect users from viruses and malware. As a minimum, the website should use https and not http, and all traffic should be redirected through https. Those responsible for the website should apply web standards and best ethical practices to the website’s content, presentation, and application.
  • The website should not contain information that might mislead readers or authors.
  • The website should not copy another publisher’s site, design, or logo. If any text is copied from another website, an acknowledgement to the source website should be declared.
  • Contact details including:
    • A business address and email. The address in the application and on the publisher’s website must be the same where the publisher is registered and carries out its business activities.
    • Contact information for a named individual at the organisation (director, editor, secretary, etc.).

Publisher’s quality control process

  • The editorial process must be stated clearly on the website.
    • The name and affiliation of the editor(s) and board members (if applicable) must be listed on the website.
  • All submitted books must be peer reviewed before publication.
    • The type and details of the peer review process must be stated clearly on the website.
    • The reviewing process must be independent and external, appropriate for the subject, done by experts in the field who are not part of the publisher’s editorial staff.

Licensing and Copyright

  • The licensing terms for use and re-use of the published content must be clearly stated on the website. DOAB recommends the use of Creative Commons licences for this purpose. If Creative Commons licensing is not used, similar terms and conditions should be applied. Extra care must be taken to state these terms clearly.
  • Licensing terms for use and re-use of the published content must be at least included in metadata of the book. The book’s record on the website must display the date of publication, the licence used and a copyright statement.
  • The copyright terms applied to the published content must be clearly stated on the website.
  • Copyright terms must not contradict the licensing terms or the terms of the open access policy. “All rights reserved” is not appropriate for DOAB, however third-party material can be licensed differently.

Catalogue

  • The OA books in the catalogue must be in scope with the definition of academic books provided by DOAB (see above).
  • The catalogue should consist of a minimum of 3 open access academic books.
  • All open access books should be accessible without registration.
  • As a minimum requirement each oa book must be assigned with an individual ISBN.

Recommendations

In addition to the requirements outlined above, we highly recommend that the following items are clearly displayed on the website:

  • Open access policy or statement of the publisher.
  • The scope and aim/mission of the publisher.
  • Policy describing the handling of potential conflict of interest of editors, authors and reviewers.
  • Instructions for authors.
    • The licensing terms for use and re-use of the published content clearly stated on the colophone page of the book or embedded in the full text of publication.
    • Long-term preservation and DOIs and/or other PIDs are recommended (but required when it is included as a quality accepted standard by funders or research institutions).
    • Think.Check.Submit

Application Process

The evaluation process might take up to 4 months, depending on the complexity of the application, the responses required from the publisher and number of applications submitted. Below we describe the evaluation steps:

  1. Application Form Submission
    • Some of the above-mentioned requirements are reflected in the application form that publishers who wish to be indexed in DOAB must fill in to be evaluated. This form gathers essential information about the publisher, including details about its website, the types of books it publishes, and adherence to OA standards.
  2. Initial Evaluation
    • Once the application is submitted, the DOAB Evaluation Team conducts an initial evaluation. The team meets weekly to assess 3–5 applications per session, based on the complexity of the provided information.
  3. Request for Clarification
    • If the DOAB Evaluation Team needs further details or clarification (for example, about the publisher’s website or publishing practices), it will reach out to the publisher for additional information. At the same time, we acknowledge that publishing practices and quality assurance procedures may vary across different national/regional contexts and across research disciplines.
    • There is no set deadline for the publisher to respond, which allows flexibility in the process.
  4. Re-evaluation and Final Decision
    • Once the additional clarification is received, the DOAB Evaluation Team will re-evaluate the application and make a final decision on whether the publisher qualifies for inclusion in DOAB.
  5. Notification
    • The publisher is notified of the final decision via email. This email will communicate whether the application has been approved or rejected, and, if accepted, the publisher will gain access to the DOAB admin tool for uploading of books.

DOAB’s thorough evaluation workflow ensures that applicants meet our requirements before being included. We put great effort into assessing each application and requesting additional information or clarification when needed. Given the large number of books, we cannot assess each title on an individual basis, but we do carry out compliance checks. We appreciate input from our community and encourage you to contact us ([email protected]) if you have questions about titles or publishers in DOAB.