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Transformative Agreement: Definition, Meaning & Examples | CASRAI

A transformative agreement is a contract between an institution (or consortium) and a publisher that combines reading access with open-access publishing, designed to shift spending away from subscriptions and towards making research openly available. Often called "read and publish" or "publish and read" deals, they are intended as a transitional route to full open access.

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Read and publish, publish and read

Transformative agreements come in closely related forms. A "read and publish" deal bundles reading access and a pre-paid allocation of open-access publishing into one fee, so the institution’s corresponding authors can publish open access without facing a separate article processing charge. "Publish and read" agreements foreground the publishing cost, treating reading access as included. In both, the individual author typically does not see a per-article bill — the open-access cost is handled centrally through the institutional contract.

Why they exist — the transition to open access

These agreements emerged to break the deadlock of paying twice: subscriptions to read, plus APCs to publish open access in hybrid journals ("double dipping"). By combining the two payments and tying them to growth in open-access output, transformative agreements are meant to convert subscription spend into open-access investment and to push hybrid journals towards becoming fully open. The word "transformative" signals the intent: not a permanent model, but a mechanism to drive a transition.

Plan S and cOAlition S expectations

cOAlition S, through Plan S, supports transformative arrangements but treats them as time-limited and conditional. To count, an agreement is generally expected to increase the proportion of open-access content over time and to have a defined end point, after which journals should be fully open access. This conditionality distinguishes a genuine transformative agreement from a relabelled subscription deal that merely folds in some APCs without committing to change.

APCs, costs and criticisms

Transformative agreements change how open-access costs are paid rather than removing them, and they remain controversial. Supporters see them as a pragmatic bridge that gives authors fee-free open-access publishing and accelerates the flip to open. Critics warn they can entrench incumbent publishers and large spend, may not suit authors at less research-intensive or lower-income institutions, and risk stalling rather than completing the transition. Diamond open access — free to read and to publish — is often cited as the destination these deals should ultimately help reach.

Key facts

At a glance

Definition: Contract bundling reading access with open-access publishing
Also called: "Read and publish" / "publish and read" deals
Purpose: A transitional bridge from subscriptions to open access
Author view: Usually no separate APC for corresponding authors
Plan S: Endorsed as time-limited and conditional on growing OA
Debate: Seen as either a pragmatic bridge or a way to entrench spend

Common misconceptions

What people often get wrong

Often heard: A transformative agreement makes open access free.

Actually: No — it changes who pays and how. Open-access costs are met centrally through the institutional contract rather than removed; the reader and often the individual author simply do not see a separate bill.

Often heard: They are intended to be permanent.

Actually: No — under Plan S they are time-limited and conditional, expected to increase open-access output and reach a defined end point, after which journals should be fully open access.

Often heard: A transformative agreement is just a subscription deal.

Actually: No — to qualify it must combine reading and publishing and commit to growing the share of open content over time, distinguishing it from a subscription contract that merely adds some APCs.

Going deeper