MDPI renews Consortium of Swiss Academic Libraries open access deal covering 24 institutions

The year-long agreement with the Consortium of Swiss Academic Libraries gives researchers discounted article processing charges through MDPI’s Institutional Open Access Program.

MDPI has renewed its publishing agreement with the Consortium of Swiss Academic Libraries, giving researchers at 24 Swiss institutions access to discounted open access publishing

MDPI has renewed its publishing agreement with the Consortium of Swiss Academic Libraries, giving researchers at 24 institutions in Switzerland access to discounted open access publishing through MDPI’s Institutional Open Access Program.

The year-long agreement was announced on 10 June 2026. It gives participating Swiss institutions access to MDPI’s Institutional Open Access Program, including a 20 percent discount on article processing charges.

The deal applies to researchers in Switzerland who publish with MDPI. It continues an existing collaboration between Basel-based MDPI and the Consortium of Swiss Academic Libraries.

MDPI announced the renewal alongside its 2025 Country Report for Switzerland, which says Switzerland has remained among the countries with the highest rate of open access publications globally over the past decade.

According to MDPI, open access publications accounted for 65 to 70 percent of all publications from Switzerland-based researchers between 2021 and 2025.

Discounted publishing for Swiss researchers

The renewed agreement is designed to reduce publishing costs for researchers at the 24 participating institutions. MDPI said researchers will receive 20 percent discounts on article processing charges.

Article processing charges are paid to publish research open access. Under the renewed agreement, Swiss-based researchers using participating institutions can continue to publish through MDPI with reduced charges.

Alistair Freeland, chief operating officer at MDPI, says: "Our ongoing collaboration with CSAL reflects the strong support for Open Access publishing across Switzerland’s academic community. As a Swiss-founded publishing house, we are especially proud to support researchers in Switzerland in sharing their knowledge and discoveries with audiences around the world, while helping to ensure that Swiss research remains at the forefront of the global Open Access movement."

The announcement does not name the 24 participating institutions or disclose the financial terms of the agreement.

Switzerland open access activity

MDPI’s 2025 Country Report for Switzerland gives the publisher’s view of Swiss open access activity and engagement with MDPI journals.

MDPI says it has provided publishing services to 29,645 researchers at Swiss universities up to the end of 2025. More than 14,000 papers from Switzerland-based researchers have been published by MDPI since 2021.

In 2025, MDPI says more than 2,100 papers by 5,419 researchers from Swiss institutions were published in 327 MDPI journals. A total of 2,817 scholars from Switzerland contributed to 9,656 review reports, and MDPI worked with 1,574 Swiss-based academic editors, including 12 editors-in-chief.

Stefan Tochev, CEO of MDPI, says: "Demand for Open Access in Switzerland remains strong, as reflected in our latest Country Report, which shows consistently high OA publication rates of around 65–70% and strong engagement from thousands of researchers across Swiss institutions. These results highlight the depth and maturity of the Swiss research ecosystem in advancing open science."

Tochev adds: "Our renewed partnership with CSAL builds on this momentum, ensuring that researchers across 24 institutions can continue to publish with greater accessibility and reduced barriers. We are pleased to support this progress and to work closely with the Swiss academic community as Open Access continues to expand its global impact."

The renewed MDPI and Consortium of Swiss Academic Libraries agreement runs for one year. Researchers at the 24 participating Swiss institutions will continue to receive the 20 percent article processing charge discount through MDPI’s Institutional Open Access Program.