Heterodox economics and the future of academic publishing

Purpose This paper aims to examine the role that academic publishers have historically played and how this is being undermined by the revolution in information and communications technology. A central issue here is that of copyright. Although authors need to be protected against plagiarists, the main role of publishers' control over copyright is to generate profits for the publisher by limiting access. Design/methodology/approach The paper explores some open‐access models for academic publishing, the first involving a heterodox economics library portal and the second a more general open peer quality review site. Findings It identifies a residual role for commercial academic publishers in the new guise of fee‐for‐service providers of refereeing services, whose accreditations may accelerate the uptake of scholarly contributions. Originality/value The paper examines the role that academic publishers have historically played and how this is being undermined by the revolution in information and communications technology.