Over the last few years, we’ve learned a lot about what is needed to curate, preserve, and provide access to data for the long term, as well as to sustain an independent not-for-profit organization. We’ve also paid close attention to the needs and wants of our user community and members. To meet these needs, we are revising our pricing structure for the first time since it was introduced in 2013.
- Submissions initiated after 4 January 2016 will have a base Data Publication Charge (DPC) of $120US.
- Pricing is now the same for all journals – there will no longer be an additional surcharge for non-integrated publications.
- We encourage individuals and small groups to purchase bundles of DPC vouchers in advance and in any quantity. Purchases over 25 DPCs will enjoy a discount.
- As a further user benefit, we will be doubling the maximum package size before overage fees kick in (to 20GB) and simplifying and reducing the overage fees.
- We will continue to waive DPCs for researchers from World Bank low-income and low-middle-income economies upon request.
- Membership fees are not changing, but Dryad members will be entitled to receive larger discounts on DPCs.
- As always, there are no fees to download or reuse data from Dryad.
- Integrating Dryad’s system with partner journals remains a free service.
Dryad’s Board of Directors will continue to keep a close eye on the repository’s sustainability progress. We anticipate this price structure will remain stable for the foreseeable future and are always seeking opportunities for savings and efficiencies.
We are grateful to our community supporters and take seriously the responsibility to ensure the long-term availability of the research data entrusted to us.
Prepaid data submission vouchers can be purchased at current pricing levels ($80 apiece) through January 4th (and at the new price of $120 apiece after that), by contacting help@datadryad.org.
Payment plans are either subscription or usage-based. Organizations and individuals may also make advance purchases of any number of DPCs and are eligible for bulk discounts for purchases of 25 or more.
What exactly do your DPCs cover?
The following breakdown of expenses reflects projected costs in the near future, extrapolating from historic growth rates. Approximately half of costs are associated with Repository Management, including membership-based nonprofit governance, communications with Dryad’s many stakeholders, members and partners, and upkeep of software systems (Repository Maintenance). Another quarter of the costs are due to the curation and user support provided to each data package, part of Dryad’s unique service offering and commitment to quality.
Since Dryad is a virtual organization, Infrastructure & Facilities largely covers server costs, digital storage, and interoperability technologies such as Digital Object identifiers (DOIs). A small fraction goes to community outreach activities to help encourage data publication best practices and raise awareness of Dryad. Administrative Support covers essential functions such as accounting and contract review.
Finally, Research and Development is essential for building new features to support changing technology and user expectations. R&D expenses are included here, but would ordinarily be covered through special project grants and not considered an operating expense paid for through DPCs.
We expect that as efficiencies are put into place, volume increases, and further economies of scale are realized, the percentage of the DPC supporting Repository Management will decrease and other areas, most notably Curation, will increase.
