The Political Economy of Academic Journal Publishing: Market Concentration, Open Access, and the Persistence of Exclusion

This literature review examines the political economy of academic journal publishing, exploring how market concentration, commercial publishing models, and the evolution of open access have shaped contemporary scholarly communication. It synthesizes literature on the rise of publishing oligopolies, the limitations of article processing charge (APC)-based open access, and the resulting implications for researchers, particularly those in the Global South and resource-constrained institutions. The review further discusses emerging alternatives such as Diamond Open Access and recent developments in India's research publishing landscape, arguing that meaningful reform requires structural changes to the governance and funding of academic publishing. This paper was written as an independent undergraduate literature review to develop research skills in policy analysis, scholarly synthesis, and academic writing.