Meeting on June 24, 2024 (hybrid in person and online meeting; Barcelona Congress

An Editorial update was provided including a discussion of the decline in the journal impact factor from 2.7 to 1.3. Wiley indicated that this decline was thought to reflect the end of the pandemic related boost in IF together with changes in the calculation strategy for the IF by Clarivate. The position of Vox relative to other journals sharing similar subject matter was maintained with all journals experiencing a similar decline. The online move of the journal generated some positive feedback from authors and reviewers related to the decreased resource use associated with cessation of printing and mailing. The Publishers report from Wiley included a detailed overview of journal metrics which were very positive and included increased readership, submissions and reviewers along with decreases in the number of days between acceptance and publication. Journal finances were also positive with a large and growing number of OA articles offsetting any decrease in subscription income. OA published articles are expected to continue to increase, with increased numbers of transformational deals. There was discussion of the possibility of applications to the ISBT Foundation Board related to grants for OA publishing for authors from LMIC. This will be raised at the foundation board meeting for further discussion. The publishers report also included discussion of a new process and software for online processing of article reviews. A report from the ISBT office was provided and the transition of the Transfusion Today publication to an online magazine discussed. The committee Terms of Reference were reviewed and updated.

Meeting of October 29, 2024 (Zoom video call), all voting members in attendance

A discussion of e-advertising in Vox related to a request from one of the corporate partners occurred. This advertising appears before the article and is seen when you click through to an article from the table of contents or following a search. This type of ad has been used by other journals for some time. The payment structure generally involves a timeline with the ad purchased to cover weeks or months with one advertisement. The committee agreed to trial this type of advertising for corporate partners and to monitor the reaction of readers and authors. This initiative will increase advertising revenue from the journal and could be offered to other corporate partners if it meets with success and is acceptable to readers and authors. The committee also discussed working party publications. The issue of ISBT working party publications appearing in other journals occasionally arises. The Vox SC agreed that WP manuscripts arising from ISBT funded projects should be submitted to Vox for consideration of publication before any other journal. The usual editorial and peer review process applies, and acceptance is not guaranteed, but submissions to Vox should supersede submissions to alternative transfusion journals. Strategies for reminding WP chairs and members of the requirement for initial submission to Vox along with the advantage of the “free to read” status were discussed. There was a discussion of the transition to new article submission software, Research Exchange Review. This software is a Wiley platform which will be amenable to ongoing software fixes prior to and following implementation.

Meeting of March 19, 2025 (Zoom video call), all voting members in attendance

TThere was discussion of an offer by an ISBT corporate partner (CP) to support a specific issue of Vox Sanguinis and provide entirely open access. This led to discussion of how editorial independence could be assured with such corporate sponsorship. It was agreed that a contract between Wiley and the CP could include assurance of editorial independence in article selection and review.

The Research Exchange software for manuscript management is now available for implementation and timelines for the switch from Scholar One are being established.

One of the section editors has indicated that they will be stepping down from their position and the committee discussed the search and selection of a potential candidate for replacement.

The report from the publisher included a review of the Wiley marketing plan and publishers report. OA revenue has continued to increase as more and more OA articles are published. Article submissions also increased substantially, approaching 2020 levels where there was an unusually high number of submissions due to rapid publication of COVID papers. New transformational agreements allowing for OA publishing have also been introduced and cover 103 institutions and consortia around the world. At the time of manuscript submission, the opportunity for OA publishing is offered based on the submitting authors email address.

There was discussion of Wiley’s publishing strategy including the goal to increase publications from LMIC and the global south.

The initiation of e advertising in Vox has not resulted in any negative comments therefore the opportunity for e advertising will be extended to all ISBT corporate partners.