At MDPI, we uphold the principles of transparency, integrity, and the advancement of Open Science. We value open dialogue about policies and decisions that impact the global research community. In this context, we wish to address the Finnish Publication Forum's (JUFO) recent decision to reclassify 271 number of journals, including 187 published by MDPI, to Level 0.

We are concerned about the objectivity of JUFO’s decision as outlined in the latest update on 9 December 2024. While JUFO emphasizes the importance of individual journal evaluations, the simultaneous downgrade of journals from fully OA publishers like MDPI and Frontiers suggests a generalized evaluation approach based on the APC publication model rather than a qualified and fair assessment of each journal’s merit. The approach raises questions about the transparency and consistency of the evaluation process.

JUFO’s reference to "grey area" journals simply based on their use of the Article Processing Charge (APC) model appears to focus on publication volume over the quality of published content. APCs are a standard practice for funding Gold and Hybrid Open Access journals across the publishing industry, including traditional publishers.

Singling out fully OA publishers seems inconsistent with efforts by the global scientific community towards more equitable and sustainable Open Science practices. It even risks undermining these efforts.

If members of the research community disagree with a journal's current Level 0 rating, they can submit a re-evaluation proposal to JUFO, providing detailed justifications to support their appeal.

As per James Butcher’s analysis in his Journalology newsletter (#105), "the graph below (taken from Dimensions) shows the volume of Gold and Hybrid research articles, by publisher, with at least one Finnish author. MDPI and Frontiers have a relatively small market share in Finland, which has dropped in recent years. Elsevier seems to be growing the fastest in Finland, when it comes to OA."

Source: James Butcher, "Journalology #105: New year catch up", Retrieved from the Blog (13 January 2025).

JUFO’s decision appears to conflict with Finland’s national Open Access policies, which advocate for immediate access to publicly funded research:

• The "Policy for Open Access to Scholarly Publications" emphasizes Finland’s commitment to immediate OA for all scholarly outputs.
• The Research Council of Finland mandates compliance with Plan S principles, which support transparent funding mechanisms for OA publishing. The reclassification could hinder Finnish researchers’ ability to publish in OA journals, affecting their global visibility and career progression.

MDPI publishes over 450 peer-reviewed journals, many of which are indexed in prestigious databases, such as:

• 300 journals in Web of Science
• 309 journals in Scopus
• 91 journals in PMC/PubMed
• 18 journals in MEDLINE

MDPI collaborates with more than 320 Finnish Editorial Board Members across 151 journals, reinforcing the high standards of scientific credibility and quality maintained by our journals.

It should be noted that OA continues to drive a global shift in scholarly communication. In 2023, 56% of research outputs were published in OA journals, compared to 44% in closed-access journals (Dimensions, 2023). MDPI has played an important role in this transition by adhering to rigorous peer-review standards and delivering research integrity through partnerships with COPE, STM, ALPSP, and OASPA.

We call on ranking systems like JUFO to adopt consistent, transparent, and industry-wide criteria that accurately reflect the evolving landscape of academic publishing. Otherwise, such decisions bring to light questions about the evaluation of fully OA publishers, for instance:

• Are OA publishers assessed using the same criteria as publishers with hybrid models? If so, why are mixed-model publishers not held to the same standards?
• Does the reclassification disproportionately target fully OA publishers?
• How does this decision align with Finland’s national Open Science commitments?

MDPI reaffirms its commitment to supporting the research communities in Finland and globally in advancing Open Science. We remain open to constructive dialogue with all stakeholders to address concerns and ensure fair and transparent evaluations of MDPI journals in alignment with Finland’s national OA policies.

For further information, please contact: publicrelations@mdpi.com