News: Academic Publishing Weekly

The second digital transformation, nonfiction book award lists roll in, and Wiley "delivered the quarter [it] planned for"

Posted on September 4, 2026 in News

Wiley Reports First Quarter Financials

Wiley released its first quarter 2026 earnings (ending July 31st) and a dip in the Learning segment and AI licensing offset growth in the company’s Research and Research Publishing operations. Overall, revenue dropped about 3% for the quarter from $397 million to $386 million. Drilling down, the Research segment recorded a 4% jump in revenue to $293 million, with Research Publishing up 12%. These boosts were driven by growth in the company’s gold open access publishing and the $450 million cash purchase of Emerald Publishing in June. Meanwhile, Wiley’s AI licensing revenue was $14 million for the quarter, down from $29 million in the prior year. The Learning segment also saw declines, with a 19% drop in revenue to $93 million attributable to lower AI licensing revenue and less consumer and corporate spending. Despite the soft quarter for AI, the company clearly still sees a benefit from what it thinks is a virtuous cycle of more research content leading to more AI deals, which creates more research. “We delivered the quarter we planned for, and the momentum between Research and AI keeps building: Research is fueling the trusted content that accelerates AI, and AI is driving the productivity that accelerates Research,” says Matthew Kissner, President and CEO, in a statement. “Prior year AI licensing comparisons affected both segments this quarter, particularly Learning, and we expect improvement over the balance of the year as comparisons normalize and demand in that segment stabilizes.”

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New AI Journal and Environmental AI Literacy Framework

IOP Publishing will launch AI Horizons, a diamond open access journal, in collaboration with Eastern Institute of Technology, Ningbo (EIT), the Zhejiang Association for Science and Technology (ZAST), and the World Association of Young Scientists (WAYS). The interdisciplinary journal is intended to support emerging researchers and will focus on “research covering AI for engineering and science, as well as spatiotemporal, embodied and quantum intelligence.” Submissions will open in October. ITHAKA S+R released an Environmental AI Literacy Framework, part of its Mellon Foundation-funded Incorporating Environmental Perspectives into AI Literacy project, announced earlier this year. Based on a LibGuide on the topic, the framework intends to aid postsecondary students, instructors, and academic librarians on decisions regarding the environmental factors of using generative AI. The framework is currently in draft mode; ITHAKA S+R will accept feedback via public comment until September 14.

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Springer Nature Signs TA with Cornell

Springer Nature has signed a three-year transformative agreement with Cornell University Library that gives Cornell-affiliated researchers no-cost, open access publishing in Springer’s hybrid journal portfolio. The deal also provides Cornell researchers with reading access to Springer Nature content and covers journals from Springer, Palgrave, Adis, and academic titles on Nature.com.

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Six UK Universities Renew OA Deals with JMIR Publications

JMIR, an OA publisher of health research, has renewed publishing agreements with six UK universities through Jisc. Newcastle, Leeds, Manchester, Nottingham, Southampton, and Warwick will continue to provide affiliated authors with unlimited, APC-free publishing across JMIR’s portfolio of more than 30 Gold OA journals through July 31, 2027. JMIR’s model replaces APCs with a flat fee through an institutionally-funded publishing subscription. According to the publisher, this provides universities with more predictable publishing costs.

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Aftershocks of the Second Digital Transformation

Consultant Laura Harvey and Wiley’s Senior Director of Product Management Chris Reid examine the scholarly publishing landscape through the lens of the second digital transformation. They dive into four key trends they’ve observed in the last year: business model evolution, disrupted discovery pathways, increased emphasis on curation, and a heightened need for trust in content. Highlighting the evergreen importance of convenience and trust for users, Harvey and Reid close with their predictions for what will change in the coming year.

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AAP and the Authors Guild Release Study on Library E-Lending

The Association of American Publishers (AAP) and the Authors Guild released an “independent” study with a really short and chill name: “An Empirical Study of the Impact of Library E-Lending on the Book Economy: As Public Libraries Prioritize eBook Formats, Harm to Commercial Markets Across All Formats is Quantifiable and Significant.” Completed by Secretariat Advisors, an analysis and advisory company that supports “renowned law firms, leading corporations, and influential institutions,” the study argues against government-mandated attempts to expand library licensing and e-lending, claiming that they “present significant negative consequences for the publishing ecosystem and consumers by exacerbating substitution between e-lending and retail sales.” Personally, I think free audiobook listening hours for Spotify subscribers does more harm to authors than allowing libraries to lend more than one digital copy of a book at a time, but who cares when publishers are profiting from the licensing deals, right?

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Spotlighting Nonfiction Book Awards

getAbstract, a Switzerland and US-based company that summarizes business books, released the longlist for its International Book Award for “Business Impact.” In the international category (the award also includes a German category), two MIT Press titles are acknowledged. Next, the prestigious (and lucrative) Cundill History Prize released its shortlist, celebrating the best of the best in history books. Out of nearly 400 submissions, the eight-title shortlist “highlights books that uncover forgotten voices and speak to our current context of conflict, nationalism and globalised commodity chains.” The finalists will be announced in late September and the winner on October 23rd. Last but not least, the Baillie Gifford Prize for Nonfiction released its longlist, narrowing down 350 eligible books to 13 titles. Honoring literary nonfiction from around the world, the Prize will award £50,000 to the winning author and translator, if applicable. The winner will be announced on November 4th. Congratulations to all!

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Independent Press Top 5 Bestsellers: Nonfiction
The American Booksellers Association and the Independent Publishers Caucus recently collaborated on an independent bestsellers list, which includes books from independent presses and sold in indie bookshops. Below are the top five nonfiction titles this week. Find this week’s full list of fiction and nonfiction independent bestsellers.

1. The Rise and Fall of the Artificial State by Jill Lepore (Liveright)
2. Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge, and the Teachings of Plants by Robin Wall Kimmerer (Milkweed Editions)
3. The Gales of November: The Untold Story of the Edmund Fitzgerald by John U. Bacon (Liveright)
4. Guinness World Records 2027 by Guinness World Records (Guinness World Records)
5. The Book of Birds: A Field Guide to Wonder and Loss by Robert Macfarlane, Jackie Morris (W. W. Norton & Company)

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