Peter Lang International Academic Publishers

What Peter Lang International Academic Publishers does

Peter Lang International Academic Publishers is a private, Switzerland-domiciled academic publishing house founded in 1970, operating across 12-13 humanities and social science disciplines with a catalogue of more than 17,500 academic titles and an annual output of approximately 1,100 new books. The company serves academic authors, university libraries, and scholarly readers globally, with primary publishing operations in Oxford (UK) and registered offices in Lausanne, Berlin, Bruxelles, New York, and Chennai.

The company operates a dual print and digital publishing model. Its proprietary eBook platform, launched in 2016, hosts 20,000+ eBooks with DRM-free watermarking, IP-based institutional access, COUNTER5-compliant usage statistics, free MARC records, and DOI creation. Discovery and distribution are layered through partnerships with OAPEN, DOAB, EBSCO, ProQuest, and Portico for scholarly metadata and archiving, alongside retail channels (Amazon Kindle, Apple, Kobo, VitalSource) and library suppliers (GOBI/EBSCO, Ingram, Baker & Taylor). A network of 20+ regional agents extends sales coverage across Africa, Asia, Europe, Latin America, the Middle East, and Oceania.

Revenue is generated through one-time print and eBook sales, Gold Open Access Book Processing Charges (from €7,500), Green Open Access, and recurring library acquisition programs including Evidence Based Acquisition (EBA) and the differentiated Open EBA model that allows libraries to apply EBA budgets toward OA processing charges. The company runs the Emerging Scholars Competition annually since 2011 and the Greenlight OA pilot with Jisc. The firm is privately held, employs 51-100 staff on a 100% remote model, and does not disclose revenue or external funding.

Name

Peter Lang International Academic Publishers

Legal name

Peter Lang Group AG

Website

https://peterlang.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1970

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Peter Lang International Academic Publishers is a private academic publisher founded in 1970, publishing ~1,100 humanities and social science titles annually across 12 disciplines, serving academic libraries, scholars, and readers globally via print, eBook, and Open Access models.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Academic Book Publishing

NAICS

Book Publishers (513130), Newspaper, Periodical, Book, and Directory Publishers (5131)

SIC

Books: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2731)

akta.pro primary industry

Research Monographs & University Press Publishing (MPAJABAJ)

akta.pro secondary industries

Humanities & Arts Scholarly Publishing (EDAGAFAE), Interdisciplinary & Multidisciplinary Scholarly Publishing (EDAGAFAI), Open Access Scholarly Journals & Monographs (EDAGAFAJ)

Keywords

• Academic book publishing
• Scholarly monographs
• Open access publishing
• Library acquisitions
• Humanities research

Headquarters

HQ city

Lausanne

HQ country

Switzerland

HQ region

Europe

Offices7 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Digital Commerce or Content

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. Print Book Sales: Traditional print book sales through distribution network including NBN (Europe/RoW), Hachette Livre (French-speaking Europe), IBI (USA), University of Toronto Press (Canada), and direct website orders
2. eBook Sales: Digital eBook sales through website and third-party retailers including Amazon Kindle, Apple, Kobo, VitalSource, and library suppliers. Available as PDF and ePUB formats
3. Gold Open Access Book Processing Charges: Fees for Gold Open Access publication starting at €7,500, with fees calculated individually based on requested services. Authors can receive funding from various international bodies
4. Evidence Based Acquisition (EBA): Library subscription model where institutions pay upfront for access to full catalogue, then use usage data to select titles for perpetual purchase at year end
5. Open EBA (Evidence Based Acquisition): Innovative model allowing libraries to use EBA budget for both traditional acquisition and Open Access Book Processing Charges, offering flexibility and cost efficiency

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels9 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Peter Lang International Academic Publishers is a private academic publishing house that commissions, peer-reviews, produces, and distributes scholarly monographs and edited collections across humanities and social sciences. Its core offerings include print books, DRM-free eBooks through a proprietary digital platform, Gold Open Access and Green Open Access publication routes, and Evidence Based Acquisition (EBA) and Open EBA library subscription models. The company publishes approximately 1,100 new titles each year to a catalogue of more than 17,500 academic titles and serves authors, academic libraries, and book retailers globally.

Product overview

Peter Lang International Academic Publishers is an academic book publishing company offering print and digital academic titles across 12 humanities and social science disciplines. The company operates a multi-format publishing platform with approximately 1,100 books published annually and over 20,000 ebook titles in its digital collection. Core products include Gold Open Access (from €7,500, immediate OA release), Green Open Access (embargo-based OA), Open EBA (combining Evidence Based Acquisition with OA BPC funding), and traditional EBA for libraries. The company also runs the annual Emerging Scholars Competition for early career researchers. Distribution channels include a proprietary eBook platform with 24/7 access, IP-based authentication, COUNTER5-compliant statistics, and partnerships with major discovery services (OAPEN, DOAB, EBSCO, ProQuest), retailers (Amazon Kindle, Apple, VitalSource), and library suppliers (GOBI, Ingram, Baker & Taylor). Publishing powered by Open Publishing platform.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Peter Lang Open: Open Access publishing platform and initiative by Peter Lang, offering Gold and Green Open Access options for authors.

Products and services

• Gold Open Access Gold Open Access publishing model where research is freely available online immediately upon publication without embargo period, released under a Creative Commons license with copyright assigned to the author. Fees start at €7,500 all in, with print and Open Access publication receiving full marketing, distribution, and data management services. Targeted at academic authors with funder mandates requiring immediate Open Access.
• Green Open Access Open Access model where the book is published simultaneously as print and eBook, with the eBook released in Open Access after an embargo period. Offers models and rates fitting author needs in various national and research contexts. Targeted at academic authors and researchers seeking Open Access compliance with embargo flexibility.
• Open EBA (Evidence Based Acquisition) Open Access books model combining traditional Evidence Based Acquisition with the ability for libraries to use their EBA budget to pay for Book Processing Charges (BPCs), with the price of the BPC allocated to the EBA balance. Libraries pay upfront for access to the catalogue for a year, then use usage data to select titles for perpetual purchase. Targeted at academic and research libraries seeking flexible Open Access spending.
• EBA (Evidence Based Acquisition) Traditional acquisition model where libraries pay an upfront sum to gain access to a catalogue of titles for a year, then use usage data to select the best titles for the library to purchase in perpetuity up to the value of the EBA. Targeted at academic and research libraries seeking usage-driven collection development.
• eBook Platform Digital platform launched in 2016 offering access to 20,000 eBooks with features including DRM-free content, watermarking, 24/7 unrestricted access, unlimited access, IP-based access, multiple administrative users, tailored institutional personalization, free MARC records, COUNTER5-compliant statistics, and DOI creation at book level. Targeted at academic libraries and institutional buyers.
• Emerging Scholars Competition Annual competition for early career researchers held since 2011 in selected fields including Black Studies, Irish Studies, Women's Writing, Education, French Studies, and Indigenous Studies. Winners receive a fully funded book contract with Open Access contracts offered since 2023. Targeted at early career academic researchers seeking first book publication.
• Subject Catalogues Curated collections organized across 12 academic disciplines: The Arts, Education, English Studies, German Studies, History & Political Science, Law, Economics & Management, Linguistics, Media & Communication, Romance Studies, Science Society & Culture, Slavic Studies, and Theology & Philosophy. Targeted at libraries and researchers seeking subject-specific collection development.
• eBook Collections Curated eBook collections available for acquisition including Evidence-Based selection, mini collections, subject collections, and 'pick and mix' collections, or standalone purchases. Targeted at libraries seeking bundled acquisition of themed eBook content.
• Peter Lang Classics Specialist subject catalogue featuring classic academic works from Peter Lang's publishing heritage. Targeted at libraries and readers seeking classic titles in the humanities and social sciences.

Quantifiable outcome

• 17,500+ academic titles accessible through Open EBA
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers2 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration13 records

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Twelve partnerships are on record, tiered flagship, core and minor.

• JiscflagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 September 2022Cooperative Open Access pilot project 'Greenlight' offering institutions opportunity to grow their lists and support OA publication in Humanities and Sciences. Package includes monographs by UK authors with tiered pricing based on Jisc Banding.
• Knowledge UnlatchedcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPeter Lang is a partner of Knowledge Unlatched (KU) and regularly participates in KU Select pledging rounds where library consortiums support the release of both Gold and Green Open Access titles. Books are available through the Open Research Library.
• OAPENcoreTechnology or IntegrationFull-text content and metadata hosted on OAPEN platform for discovery. Peter Lang titles discoverable through OAPEN's publisher collection.
• DOAB (Directory of Open Access Books)coreTechnology or IntegrationTitles discoverable through DOAB directory for Open Access books.
• EBSCOcoreTechnology or IntegrationDiscovery services partnership for library content through EBSCO.
• ProQuestcoreTechnology or IntegrationDiscovery services partnership for library content through ProQuest.
• Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnered in OAPEN-CH pilot project (2014-2016) supporting OA monograph publishing. SNSF successfully supported Peter Lang publications.
• Swiss Academy of Humanities and Social Sciences (SAGW)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration on Open Access initiatives in Switzerland.
• OGeSoMominorStrategic or Co-development PartnerProject aimed at initiating more Open Access publications in Humanities and Social Sciences, funded by Federal Ministry of Education and Research in Germany.
• NBN InternationalcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPrimary distribution partner for European and Rest of World territories. Located at 10 Thornbury Rd, Plymouth, PL6 7PP, UK.
• GOBI Library Solutions from EBSCOcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorLibrary supply partnership for academic acquisitions through GOBI platform.
• Ingram Content GroupcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorLibrary and retail distribution partnership with global headquarters in La Vergne, TN.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Bloomsbury Academic: Bloomsbury Academic publishes humanities and social sciences monographs with OA options and library eBook collections. Comparable in size, subject mix, and the mix of print and digital library sales channels.
• Brill: Brill is a mid-sized international academic publisher with strong humanities and social sciences coverage, particularly in area studies, classics, and law. Operates its own eBook platform, Open Access programme, and library partnerships comparable to Peter Lang's structure.
• De Gruyter: De Gruyter is a Berlin-based scholarly publisher with a comparable monograph-and-journal portfolio across humanities and social sciences, plus Open Access infrastructure (e.g., OAPEN/DOAB hosting). Directly competes with Peter Lang for European HSS authors and library sales.
• Edward Elgar Publishing: Edward Elgar is a similarly sized independent academic publisher focused on social sciences, law, and economics monographs with strong library distribution. A close comparable on size, business model, and target author base.
• Anthem Press: Anthem Press is an independent academic publisher with a humanities and social sciences monograph list, Open Access programmes, and global distribution. A near like-for-like peer in size and scope.

Broad incumbents

• Routledge (Taylor & Francis Group): Routledge is one of the world's largest humanities and social sciences academic publishers, with a monograph programme, library sales force, and OA offerings directly comparable to Peter Lang's. Operates at significantly larger scale and competes for the same authors and library budgets.
• Cambridge University Press: Cambridge University Press is a large university press with a substantial HSS monograph list, library sales, and OA monographs (via Flipback and OA funds). A larger incumbent competing for the same institutional library budgets.
• Oxford University Press: Oxford University Press is a leading university press with a deep humanities and social sciences monograph catalogue, including OA options. A larger, broader incumbent with overlapping subjects and library customers.
• Springer Nature: Springer Nature's humanities and social sciences monograph programme, Open Access book publishing (via Springer), and global library sales directly compete with Peter Lang. Operates at much larger scale with transformative agreements.

Emerging players

• MDPI: MDPI is a large open access publisher expanding into OA monographs (MDPI Books) and humanities-adjacent areas. Represents the new-wave OA-only model against which Peter Lang's hybrid Gold OA + Open EBA approach competes.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/PeterLangGroup

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Peter Lang International Academic Publishers