Science in Society
Common Ground Research Networks is a nonprofit scholarly publisher that runs 26 thematic research networks, open-access journals, academic books, and international conferences for scholars and universities worldwide.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1984
- HeadquartersChampaign, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Science in Society does
Common Ground Research Networks (the operating entity behind the Science in Society Research Network and 25 sibling networks) is a U.S.-based nonprofit scholarly publishing organization headquartered at the University of Illinois Research Park in Champaign, Illinois. It operates a portfolio of 26 thematic research networks spanning humanities, social sciences, arts, health, sustainability, technology, and global studies, serving individual scholars, universities, libraries, and corporate sponsors across North America, Europe, and Oceania.
Its core products include open-access peer-reviewed journals, an academic book publishing program, annual international conferences hosted at major universities worldwide, and recurring research network memberships. Underlying these are proprietary digital platforms — CGScholar and CyberScholar — that support knowledge sharing, scholarly collaboration, and open-access publishing within the network ecosystem. The Media Lab houses additional research initiatives such as Imagining Futures, Knowledge Experience, and Human-Centered Artificial Intelligence.
Revenue is generated through six primary streams: conference registration fees, journal and book subscriptions (individual and institutional), book sales, annual network membership fees, professional editing and publishing services, and corporate/institutional sponsorship of conferences and networks. Pricing is quote-based and not publicly disclosed. Distribution combines self-serve digital platforms for individuals and SMBs with direct field sales for university institutional licensing and conference hosting partnerships. Marketing is executed through network websites, a monthly newsletter, international conferences as primary acquisition events, and institutional partner referrals.
Science in Society firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Science in Society
- Legal name
- Common Ground Research Networks
- Website
- https://science-society.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1984
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Common Ground Research Networks is a nonprofit scholarly publisher that runs 26 thematic research networks, open-access journals, academic books, and international conferences for scholars and universities worldwide.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Science in Society industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Academic Publishing
- NAICS
- Periodical Publishers (51312), Book Publishers (51313), Newspaper, Periodical, Book, and Directory Publishers (5131)
- SIC
- Periodicals: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2721), Books: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2731), Miscellaneous Publishing (2741)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Interdisciplinary & Multidisciplinary Scholarly Publishing (EDAGAFAI)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Academic & Scholarly Journals Publishing (Peer-Reviewed) (MPAJABAC), Scholarly Societies & Conference Proceedings Publishing (MPAJABAK), Open Access Scholarly Journals & Monographs (EDAGAFAJ), Scholarly Society & Association Publishing (EDAGAFAK), Academic & Scientific Conferences (MPAGAGAD)
Keywords
Where Science in Society is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Champaign
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Science in Society business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Conference Fees: Registration fees from international academic conferences held at universities worldwide, including keynote sessions, paper presentations, and networking events
- Journal Subscriptions: Subscription-based access to peer-reviewed academic journals across multiple research network disciplines, including both individual and institutional licensing
- Book Publishing: Sale of academic books and monographs through catalog and open access options, including publisher prizes for authors
- Network Membership: Annual membership fees for participation in research networks, providing access to community resources, publications, and conference discounts
- Editing Services: Professional editorial and publishing support services for authors preparing manuscripts for journals and books
- Sponsorship: Corporate and institutional sponsorship of conferences and research networks, providing branding and visibility opportunities
Go-to-market motion3 records
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels4 records
Science in Society product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Science in Society, operated under Common Ground Research Networks, organizes peer-reviewed interdisciplinary conferences, publishes open-access academic journals and books, and runs proprietary digital scholarly platforms (CGScholar and CyberScholar) that support researchers across 26 thematic research networks. It offers end-to-end scholarly publishing services including submission, peer review, production, and global dissemination, primarily for university-based researchers, librarians, and academic institutions.
Product overview
Common Ground Research Networks operates a unified scholarly research platform comprising multiple interconnected products and services: Research Networks (25+ thematic communities), Conferences (international academic events), Journals (open-access scholarly publications), Books (academic publishing), and a Media Lab containing technology platforms (CGScholar, CyberScholar) and research initiatives (Human Centered AI, Imagining Futures, Knowledge Experience). The ecosystem is designed to support the complete research lifecycle from network collaboration through publication and dissemination.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- CGScholar: Digital publishing and knowledge platform developed by Common Ground Research Networks for open access scholarly publishing.
- CyberScholar
- Imagining Futures
- Human Centered Artificial Intelligence
- CGPublisher
Products and services
- Peer-Reviewed Academic Journals
Companies that use Science in Society
Customer profileNamed customers8 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
Science in Society technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature4 records
Science in Society partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Four partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.
- Association of American Publishers (AAP)minorMember organization - AAP is the largest U.S. trade association for the consumer, educational, professional and scholarly publishing industry with over 400 member organizations including multinational corporations, independent publishers, university presses, and nonprofit publishers.
- ALPSP (Association of Learned and Professional Society Publishers)minorMember organization - ALPSP is an international membership trade body supporting not-for-profit organizations and institutions that publish scholarly and professional content, with over 300 members in 30 countries.
- Society for Scholarly Publishing (SSP)minorMember organization - SSP, founded in 1978, is a nonprofit organization formed to promote and advance communication among all sectors of the scholarly publication community through networking, information dissemination, and facilitation of new developments.
- United Nations Sustainable Development Goals Publishers CompactcoreSignatory to the UN SDG Publishers Compact - Launched in collaboration with the International Publishers Association, the compact features 10 action points to accelerate progress toward achieving the Sustainable Development Goals by 2030. Signatories commit to developing sustainable practices and publishing content that informs, develops, and inspires action toward SDGs.
Scale indicators2 records
Recent moves5 records
Expansion highlights4 records
Science in Society competitors and assessment
Company assessmentEmerging players
- PLOS: Nonprofit open-access publisher of peer-reviewed journals across science and social science disciplines. Comparable as a nonprofit, open-access scholarly publisher with community-oriented mission, though with stronger indexing status.
Direct peers
- De Gruyter: Scholarly publisher of journals and books spanning humanities, social sciences, and sciences, with a strong open-access program. Comparable as a mid-sized, multi-disciplinary academic publisher serving institutional and library customers.
- Cambridge University Press: University press publishing peer-reviewed journals and books across humanities, social sciences, and sciences. Comparable as a society-affiliated scholarly publisher with strong conference and academic network ties.
- Frontiers: Open-access scholarly publisher using a participatory peer-review model across multiple disciplines. Comparable to Common Ground in the scholar-led, open-access journal model and multi-disciplinary scope.
- SAGE Publications: Mid-sized academic publisher producing journals and books across social sciences, humanities, and interdisciplinary fields. Comparable to Common Ground in catalog breadth and society-style scholarly publishing, though with a much larger established catalog.
- MDPI: Open-access journal publisher with broad multidisciplinary coverage and APC-based revenue model. Comparable to Common Ground in the open-access journal focus and multi-discipline breadth, though MDPI operates at significantly larger scale.
- Oxford University Press: University press producing scholarly journals and books across multiple disciplines. Comparable mission and institutional academic focus, though with much larger scale and prestige.
Broad incumbents
- Taylor & Francis: Major academic publisher of journals and books across humanities and social sciences, including Routledge. Comparable publishing categories and customer base, but operates at far larger scale and with broader institutional penetration.
- Springer Nature: World's largest academic publisher with extensive journal and book portfolios, including Nature, Springer, and BMC open-access titles. Comparable product categories but vastly larger scale, indexing, and Impact Factor depth.
- Wiley: Large academic publisher with broad journal and book offerings including Hindawi (acquired 2021) for open access. Comparable in journal/book publishing and open-access ambitions, though at much larger scale.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Science in Society social profiles
Digital presenceScience in Society financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Science in Society leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Science in Society subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries27 records
Science in Society funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Science in Society M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Science in Society
What does Science in Society do?
Science in Society, operated under Common Ground Research Networks, organizes peer-reviewed interdisciplinary conferences, publishes open-access academic journals and books, and runs proprietary digital scholarly platforms (CGScholar and CyberScholar) that support researchers across 26 thematic research networks. It offers end-to-end scholarly publishing services including submission, peer review, production, and global dissemination, primarily for university-based researchers, librarians, and academic institutions.
Is Science in Society a public or private company?
Science in Society is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.
When was Science in Society founded?
Science in Society was founded in 1984. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Science in Society based?
Science in Society is headquartered in Champaign, United States, in the North America region.
How does Science in Society make money?
Six revenue lines are on record. Conference Fees are the primary driver. The others are journal Subscriptions, book Publishing, network Membership, editing Services and sponsorship.
Who are Science in Society's main competitors?
PLOS is listed as an emerging player. Direct peers are De Gruyter, Cambridge University Press, Frontiers, SAGE Publications, MDPI and Oxford University Press. Broad incumbents are Taylor & Francis, Springer Nature and Wiley.
Does Science in Society have an API?
No public API is recorded for Science in Society.
What industry is Science in Society in?
Science in Society's product category is Academic Publishing. Its primary akta.pro industry code is EDAGAFAI, Interdisciplinary & Multidisciplinary Scholarly Publishing, with a secondary code of MPAJABAC, Academic & Scholarly Journals Publishing (Peer-Reviewed). Its NAICS code is 51312 and its SIC code is 2721.