Nauka Publishers

What Nauka Publishers does

Nauka Publishers (Издательство «Наука»), legally the Federal State Budgetary Institution 'Publishing House Nauka' (ФГБУ «Издательство «Наука»), is a Russian government-owned scientific publishing house operating under the Russian Academy of Sciences (RAS). Founded in 1727, it is one of the oldest continuously operating scientific publishers in the world, with a cumulative catalog exceeding 200,000 monographs and scientific articles. Its principal mandate is to serve as the official publisher of all scientific journals of the Russian Academy of Sciences — a role it has held for over a century and which, at its peak, encompassed more than 160 journal titles spanning every major academic discipline. The institution maintains a full-stack publishing operation: in-house printing, exclusive binding, and prepress services, alongside digital distribution via the Libnauka.ru electronic library system and an interactive almanac application for titles such as Priroda (Nature), Okeanologiya (Oceanology), and Geopoliticheskiy Vestnik (Geopolitical Herald). It also operates the Akademkniga retail bookstore network through a wholly-owned subsidiary.

The business model is a hybrid of three revenue streams: one-time book and monograph sales (direct via naukabooks.ru and wholesale to libraries), recurring subscription access to current RAS journal issues through the electronic library system, and professional printing/prepress/binding services to third-party authors and organizations. Go-to-market is sales-led and institutional: the publisher targets university and research-institution libraries (bulk purchases), individual researchers (monographs and journal access), and authors seeking a prestigious publishing venue. Distribution channels include the proprietary e-commerce store, the Libnauka.ru platform, press distribution partners Rospechat and Ural Press, the Akademkniga retail network, and physical presence at international book fairs including BIBF (Beijing), the Red Square Festival, and SPIEF.

Geographically, Nauka is primarily Russia-domiciled and Russia-serving, headquartered at Shubinsky Lane, Moscow, with explicitly stated outreach into China (BIBF) and India (2026 scientific dialogue initiative). The institution functions as a non-commercial state entity rather than a venture-backed enterprise: it has no disclosed funding rounds, no private equity or venture ownership, and its governance falls under the Russian Academy of Sciences as parent. Current leadership is Mikhail Fomin (М.В. Фомин), serving as Acting Director. Recent regulatory actions in 2023–2024 have formalized anti-corruption and anti-monopoly compliance regimes within the institution.

Name

Nauka Publishers

Legal name

ФГБУ «Издательство «Наука» (Federal State Budgetary Institution "Publishing House Science")

Website

https://naukapublishers.ru

Company type

Private

Founded year

1727

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Nauka Publishers is a Russian state-owned scientific publishing house under the Russian Academy of Sciences, founded in 1727, that publishes RAS journals (up to 160 titles), monographs, and operates printing, binding, and the Libnauka.ru electronic library for researchers, authors, and university libraries.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Academic & Scientific Publishing

NAICS

Book Publishers (513130), Periodical Publishers (513120), Newspaper, Periodical, Book, and Directory Publishers (5131)

SIC

Books: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2731), Periodicals: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2721), Book Printing (2732)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYEDAGAFAI

Interdisciplinary & Multidisciplinary Scholarly Publishing

Education/Educational Publishing & Learning Content/Academic & Scholarly Publishing (Journals, Monographs)

SECONDARYEDAGAFAL

Conference Proceedings & Research Reports Publishing

Education/Educational Publishing & Learning Content/Academic & Scholarly Publishing (Journals, Monographs)

SECONDARYMPAJABAK

Scholarly Societies & Conference Proceedings Publishing

Media, Entertainment & Sports/Publishing (Books, News, Magazines)/Educational & Academic Publishing (Textbooks, Scholarly, STM)

Keywords

• Scientific publishing
• Academic journals
• Scientific monographs
• Electronic library services
• Book printing services

Headquarters

HQ city

Moscow

HQ country

Russia

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Book and monograph sales: Sale of scientific monographs, popular editions, and book series through the online store naukabooks.ru and wholesale bulk purchasing for libraries and organizations.
2. Scientific journal publishing and subscriptions: Publishing of over 160 scientific journals of the Russian Academy of Sciences with subscription access through the electronic library system libnauka.ru. The publisher maintains the archive of RAS journals and provides both free access to archives (2017 and earlier) and paid full access to current issues.
3. Printing and prepress services: Printing services, exclusive bookbinding, prepress preparation, and manufacture of printed products offered to authors and organizations through the publisher's typographic facilities.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Nauka Publishers is a scientific publishing house that publishes peer-reviewed scientific journals of the Russian Academy of Sciences (RAS), scientific monographs, and book series across all fields of knowledge. The publisher operates the Libnauka.ru electronic library platform for subscription-based journal access and provides printing, prepress, and binding services through in-house typographic facilities. Its catalog spans more than 200,000 monographs and scientific articles published over 300 years of operation.

Product overview

Nauka Publishers operates as a comprehensive academic publishing platform offering scientific journals of the Russian Academy of Sciences and printed/digital monographs. The core products include scientific journals (archive accessible via Libnauka.ru electronic library), monographs, and book series. Digital offerings comprise the Libnauka.ru electronic library platform and interactive almanacs. Supporting services include printing facilities, exclusive binding, pre-press preparation, and wholesale purchasing for libraries and organizations.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Scientific Journals (Russian Academy of Sciences) Peer-reviewed scientific journals covering all fields of science, published on behalf of the Russian Academy of Sciences. Distributed via subscription through the electronic library system with archives available from 2017 and earlier.
• Scientific Monographs and Books Printed and digital scientific monographs, popular science editions, and multi-volume book series. Sold individually and through bulk wholesale to libraries and organizations.
• Libnauka.ru Electronic Library Online electronic library platform offering subscription-based full-text access to current and archived RAS scientific journals and books published by Nauka Publishers.
• Interactive Almanacs Digital interactive editions of scientific almanacs including 'Priroda' (Nature), 'Okeanologiya' (Oceanology), and 'Geopoliticheskiy vestnik' (Geopolitical Herald), distributed through a free application.
• Printing Services Commercial printing services using the publisher's in-house typographic facilities, offered to authors, organizations, and third-party publishers for the manufacture of printed products.
• Exclusive Binding Custom bookbinding services for publications using various cover materials and all types of embossing.
• Pre-press Preparation Prepress services including typesetting, image processing, and preparation of materials for print production on paper.

Named customers1 record

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Eleven partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.

• Russian Academy of Sciences (RAN/РАН)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNauka Publishers is the official publisher of all scientific journals of the Russian Academy of Sciences. This century-old partnership makes the publisher the central platform for scientific communications of the RAS, publishing over 160 journal titles covering all fields of science.
• Russian Historical SocietymajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership in historical research publishing and promotion of Russian historical scholarship.
• Russian Book ChambermajorTechnology or IntegrationNauka Publishers offers services for submitting mandatory electronic copies to the Russian Book Chamber as part of publishing workflow.
• Russian State Library (RSL/РГБ)majorTechnology or IntegrationPublisher offers services for submitting mandatory electronic copies to the Russian State Library as part of publishing compliance.
• RospechatmajorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPartnership for distribution and circulation of Nauka Publishers' scientific literature through the Rospechat distribution network.
• Ural PressminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPartnership for press distribution and circulation of publications.
• Rosnano (FIOP)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerListed as a partner organization; collaboration details not specified in available sources.
• Russian Centre for Scientific and Technical Information (RCNTI/РЦНИ)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerListed as a partner organization; collaboration details not specified in available sources.
• Nauka.rfminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerListed as a partner organization in the science portal ecosystem.
• Institute of World Literature (IMLI RAS/ИМЛИ РАН)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerListed as a partner organization; collaboration in literary and philological research publishing.
• Association of Publishers and Booksellers (ASKI/АСКИ)minorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPartnership in the book publishing and distribution industry association.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Elsevier: Global leader in scientific, technical, and medical publishing with a dominant journal portfolio. Comparable to Nauka in serving institutional library customers with subscription-based access to peer-reviewed research across all scientific disciplines.
• Springer Nature: One of the largest global scientific publishers, publishing thousands of journals and tens of thousands of books across all disciplines. Directly comparable in scope of scientific publishing, with Springer acting as a natural international counterpart to Nauka's RAS-aligned monograph and journal program.
• Wiley: Major academic publisher with a large journal and book portfolio spanning scientific, technical, and medical research. Comparable to Nauka in its institutional subscription model and breadth across scholarly disciplines.

Direct peers

• Cambridge University Press: University press with a substantial scientific journal program and monograph publishing across disciplines. Comparable to Nauka in its scholarly society publishing relationships and academic library customer base.
• Pleiades Publishing: Russian publisher that translates and distributes RAS-affiliated journals in English through partnerships with Springer. The closest direct peer, handling the international English-language distribution of much of Nauka's RAS journal portfolio.
• Taylor & Francis: Major peer-reviewed scientific journal and book publisher with strong humanities, social sciences, and STM portfolio. Comparable to Nauka in its hybrid subscription/open-access journal model and institutional library focus.
• SAGE Publications: Independent academic publisher with deep journal and book programs in social sciences and adjacent scientific fields. Comparable to Nauka in its scholarly society publishing relationships and library subscription model.
• Walter de Gruyter: European academic publisher with strong humanities and STM journal and book programs. Comparable to Nauka in its multidisciplinary scholarly portfolio and emphasis on monograph series across scientific disciplines.
• Oxford University Press: Large university press publishing hundreds of peer-reviewed scientific journals and monographs. Comparable to Nauka in its scholarly society publishing partnerships and global institutional reach.

Emerging players

• MDPI: Open-access scientific publisher that has rapidly scaled across STM disciplines via author-side APC fees. Represents the open-access model that competes with Nauka's traditional subscription-based journal publishing.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Subsidiaries1 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 Nauka Publishers