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This week, Thomson Corporation announced that it has bought Biosis, the nonprofit organization that produces databases and other services for the life sciences, including Biological Abstracts, Biosis Previews, and Zoological Record. A Thomson representative said those who use Biosis products will not notice any differences in how they get their data, the platforms they use to retrieve information, or the relationships they have with the people who provide the products. “The message is: 'business as usual,'” James Pringle, vice president of product development at ISI, a component of Thomson, told The Scientist. Pringle added that Thomson hopes to create synergies between its products and those offered by Biosis, enhancing what both can offer subscribers.Joel Baron of Knowledge Solutions, strategic advisors to the board of trustees at Biosis, said the nonprofit sought a buyer because it had become unable to generate enough cash to keep investing in its publishing business. With the money Thomson paid for the Biosis products, the former nonprofit has established a new foundation known as the JRS Foundation, to be run by the former board of trustees at Biosis. Baron said that the foundation has established an overall mission of helping people understand and access information about the life sciences, but its members have yet to set any specific goals.Thomson, which publishes information for businesses, has more than 20 million users in a wide range of industries, such as accounting, higher education, and scientific research. ISI, founded by Eugene Garfield, the president and founding editor of The Scientist, is known for Current Contents, the Citation Index, and other products. Thomson reported $7.5 billion in revenues in 2002.Some are concerned for the future of the databases and other products. Suzanne Fedunok, acting life sciences librarian at New York University, told The Scientist this latest purchase is another example of a big publisher “gobbling” up smaller publishers, a trend that has her “concerned.” When a smaller entity is consumed by a larger one, prices tend to increase, according to Fedunok, who said she did not think the latest purchase would be an exception. “My prediction is that the price [of Biosis products] will go up, just based on what we pay for some of these other ISI-Thomson products,” she said.Linda Rosenstein, associate director for information resources at the Biomedical Library of the University of Pennsylvania, agreed. She noted that Thomson could raise prices by making Biosis available only through their interface, while people can currently access Biosis products using their own search engine tool.Overall, the prices of scientific material are becoming “unbearable,” Rosenstein said, raising concerns that some institutions may become unable to provide researchers with access to certain publications and products.Pringle said it was “premature” to speculate if the recent purchase will mean the price of Biosis products will increase, but said Thomson is focused on “maintaining the same kinds of relationships” customers have had with Biosis. “I wouldn't say that there's any pricing implication to this acquisition at all,” Pringle said.There are also many advantages to using products provided by a larger company, Pringle noted, and added that Thomson plans to use its revenues to improve the services Biosis provides to its clients.Baron said that the price of scientific publishing has certainly become a “big issue” in libraries, but noted that Biosis is already quite expensive, and Thomson representatives have consistently said they want to maintain things “as much the same as possible.” If Thomson were to raise the price of Biosis products, “it would be counter to the spirit of the sale,” Baron told The Scientist.

Thomson acquires Biosis

Company says 'business as usual' for databases as librarians worry about price increases

Jan 15, 2004

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