Global circumstances and recent trends in the Portuguese university publishing industry

Abstract

This article explores recent dynamics within the Portuguese university book market. The activity of the university presses in Portugal, despite lagging a decade and a half behind countries such as Brazil regarding a similar set of transformations, clearly depicts ongoing changes, albeit in a heterogeneous fashion. On the other hand, a growing number of Portuguese university presses demonstrate a commitment towards knowledge generating channels, inside and outside their institutions. Nevertheless, such a modernizing wave has not been the solution to all the problems the university presses have to face. Given this set of circumstances, the scientific and scholarly publishing sector still relies heavily for visibility and circulatory purposes on privately-owned non-university presses, particularly in the field of the social sciences and humanities.