&gt; Assumption 2: the cost of the subscriptions is passed on to the primary customers of the universities -- students.<p>This is not likely to be true. Most universities in the US take overheads on grants. So if you get a $20,000 grant, the university will often take up to $12,000 of that (usually it&#x27;s in the $6000–8000 range), and the researcher uses the rest. That money in overheads is used for a variety of things, including supporting the research (i.e., paying for journal subscriptions).<p>&gt; Question: Is there any correlation to be made between the profitability of such academic publishers with the astounding rise in university tuition in the US over the past three decades?<p>Journals are expensive, but they&#x27;re not _that_ expensive. It&#x27;s much more plausible that the rise in tuition can be linked to non-academic expenditures at universities, including athletic facilities (e.g., gyms for students), fancy dining halls and dorms, and non-academic staff. Maybe one could argue those aren&#x27;t the drivers of high tuition, but I&#x27;d be surprised if a rise in journal costs were remotely comparable.