Heighten Science "envelopes all the existing and emerging developments"

Heighten Science Publication Corporation is here "to cater the insistent need of researchers." Its About Us page explains that

Heighten Science Publications Corporation (HSPC) welcomes you as a new member. The potential of Heighten Science in publishing journals is radically altering the way, scientific information is disseminated. Heighten Science intends to establish a high-quality, open access, peer reviewed Journals that can become a source of updated and the most complete and reliable source of information on current developments in the fields of clinical, medical, biology, chemistry, pharmaceutical and engineering related researches. All the journals published by Heighten Science are dynamic and envelopes all the existing and emerging developments to be abreast of the fast paced growth of the subject. Heighten Science does not only publish but also successfully disperse the knowledge to the relevant and necessary sources using the latest technology.

To supply "added value," "Heighten Science aims to provide high quality, meticulously reviewed and rapid publication, to cater the insistent need of researchers." The "Why with Us" page has such expostulations as "The scalar chain of Heighten Science comprises of prominent scholars and experts of different fields and an alert unmatched readership base." And of course HSPC does "not want to stalemate your research work in limiting it to word counts or size." Whether the alert and unmatched readers share the desire to let authors write page after page is not discussed. The publication charges for the 53 journals are hefty, but, hey, "we solely depends on the authors" and use their "contributions ... in collaboration services, promotions and citations which ultimately helps in increasing the visualization ... ."

The contact information includes this address: 2504 Stillwater CT, Flower Mound, Texas - 75022, USA +14043820291 info@heighpubs.us." The email address heighpubs@gmail.com and the telephone number belong to Sandeep Kumar. Whitepages.com lists the following names as owner or residents of the four bedroom house: Shubhada V Sharma, Sandeep K Sharma, Rekha N Sharma, Manisha V Varshney, Saumya Sehgal, Tony J Owens, and Tammie E Bonham. Sandeep Sharma also uses the home address for The Evolvers Group LP. He is the CEO of this computer services and consulting company. The domain name heighpubs.us is registered to Chandra Shekar.

The corporation is registered to the same Sandeep Sharma.  In fact, he is the mayor pro tem of the town, having moved there in 2001 after graduating from the University of Poona in computer engineering in 1989 and earning an MBA in in strategic management from the University of Kansas in 1998. The Texas Comptroller's office identifies two other directors of the publishing corporation: Chandr Gundabattula (address LOT-13 13 15 16 23 FLAT-501 SUJATA), and Iswarya Uppalapati (PLOT-1322 FLAT-102 VINDHYA HILLS AP).

I looked at Heighten's Journal of Forensic Science and Research, since that is a field I am familiar with. Most of the links brought me to articles from other journals, such as one on "Peaceful Bridging" from a dentist in Hawaii describing tooth replacement and promoting his "Carlson Bridge® 'Winged Pontic' tooth replacement system" published (with misspellings) in the December 2018 issue of Heighten's Journal of Oral Health and Craniofacial Science.

UPDATE 12/25/2020: The "Editor Policy" on the webpage explains that "Heighten Science trail a critical evaluation prior to selection of Editorial Board members." This will "assess the quality quotient of articles being published." let's hope that "quality quotient" exceeds the website's, not to mention that of Heighten's emails. Today's spam comes from the great state of "Taxes, USA."

Email

Archives of Case Reports

• From: Author Relationship Editor - CASEREPORTS [casereports@hspcorporation.org]
  Date: 25 July 2019
  Subject: The journal will publish your innovations
  Archives of Case Reports (ISSN: 2637-3793)
  We have communicatedyou earlier, but there is no response from you, so we would like to contact you another time! In view of your previous contributions and research interests, we are contacting you again to submit the manuscript which is useful for the journal growth.
  Planning for Upcoming Issue: Submission Date: August 6th 2019 | Review Process Duration: 10 to 15 days |
  Releasing Date: August 16th 2019
  We need your support by sharing your valuable manuscripts towards our Journal. I welcome you to submit the articles to this email as an attachment (If your manuscript is going to be ready for publication). If you don’t have any material in your hand, please allow us to know the feasible date of your submission. An early confirmation from your side is very much appreciated as it really helps to provide quality research to the scientific community. You can send your paper(s) to casereports@heighpubs.us
  I would appreciate if you will respond to this email. Your manuscript could contribute a lot to Science.
  Kind regards,
  Angelina Isabella
  Managing Editor
  Texas, USA

Clinical Journal of Nursing Care and Practice

• From: Clinical Journal of Nursing Care and Practice [hjncp@hspcorporation.org]
  Date: May 23, 2019
  Subject: Your article promotion also one of our services
  Hope we are not interrupting you in your busy schedule.
  Doctor, I am Clark S Journal Coordinator for Clinical Journal of Nursing Care and Practice [ISSN: 2639-9911]. Can you give us a few minutes of your valuable time? Firstly, we would like to take the pleasure to appreciate your expertise and professionalism in the field of your expertise. We have just gone through your publications and found that your expertise is related to the scope of the journal. [← Must be an enormous scope, considering that I have nothing to do with nursing care] Our Editorial Board got impressed by your academic profile with Published articles and Research interest.
  Being impressed by your published articles,weare contacting you to know if you can associate with us by submitting your “Unpublished paper” which will be highly helpful for the journal growth. So, we wish you to grab this opportunity and publish your research works and make them helpful for the scientific community.
  To avail this opportunity, you are requested to send your article by June 07th, 2019. Hence, keeping in view of friendlyassociation with you, we have put our humble request and hope you would not disappoint us.
  Await your acknowledgementregarding the submission.
  Regards,
  Clark S
• From: Clinical Journal of Nursing Care and Practice [nursing@heighpubs.net]
  Sent: Thursday, December 10, 2020 11:26 PM
  Subject: [an email address]
  Dear David H Kaye,
  Hope you had a pleasant morning.
  It’s our pleasure to invite you to our Clinical Journal of Nursing Care and Practice (ISSN: 2639-9911). Our purpose of this email is to inform you that we need your support [← considering my lack of qualifications in nursing, they are in trouble] for releasing our Volume 4 Issue 2 by submitting an Article before 25th of December 2020.
  If this is a short notice, please do send an opinion or mini review or case report by next weekend, we hope 2-page article isn’t time taken for an eminent author like you.
  You can submit your Manuscript to this email ID, as an attachment.
  Await your promising response.
  Best Regards,
  Clark Skyla
  Taxes, USA
  If you are not comfortable with our emails, please unsubscribe.

Journal of Clinical Nephrology

• From: Author Relationship Editor - NEPHROLOGY [nephrology-journal@hspcorporation.org]
  Date: Mon 12 Aug 2019
  Subject: Do consider our journal to publish your upcoming article
  We have communicatedyou earlier, but there is no response from you, so we would like to contact you another time! In view of your previous contributions and research interests, we are contacting you again to submit the manuscript which is useful for the journal growth.
  Planning for Upcoming Issue: Submission Date: August 20th 2019 | Review Process Duration: 10 days | Releasing Date: August 30th 2019
  We need your support by sharing your valuable manuscripts towards our Journal. I welcome you to submit the articles to this email as an attachment (If your manuscript is going to be ready for publication).
  If you don’t have any material in your hand, please allow us to know the feasible date of your submission. An early confirmation from your side is very much appreciated as it really helps to provide quality research to the scientific community. You can send your paper(s) to nephrology-journal@heighpubs.us
  I would appreciate if you will respond to this email. Your manuscript could contribute a lot to Science.
  Kind regards,
  Angelina Isabella
  Managing Editor
  Texas, USA
  You are receiving this email because of your relationship [← spammee-spammer] with the sender.

Journal of Hematology and Clinical Research

• From: Journal of Hematology and Clinical Research [jhcr@hspcorporation.org]
  Date: 4 June 2019 9:11 AM
  Subject: Your support will play a lead role to release the upcoming issue
  Greetings from the Journal of Hematology and Clinical Research!
  Hope you are doing well.
  This mail is regarding the submission of your article.
  Based on your expertise and previous articles published, we would like to request you to submit an article for our Journal. Contribution from an eminent person like you increases the Journal’s quality and its standards.
  If you are interested, kindly send us the article as an attachment to: jhcr@heighpubs.us Please let us know if you have any other queries.
  Awaiting your response.
  Best Regards,
  Smith A
  You are receiving this email because of your [hitherto unknown] relationship with the sender. ...
• From: Editorial Manager - JHCR [jhcr@hspcorporation.org]
  Date: 19 August 2019 1:28 AM
  Subject: Enhance the quality of the article by robust peer review process
  
  Journal of Hematology and Clinical Research
  In view of your previous contributions and research interests, we are contacting you to submit the manuscript which is useful for the growth of our journal. Contribution from an eminent person like you increases the Journal’s quality and its standards. On behalf of the journal, we would like to request you to submit your manuscript on or before 31st August, 2019 to this mail
  Note: Kindly submit the cover letter along with your submission to make us identify easily.
  Please respond back regarding your interest on submission.
  Awaiting your response.
  Thanks & Regards,
  Williams K
  You are receiving this email because of your [spammee-spammer] relationship with the sender. ...

Journal of Sports Medicine and Therapy

• From: Journal of Sports Medicine and Therapy [sportsmed@hspcorporation.info]
  Sent: Friday, March 19, 2021 3:29 AM
  Subject: Boost your article quality
  Dear Dr. David H Kaye,
  We need one article for successful release of Volume 5 Issue 1 in our Journal of Sports Medicine and Therapy. Please submit us your Manuscript for this issue release before 29th March 2021, if this is a short notice in your busy schedule, please do send an Short article, we hope 2 page article isn’t time taken for an eminent author like you. You can submit your Manuscript to this email ID. As an attachment.
  Kindly let me know your feasibility for submitting any of your unpublished paper to our journal.
  Can we expect this from you before the dead line? Await your submissions.
  Best Regards,
  Michael Simmons

Does Iris Publishers Raid OMICS for Material?

Commenting on the report on Iris Publishers, Sudheer Kaku, the IT technical specialist in Aurora, Colorado, who was identified as the likely owner, wrote "Please let me know if you come across any genuine complain [sic] or an instance where we scammed or didn't deliver on what we promised."

Iris promises that it "only accept[s] original content" and that "[a]ny work that has less than 75% originality will be rejected." It promises authors "rigorous peer reviews and quality check." It claims that it checks for previous publication as a part of the process. It promises editing to improve an author's submissions. How often does it deliver on these promises?

Clearly, it did none of these things in the case of two articles by Mohamed Daris of the "University Rabat Morocco," the "Department of Physics, Morocco," the "Department of Physics, University of Science," or the "Department of Mathematical Physics, University Rabbat Morocco." (These are the affiliations provided on his various papers that appear in flaky journals. I have not seen a university with any of these names listed on the web, but there is a University Mohammed V de Rabat.)

Realization of the Relationship between Quantum Mechanics and Relativity

This paper first appeared in the flaky and oddly named OMICS Journal of Physical Mathematics (Received Date: Aug 24, 2018 / Accepted Date: Sep 12, 2018 / Published Date: Sep 20, 2018 ). It begins as follows:

In this section we will have the design of a central energy model based on the energy of the light E this model has three forms of energy: the energy of the mass Em which is based deep on the mass m in relation with the wave function Ψ and the density density energy Eρ which is based on the density density ρ in relation to the wave function Ψ and the volume energy EV which is based on the volume V in relation with the wave function Ψ. This approximation gives us access to the last very important paragraph in this research is the relationship between quantum mechanics and relativity.

The "density density" article provides nothing less than "an exact correction of the classical light equation E = mc²." It concludes with an equation that "is a proper state of the presence of relativity and quantum mechanics at the same time in any system on the universe or far from the universe." Could one ask for anything more?

Mr. Kaku’s Annals of Biostatistics & Biometric Applications duplicated this gobbledy-gook (which has nothing to do with biostatistics), presenting it as new, quality publication. Mohamed Daris. Realization of the Relationship between Quantum Mechanics and Relativity. AnnalBiostat & Biomed Appli. 2(2): 2019. ABBA.MS.ID.000535. DOI: 10.33552/ABBA.2019.02.000535. (Received Date: April 17, 2019 Published Date: May 08, 2019).

Establishing the Equation of the Wave Function and the System Model (ρ, m, v)

This paper also appeared earlier in the OMICS Journal of Physical Mathematics (“Received Date: Aug 24, 2018 / Accepted Date: Sep 14, 2018 / Published Date: Sep 21, 2018"). The introduction reads as follows:

The main purpose of this topic is to better understand new aspects of matter and energetic systems and to give new theorems and relations based on having an idea about the behaviour of matter either on the mass side of the volume or the volume density this gives us newly exploit relationships but on the basis of the corrective theorem of the equation of light and that will guide us to have an explanatory model of the material and hence the systems outside the vacuum or inside the void.

That is a mouthful. The body of the article consists of a couple of postulated equations (with no indication of why they are meaningful or plausible) and a miscellany of algebraic consequences. It concludes with the apocalyptic remark that:

These last results show that any material with a mass and a volume and a density tends towards a moment TF [“Time of the Universe”]. That is to say that matter when it arrives at the moment TF its basic elements, which constitute them, mean that the volume and density disappear and the matter no longer exists.

Again, Annals of Biostatistics & Biometric Applications, which has no named editor-in-chief,  republished this ouevre falling well outside of its professed scope as if it were a new (and meaningful) publication. Mohamed Daris. Establishing the Equation of the Wave Function and the System Model (ρ, m, v). AnnalBiostat & Biomed Appli. 2(1): 2019. ABBA.MS.ID.000529. DOI: 10.33552/ABBA.2019.02.000529 (Received Date: April 17,2019 Published Date: April 26, 2019).

Such publications in OMICS and then Iris journals are difficult to reconcile with sincere assertions of "rigorous peer reviews."

Ocimum's Foray: into "Forensic Sciences: Methods and Techniques"

Ocimum Scientific Publishers is an Australian company that seems to be reporting revenues of $11 million with journals that are nascent at best. The email to me (4/29/19) speaks of a "second issue" that will appear in June. The website lists three issues of Forensic Sciences: Methods and Techniques as already published, but all three turn out to have the same paltry 38 pages of articles. That mode of publication could makes it challenging if anyone wants to cite their work.

The editorial board has the following U.S. members ("from reputed universities"):

⊘ Stephen G Tibbetts, Professor, California State University, San Bernardino (editor-in-chief)
⊘ William D Bales, Professor, Florida State University
⊘ Vaughn M Bryant, Professor, Texas A&M University
⊘ Midori Albert, Professor, University of North Carolina Wilmington
⊘ Camille Gibson, Professor, Prairie View A&M University
⊘ Sheri Jenkins Keenan, Clinical Assistant Professor, The University of Memphis
⊘ Pamela Newell, Assistant Professor, University of North Georgia at Dahlonega
⊘ Douglas A Orr, Assistant Professor, University of North Georgia
⊘ George Richards, Associate Professor, Edinboro University of Pennsylvania
⊘ Delbert Rounds, Associate Professor, Edinboro University of Pennsylvania
⊘ Pamella A Seay, Professor, Florida Gulf Coast University

Email

• From: Blake Notman OS [forensic.osp@ocimumscience.com]
  Sent: Monday, April 29, 2019, 1:49:18 AM EDT
  Subject: Are you ready to share your research on criminology
  Professor David Kaye,
  My name is Blake Notman and I am the Editorial Manager at Ocimum Scientific Publishers.
  Journal of Forensic Sciences: Methods and Techniques launched its first issue and planning to launch its second issue in the month of June.
  Under the direction of eminent editorial board members from reputed universities worldwide this journal is growing rapidly and publishing quality research papers since its inception. You can have a look at the papers already published. I believe we can help you to publish your most recent/current research work in this journal, for your convenience, please find the attached author instructions ... .
  I am writing to enquire about your plans to publish your recent/current research work with us. Let me know your plans, so that we can plan accordingly. If you have any questions or concerns, don’t hesitate to let me know.
  Season benefits, manuscripts submitted in the month of May will be published for 298 USD.
  Looking forward to discussing what we can do for each other in more detail.
  Best wishes,
  Blake Notman
  Editorial Manager
  Ocimum Scientific Publishers, 26 Bourke Crescent, Hoppers Crossing, Victoria 3029, Australia contact@ocimumjournals.com

Ocimum Scientific Publishers (OSP) "is here to help people with insatiable hunger"

Ocimum is the name of a medicinal plant -- and now an Australian publisher of journals. Zoominfo reports that Ocimum has 57 employees and revenue of $11.4 million. For a private company (ABN 57 625 203 376) that came into existence (in Australia, anyway) at the end of March 2018, that is rather impressive. So is the fact that the address for the business (26 Bourke Cres, Hoppers Crossing VIC 3029) is the site of an unimposing three-bedroom house in a residential neighborhood (according to Australian real estate websites). The nearly 60 employees must  be rather cramped. But the work could be outsourced. The email came to me from a server in India. The domain names ocimumjournals.com and ocimumjournals.net were registered by Perfect Privacy in 2018. GoDaddy.com registered ocimumscience.org registered in April 2019.

In any event, the revenue does not seem to be coming from its journals, which are just coming into existence. I looked into the first journal listed on the website, the Journal of Anesthesiology Study and Treatment. It has no editor-in-chief and no issues out yet, but it "publishes papers from all the fields of Anesthesiology Study and Treatment [with] issues for every four months." It "accepts all kinds of manuscripts like Original Research Articles ... ."

One of the editorial board members, John F. Bebawy, of Northwestern University, is a favorite of flaky journals. He is listed as the editor-in-chief of an OMICS journal and a board member with journals at Allied Academies, Annex Publishers, Applis Publishers, ARC, Austin Publishing Group, Chembio Publishers, Clinics in Oncology, Gavin Publishers, Heighten Science, Kosmos Publishers, Lupine Journals, Madridge Publishers, Medwin Publishers, ONOMY Science, Open Access Pub, Openventio, ProClinS, Pubtexto, Pulsus Group, Remedy Publications, SciRes Literature, SciTechnol, SeriesScience International, SOAOJ, Unique Pub International, Zygoscient, and lots more. I figure that no one, no matter how desirous of a lengthy C.V., would sign up with so many journals. If so, the list is evidence of fraudulent practices on the part of at least some of them.

OSP's About Us page has the flowery phrases and ESL constructions seen among its competitors. Its "primary aim is to raise the bar for publishing quality research work and maintaining high standards in double blind peer review process, we assure you that. We will put our best efforts in maintaining trust among scientific world with Ocimum Scientific Publishers."Raising the bar to publishing quality research may not achieve the desired "betterment of scientific world," but, hey, OSP is just starting.

Email

• From: Blake Notman OS [forensic.osp@ocimumscience.com]
  Sent: Monday, April 29, 2019, 1:49:18 AM EDT
  Subject: Are you ready to share your research on criminology
  Professor David Kaye,
  My name is Blake Notman and I am the Editorial Manager at Ocimum Scientific Publishers.
  Journal of Forensic Sciences: Methods and Techniques launched its first issue and planning to launch its second issue in the month of June.
  Under the direction of eminent editorial board members from reputed universities worldwide this journal is growing rapidly and publishing quality research papers since its inception. You can have a look at the papers already published. I believe we can help you to publish your most recent/current research work in this journal, for your convenience, please find the attached author instructions ... .
  I am writing to enquire about your plans to publish your recent/current research work with us. Let me know your plans, so that we can plan accordingly. If you have any questions or concerns, don’t hesitate to let me know.
  Season benefits, manuscripts submitted in the month of May will be published for 298 USD.
  Looking forward to discussing what we can do for each other in more detail.
  Best wishes,
  Blake Notman
  Editorial Manager
  Ocimum Scientific Publishers
  26 Bourke Crescent, Hoppers Crossing, Victoria 3029, Australia contact@ocimumjournals.com

Scimaze Joins the Rat Race

Scimaze Palliative and Nursing Care has invited me to submit articles and to apply to be an editorial board member. Although I have no background or qualifications in the field, I suppose my contributions would be valuable relative to what else is there. The journal's website is largely an empty shell. It has tabs for articles in press, a current issue, an archive, and an editor-in-chief, but there are no entries. The editorial board consists of assistant professors in Tokyo and Iran. That is better than most of the other Scimaze journals, which have no editors and no content at all.

Nevertheless, for $519, they will be happy to "process" articles. One hopes that the processing results in better composed work than what the publisher has on its About Us page. There, we learn that

★ Scimaze Group ... works towards taking research innovatively to a certain limelight
★ Our international journals has made place among the top scientific journals [← That is quite an accomplishment considering that the 16 journals have published only five articles.]
★ Our journal is protuberant for the seriousness of the research work
★ We work for a cause to take the research work to a level never seen before.
★ We work with the intention of providing a better future for the mankind.

One Scimaze journal does have an editor-in-chief. He is "Nelson Howard Hendler, Assistant professor, Department of Neurosurgery, School of Medicine Johns Hopkins University." At this point, Dr. Hendler is the only one who has written anything for the journal he edits, Scimaze Anaethesia and Pain Managment. The photograph is that of a young man, but the biographical description states that Dr. Hendler graduated from Princeton University in 1966 and taught at Johns Hopkins for 31 years -- apparently from 1975-2006.. In 2006, Dr. Hendler had his medical license suspended because of allegations that he "traded drugs for sex with patients and handed out pain pills without proper prescriptions." Fred Schulte, Md. Board Suspends Doctor's License, Baltimore Sun, Feb. 9, 2006. The details are rather lurid. Dr. Hendler edits a journal for another shell publisher, Crimson Publications.

The domain name scimaze.com was registered a year ago by Domains by Proxy. The server is in India, and the contact information on the website supplies the incomplete address of Harijan Street, Gajularega, Vizianagaram-535002, India.

Email

• From: Scimaze Palliative and Nursing Care [nursingcare@scimaze.com]
  Date: April 27, 2019 7:24 AM
  Subject: Palliative and Nursing Care
  Dear Dr. David H Kaye,
  Greetings. Scimaze Palliative and Nursing Care is an open access journal which covers all case studies in the clincal and medical field. The journal solicits Case reports, Case Series, Image Articles, editorials and Letter to Editors etc.
  Due Date. Article submitted by the month of 25 May 2019 will be highly appreciated. If it is not feasible for you to submit paper in this month, then kindly let us know your feasible time for contribution for further issue submissions
  With kind regards,
  Joe Thomas
  Journal Coordinator
  Scimaze Palliative and Nursing Care
  Note: if you are interested to serve as an editorial board member and reviewer, kindly send your CV, Biography, Research interest and photograph.
  You are receiving this email because of your relationship with the sender [← Yes, I am the spamee.]

Who Lives in the Biomed Nest?

Biomed Nest is "so much Enthusiastic." It wants "to bring out open Research." It has a long way to go.

No journals are listed on its website (4/18/19). Most links lead a page urging the viewer to "submit manuscript." Although there is a reference to "Biomed Research Nest" as a journal with "sections" such as "Enviroment," this journal does not seem to exist. But it will have two "special issues" -- one on cervical cancer (inasmuch as "The cervix is the narrow tube at the lower part of the uterus") and another on oral and dental research (because "Oral and Dental Health is a crucial part of our well being" and "Poor oral sanitation can lead to gum disease").

The positions held by the "Academic Editors" of the "Prestigious Editorial Board" are not listed, so I tried to check on a few. Amro M Ali is an instructor in the ophthalmology department of New York Medical College in Valhalla. Kameshwar R Ayasolla is not a researcher at the Feinstein Institute for Medical Research. (At least, the Institute's website does not have his name on the list. However, he might have some other affiliation with this "research branch of the Northwell Health enterprise ... headquartered in Manhasset, NY," for the organization is composed of more than 1,500 clinicians, scientists and staff.")

The website also advertises two conferences as if they are inside the Nest. In fact, these Singapore conferences carry the name of the questionable conference organizer, Biomedical Conferences.

The domain biomednest.com was registered about two months ago by Domains By Proxy. The address of the nest is 17389 Nature Walk Trail Parker, CO 80134, where condominiums are located.

Email

• From: biomed nest [medical@biomednest.com]
  Date: Apr 18 2019 5:35 AM
  Subject: Join our Editorial Board
  Dear Dr. D H Kaye,
  Hope this email finds you well.
  I am in search of Reviewers and Academic editors for our journal in order to strengthen the overall quality of Journal’s publication. Hence, I request you to support us by joining our board.
  Please let me know if you will be able to review or Edit for us. If yes, drop your cv to this email id.
  Await your acceptance.
  Best wishes,
  Annie Brown
  If you wish not to receive my emails visit us
• From: Biomednest [medical@biomednest.net]
  Date: Apr. 24 2019 8:43 AM
  Subject: Acknowledge this email
  [Identical message from Annie]

OMICS ordered to pay $50 million for deceptive practices

A few days ago, a U.S. District Court held Srinubabu Gedela and his companies, the OMICS Group, iMedPub, and Conference Series, liable for over $50 million. It also issued a permanent injunction against many deceptive practices on the part of this nest of companies and the various other entities through which they operate (such as Allied Academies, Meetings International, and Pulsus). Excerpts from the opinion that describe the deceptive practices are below. 1/

Needless to say, Dr. Gedala, who is something of a celebrity in India, 2/ has tried to discredit the FTC's claims. In an interview with the Indian Express last summer, he crowed that the FTC had "not proved a single thing" and that "[w]e have also filed against them for $3.11 billion." Previously, he threatened Jeffrey Beall, the librarian who placed OMICS on a list of "predatory journals" with a one billion dollar lawsuit but did not pursue it because Beall "is not capable of paying the damages. So, it is useless. But we are fighting the FTC case, which we have taken very seriously."

The district court found against Dr. Gedala and his companies without a trial. It determined that defendants produced no acceptable evidence to contradict the proof submitted by the FTC, entitling the FTC to summary judgment. In the Indian Express interview, Dr. Gedala had this to say about the FTC's allegations: "The FTC don’t know the definition of journal. They don’t know what peer review is. They are illiterates. Scientists are not illiterates." He did not discuss the complaints and the affidavits from scientists that the FTC supplied to the court.

OMICS's plans to appeal the judgment. 3/

Federal Trade Commission v. OMICS Group, Inc.
No. 2:16-cv-02022-GMN-VCF
(D. Nev. Mar. 29, 2019)

---

The FTC brings this action ... alleging that Defendants engaged in unfair and deceptive practices with respect to the publication of online academic journals and organization of scientific conferences. ... Defendants claim to operate hundreds of online academic journals on a wide variety of topics, including medicine, chemistry, nursing, engineering, and genetics. ... In order to persuade consumers to submit articles for publication, the FTC alleges that Defendants make numerous misrepresentations regarding the nature and reputation of their journals. ... The FTC also alleges that Defendants fail to disclose the significant fees associated with their publishing services. ... Finally, the FTC alleges that Defendants make numerous misrepresentations in connection with the marketing of their scientific conferences. ...

Defendants OMICS, iMedPub, and Conference Series are corporate entities registered in the United States with a principle place of business located in Hyderabad, India. ... Each entity shares the same principal address at SEZ Unit, Building No. 20, 9th Floor, APIIC Layout, HITEC City, Hyderabad, AP 500081. ... Furthermore, each entity at various points has utilized common addresses for their United States locations and business registrations. ... In general, these entities operate as a group with comingled assets. ... Gedela is the sole owner and founding director of the three Corporate Defendants. Gedela first began using the fictitious business name “OMICS Publishing Group” for his publishing and conference services in 2009. ... Until at least 2015, Gedela held revenue from the Corporate Defendants in a Citibank account set up in Palo Alto for OMICS Publishing Group. ...

Defendants advertise throughout their websites and email solicitations that they strictly adhere to standard peer-review practices. For example, in 2014, Defendants published web pages stating that OMICS had 25,000 experts serving as editorial board members and reviewers, and that “[a]ll articles submitted for publication are subjected to a blind peer review.” ... Over the years, this number has grown to over 50,000 purported experts serving as board members and reviewers for over 700+ “leading-edge peer reviewed” journals. ... Consistently, Defendants have represented their peer review policies as “highly appreciated, accepted and adaptable” to the criteria set forth by agencies such as PubMed. ...

In contradiction to these assertions, however, the FTC submits evidence indicating that Defendants’ peer review practices are a “sham.” ... For example, in certain instances, consumers who submitted articles were approved for publication within just several days of submission. ... In others, consumers reported receiving no comments or proposed revisions from peer reviewers. ... The consumers who did receive feedback from reviewers have noted that it was not substantive. ...

In 2012, John Bohannon—a scientist and writer for Science magazine—submitted two articles to Defendants’ journals with intentionally “egregious” scientific flaws. ... Defendants’ journals accepted the flawed papers without any substantive comments or review. ... Similarly, in 2016, a journalist for the Ottawa Citizen submitted an “unintelligible” article containing ungrammatical sentences and invented words. ... Defendants’ journal published the article without any edits and without contacting the author prior to publication. ... After reviewing these cases, the FTC’s expert Joyce Backus concluded that the papers were not subjected to peer review “as that term is understood in the academic publishing industry.” ...

In addition to consumer commentary, the FTC also submits statements from multiple of Defendants’ journal editors. ... In these statements, the editors indicate that they never received any manuscripts to review. ... Based on documents received through discovery, the FTC asserts that out of 69,000 published articles, only 49% indicate that some form of review was conducted. ...

Defendants advertise that their publications are reviewed and edited by as many as 50,000 experts. In support of this claim, Defendants’ websites include hundreds of names, pictures, and biographies of scientists and researchers allegedly serving on editorial boards. Upon the FTC contacting several listed editors, however, many indicated that they had never agreed to be affiliated with OMICS. ... Furthermore, in some instances, Defendants continued to use the researchers’ names even after they requested removal. ... More generally, the FTC notes that Defendants have only been able to produce a list of 14,598 unique editors and evidence of an agreement to serve as an editor for only 380 individuals. ...

Defendants advertise throughout their websites and solicitation emails that their publications have high “impact factors.” ... These advertisements include express representations, such as “OMICS International journals are among the top high impact factor academic journals which are publishing scholarly articles constantly.” ... Defendants admit that their journals do not have Thomson Reuters impact factors. ... Rather, Defendants’ impact factors are self-calculated ratios based on the number of citations found through a Google Scholar search. ... Defendants’ websites contain inconsistent descriptions of how their impact factors are calculated. ...

Defendants represent that their publications are indexed in reputable indexing services. ... For example, Defendants repeatedly indicate that their journals are indexed in [the national Library of Medicine’s] Medline and PubMed Central. ... At various points, Defendants have even utilized PubMed and Medline’s logos on their websites. ... Despite these representations, Defendants admit that none of their journals are indexed in PubMed Central or Medline. ... Instead, Defendants claim that more than 900 well-respected scientists have recommended OMICS’ journals to be published in PubMed central. ... Nonetheless, NLM has explicitly refused to index Defendants’ publications due to questionable publishing practices and requested that Defendants cease indicating any affiliation. ... Despite NLM’s requests, Defendants have continued to indicate their journals’ inclusion in Medline and PubMed Central. ...

Defendants frequently send out solicitation emails inviting individuals to submit articles to Defendants’ online publications. ... In numerous instances, these email solicitations contain no mention of any fees associated with Defendants’ publication service. ... Defendants have continued this practice even after the Court’s entry of its preliminary injunction. ... Defendants’ solicitation emails invite consumers to submit articles for publication by responding directly to the email. ... Additionally, Defendants solicit article submissions through their online portals. ... In many instances, Defendants’ article homepages do not contain clear reference to fees associated with submitting articles. ... In other instances, Defendants’ fee disclosures are contained on secondary webpages but lack specificity. ... Notably, consumers going to a journal’s homepage can submit a manuscript without ever seeing any fee disclosures.

Some consumers only learn of Defendants’ fees after Defendants have accepted their articles for publication. ... Furthermore, when consumers contest Defendants’ publication fees and ask their articles to be withdrawn, Defendants have ignored the requests and continued demanding payment. ... In some instances, Defendants only removed the articles after the threat of legal action. ... In addition to economic harm, this conduct prevents authors from submitting their work to other journals. ... The Court notes, however, that at least one consumer has found the publication fees to be clearly disclosed. ...

In addition to online publishing, Defendants also organize conferences on various scientific topics. ... In order to attract consumers, Defendants advertise the attendance and participation of prominent academics and researchers. ... The FTC has provided evidence, however, that Defendants advertise the attendance and participation of these individuals without their permission or actual affiliation. ... In numerous instances, individuals have requested unsuccessfully to have their names removed from Defendants’ conference advertising materials. ... In some instances, Defendants did not remove an individuals’ name until the threat of legal action. ... According to the FTC’s sampling of 100 conferences, approximately 60% advertised organizers or participants who had not agreed to serve in such capacity. ...

NOTE

1.  The FTC complaint, motion for summary judgment, and the court's orders are available from the FTC's website.
2. See, e.g., Hyderabad Scientist Receives ‘Champions of Change’ Award, The Times of India, Dec 31, 2018.
3. Jeffrey Brainard, U.S. Judge Rules Deceptive Publisher Should Pay $50 Million in Damages, Science, Apr. 3, 2019.