Springer Science+Business Media
A German academic publisher of scientific, technical, medical, humanities and professional books, journals and digital research resources.
Last updated October 14, 2026
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Overview
Springer Science+Business Media was a German multinational academic publishing company whose modern corporate form brought together Springer-Verlag and several major scientific and technical publishing businesses. Its publishing program covered peer-reviewed journals, research monographs, textbooks, reference works, book series, electronic books, databases and specialist information services, principally in science, technology, medicine and mathematics, with additional activity in the humanities and related professional fields. The business originated in Berlin in 1842, when Julius Springer established a publishing firm. Under his son Ferdinand Springer, the company grew from a small operation into one of Germany's leading academic publishers. The Springer name became associated with scholarly books and journals, while its chess-knight logo reflected the German word for a knight chess piece and the meaning of the name Springer. The company began a major international expansion in the 1960s, opening a New York office in 1964 and subsequently establishing or developing operations in cities including Tokyo, Paris, Milan, Hong Kong and Delhi. Springer's later history was shaped by ownership changes and consolidation in academic publishing. Bertelsmann acquired a majority interest and the business became BertelsmannSpringer in 1999. In 2003, investment groups Cinven and Candover acquired BertelsmannSpringer. The following year, they combined it with Kluwer Academic Publishers, acquired from Wolters Kluwer in 2002, creating Springer Science+Business Media. This transaction joined Springer with publishing assets that traced their histories through companies such as D. Reidel, Dr. W. Junk, Plenum Publishers, parts of Chapman & Hall and Baltzer Science Publishers. The company expanded through acquisitions, including Humana Press in 2006, BioMed Central in 2008 and Pharma Marketing and Publishing Services from Wolters Kluwer in 2011. It also invested heavily in digital delivery. SpringerLink, introduced in 1996, became a central platform for electronic journal and book content. Other digital products included SpringerImages, SpringerMaterials, AuthorMapper and Springer Protocols. The business also participated in open-access publishing, offering authors different licensing routes across parts of its journal portfolio. Ownership changed again in the late 2000s and early 2010s. EQT and the Government of Singapore Investment Corporation became owners after Cinven and Candover sold the company, and BC Partners acquired a majority stake in 2013. In 2015, Springer Science+Business Media merged with Nature Publishing Group and related businesses associated with the Holtzbrinck Publishing Group. The resulting company, Springer Nature, was majority-owned by Holtzbrinck, with BC Partners retaining a substantial minority interest. The standalone Springer Science+Business Media corporate entity therefore ceased to operate independently, while Springer remains an important publishing brand within Springer Nature.
History
Springer Science+Business Media developed from Springer-Verlag, founded in Berlin by Julius Springer in 1842. Ferdinand Springer later expanded the firm substantially, and by the nineteenth century it had become one of Germany's important academic publishers. Its early and enduring identity was tied to scientific and technical publishing, with the Springer chess-knight logo serving as a distinctive corporate mark. The company internationalized during the 1960s. It opened an office in New York in 1964 and subsequently established a broader international presence, including offices or operations in Tokyo, Paris, Milan, Hong Kong and Delhi. This expansion supported the distribution of German and international scholarly content beyond its original domestic market. A major restructuring began when Bertelsmann acquired a majority stake and formed BertelsmannSpringer in 1999. Cinven and Candover purchased the business from Bertelsmann in 2003. In 2004 they combined it with Kluwer Academic Publishers, which had been acquired from Wolters Kluwer in 2002. The resulting group adopted the name Springer Science+Business Media and incorporated publishing traditions and assets from several specialist scientific houses. The company pursued both acquisition-led growth and digital transformation. Humana Press joined the group in 2006, followed by BioMed Central in 2008 and Pharma Marketing and Publishing Services in 2011. SpringerLink, launched in 1996, provided electronic access to journal and book content. SpringerImages, SpringerMaterials, AuthorMapper and Springer Protocols extended the company's online services into visual research content, materials data, researcher discovery and laboratory methods. Springer Protocols was later integrated into SpringerLink. Springer's ownership passed from Cinven and Candover to EQT and the Government of Singapore Investment Corporation around 2009–2010. BC Partners acquired a majority interest in 2013. In January 2015, Springer Science+Business Media and Holtzbrinck's Nature Publishing Group announced a merger. The transaction closed in May 2015, creating Springer Nature. Holtzbrinck held the majority stake and BC Partners retained a minority stake. Springer Science+Business Media consequently stopped being an independent corporate group, although Springer continued as a major Springer Nature brand. The company also became involved in debates about research-integrity controls and scholarly metrics. In 2014, it retracted conference papers produced by the SCIgen software. In 2015, it retracted papers from multiple journals following discovery of fraudulent peer-review activity. Separately, concerns about excessive journal self-citation contributed to the suspension of impact factors for several Springer Nature journals in 2020. These episodes reflected wider pressures affecting commercial academic publishing, including peer-review integrity, citation incentives, open access and the use of bibliometric measures in research assessment.
- 2015
Springer Nature is created
[1]Springer Science+Business Media combines with Nature Publishing Group and related Holtzbrinck businesses, ending its independent corporate existence.
- 2013
BC Partners acquires a majority stake
[1]BC Partners becomes the majority owner after acquiring the stake previously held by EQT and GIC.
- 2008
BioMed Central is acquired
[1]Springer acquires the open-access publisher BioMed Central.
- 2006
Humana Press is acquired
[1]Springer adds Humana Press, known for biomedical and life-sciences publications.
- 2004
Springer merges with Kluwer Academic Publishers
[1]The combination creates Springer Science+Business Media and broadens its specialist academic publishing portfolio.
- 1999
BertelsmannSpringer is formed
[1]Bertelsmann's acquisition of a majority stake leads to the BertelsmannSpringer structure.
- 1996
SpringerLink launches
[1]The company begins delivering electronic journal and book content through SpringerLink.
- 1964
International expansion begins in the United States
[1]Springer opens an office in New York, beginning a major period of international expansion.
- 1842
Springer-Verlag is founded in Berlin
[1]Julius Springer establishes the publishing business that becomes the foundation of the Springer brand.
Products and positioning
A global scholarly information and publishing brand serving researchers, universities, libraries, clinicians, students and technical professionals through specialist journals, books, reference content and digital platforms.
Digital academic platform · 1996
SpringerLink
SpringerLink is the principal digital delivery platform associated with Springer scholarly content. It provides access to electronic journals, books, reference works and other research materials across science, technology, medicine, mathematics and related disciplines. Springer Protocols content was later incorporated into the platform.
Research database · 2009
SpringerMaterials
SpringerMaterials provides structured access to materials-science information derived from the Landolt-Börnstein reference collection. Its content focuses on materials, their properties and related scientific data for researchers and technical users.
Research image database · 2008
SpringerImages
SpringerImages was a digital resource designed to help researchers find and use scientific, technical and medical images drawn from scholarly publications and related content.
Laboratory methods database
Springer Protocols
Springer Protocols collected practical laboratory methods and step-by-step experimental procedures. In 2018, the content was made available through SpringerLink rather than as a separate platform.
Research discovery tool
AuthorMapper
AuthorMapper was a free discovery and visualization tool that used author locations and geographic mapping to help users explore scientific literature, research trends, collaboration patterns and potential subject-matter experts.
Academic book series
Lecture Notes in Computer Science
Lecture Notes in Computer Science is a major Springer book series covering computer science research and conference proceedings. It became one of the recognizable scholarly series associated with the Springer publishing program.
Academic book series
Graduate Texts in Mathematics
Graduate Texts in Mathematics publishes advanced textbooks and instructional monographs intended primarily for graduate students, researchers and instructors in mathematics and closely related fields.
Mathematical abstracting service
Zentralblatt MATH
Zentralblatt MATH is a mathematical reviewing and abstracting publication with a long history connected to Springer. It provides bibliographic and evaluative information about mathematical research literature.
Controversies
2020
Journal self-citation and impact-factor suspensions
Seven Springer Nature journals were among the titles whose 2019 impact factors were suspended from Journal Citation Reports after unusual self-citation patterns were identified. The episode formed part of a wider debate about bibliometric manipulation and incentives in scholarly publishing.
2015
Fraudulent peer-review process
Springer retracted 64 papers from 10 journals after a fraudulent peer-review process was uncovered.
2014
SCIgen-generated conference papers
An investigation found that 16 papers in Springer conference proceedings had been generated by SCIgen, a software program capable of producing nonsensical computer-science papers. Springer retracted the affected papers.
1938
Editorial pressure involving Zentralblatt MATH under Nazi rule
Springer-Verlag was pressured to apply Nazi racial and political principles to the journal Zentralblatt MATH. Jewish mathematician Tullio Levi-Civita was removed from the editorial board, while Otto Neugebauer and much of the remaining board resigned in protest.
Brand decisions
2015
Merger with Nature Publishing GroupM&ABackground
The owners pursued a combination of two major scholarly publishing businesses with complementary journal, book and research brands.
Action taken
Springer Science+Business Media merged with Nature Publishing Group and related Holtzbrinck businesses to form Springer Nature.
Aftermath
The standalone Springer Science+Business Media group ceased to exist, while Springer continued as a principal brand within Springer Nature.
2008
Acquisition of BioMed CentralM&ABackground
Open-access publishing was becoming increasingly important in biomedical and research communication.
Action taken
Springer acquired BioMed Central, an open-access scholarly publisher.
Aftermath
The acquisition strengthened Springer's participation in open-access publishing and expanded its biomedical portfolio.
2004
Combination with Kluwer Academic PublishersM&ABackground
The owners sought to consolidate specialist academic publishing assets after acquiring Kluwer Academic Publishers from Wolters Kluwer.
Action taken
Springer-Verlag and Kluwer Academic Publishers were combined under the Springer Science+Business Media name.
Aftermath
The transaction created a larger international academic publisher with a broader portfolio of journals, books and reference products.
1996
Move scholarly content into digital distributionStrategyBackground
The growth of electronic research access created pressure for academic publishers to deliver journals and books online.
Action taken
Springer launched SpringerLink as a digital platform for electronic journal and book content.
Aftermath
SpringerLink became a central part of the company's digital publishing infrastructure and continued under Springer Nature.
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