JDO sent me a link to a journal rating databas that tries to calculate a “relative price index” for different journals:

he coloration (red for very low value, yellow for low value, and green for good value) is computed by comparing the composite price index to the median for non-profit journals in the same subject. Be advised that price per citation, price per article and the composite index are not perfect measures of value. Neither of us are experts in most of the fields represented, and others may reasonably, or unreasonably, disagree with the value assessment.

This provides a counterpoint to the impact factor commonly bandied about at academic gatherings. High impact is only one aspect of the cost-effectiveness. For those information theorists out there:

Title: IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON INFORMATION THEORY
Publisher: IEEE-INST ELECTRICAL ELECTRONICS ENGINEERS INC
ISSN: 0018-9448
Subject: Computer Science, Engineering
Profit Status: Non-Profit
Year First Published: 1953
Price per article: 2.43
Price per citation: 1.45
Composite Price Index: 1.88
Relative Price Index 0.24

It’s in the green, which is appropriate, I guess. (Don’t worry, the Transactions on Signal Processing has an RPI of 0.55, so it’s not just judging the journal by its color).