In pre-16.0 databases, the database publisher was controlled by granting the PUBLISH authority by using the GRANT PUBLISH and REVOKE PUBLISH statements. The current publisher could be determined by querying the CURRENT PUBLISHER special value.
he PUBLISH authority has been replaced by the PUBLIC.db_publisher database option, which requires the SET ANY SYSTEM OPTION system privilege to be set. Changing the publisher can be achieved by changing the database option, but for backwards compatibility, you can still change it using GRANT PUBLISH and REVOKE PUBLISH. You can also still query the CURRENT PUBLISHER to find out the current publisher.