It took three years, but Google and the Authors Guild reached a settlement in late October 2008 over the search engine's book digitization project. The deal benefits Google, the authors, and even the publishers, but the real winners are the readers. Keep reading for the details.
First, let's look at a little history and get a review. Back in 2005, Google began the Google Print Library Project, which aimed to make it easier for searchers to find books relevant to their interests, especially ones that are difficult to find other ways (such as those that are out of print). The search engine began working with the University of Michigan, Harvard University, Stanford University, the New York Public Library and Oxford University to scan all or parts of their book collections. The company's plan called for making those books searchable and, of course, selling advertisements on the web pages related to book searches.
On September 21, 2005, the Authors Guild filed a lawsuit against Google. They claimed that its scanning and digitizing of library books constituted a plain and brazen violation of copyright law, according to Nick Taylor, the guild's president. In a statement, he insisted that It's not up to Google or anyone other than the authors, the rightful owners of these copyrights, to decide whether and how their works will be copied. Other groups also protested the Google project, including the Association of American University Presses.
It's interesting, though not surprising, that nobody seemed to notice the kind of care Google tried to take to avoid copyright violations, and even help the authors. For instance, the information searchers could see pertaining to the book differed depending on whether it was copyrighted or had gone into the public domain. Only if the book was out of copyright would searchers be able to view and download the entire book. In most cases, they would see basic bibliographic information about the book, and in many cases, a few sentences showing their search term in context which is very similar to what searchers see when web sites come up in the results.
But the best part involved Google providing the book with on-the-spot promotion. In all cases, you'll see links directing you to online bookstores where you can buy the book and libraries where you can borrow it, the search engine explained on its page describing the Google Books Library Project. In that sense, it was almost as good as having both a bookstore and a library on your computer, neither of which were limited by physical space as to their contents.
This is not to say that the authors did not have legitimate concerns. As a writer myself, I firmly believe that creative people need and deserve to be properly compensated for their intellectual property. And that is where the settlement comes in.
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