Tech Law: DOJ Eyes Google Settlement, Apple Sued, Linux Guns for FAT, More

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  1

  InklingBooks

  05/12/09 | Report as spam

  RE: Tech Law: DOJ Eyes Google Settlement, Apple Sued, Linux Guns for FAT, M

  I was one of the seven writers (including the estate of John Steinbeck)
  who asked the court to delay the Google settlement by four months, a
  request the court granted on April 28th. The new opt-out-or-else date
  is September 4, 2009.
  
  For those who'd like to read our letter to the court, as well as some of
  the other documents in the case, I've set up a webpage for downloads.
  I also have links to articles, particularly in the European press, where
  the settlement has recently become a very hot topic, especially in
  Germany.
  
  http://inklingbooks.com/googlesettlement/googlesettlement.html
  
  For those unfamiliar with the implications of this settlement, I highly
  recommend the Brewster Kahle interview linked on that page. Kahle is
  the founder of Internet Archive, and he's particularly good describing
  the anti-trust implications.
  
  Keep in mind that this settlement, if approved by the court, is
  particularly unfair for those outside the U.S. For foreign authors, fully
  20% of their books will be on display for free in the U.S. through Book
  Search. For many books, especially non-fiction, that means that people
  in the U.S. will have no need to buy the book despite Google's claims
  to the contrary. On the other hand, no books by U.S. authors will be
  available on Book Search for those living outside the U.S. U.S. authors
  won't find their sales cut one bit.
  
  How can they do that? Google is exploiting in a bizarre way the fact
  that the Berne convention does not permit member countries to treat
  foreign authors differently from domestic ones. Those who wrote the
  convention assumed that no country would shortchange its authors like
  this settlement does.
  
  To give an illustration what will happen if this settlement is approved,
  consider this example. A writer in India who speaks little English and
  knows nothing about the Google settlement, gets a book copyrighted in
  India. Doing that, through international copyright treaties he
  automatically acquires a U.S. copyright. That used to be good, but
  under this settlement that means his rights are radically reduced. He
  has become a member of what this settlement calls the "author sub-
  class." He's never heard of Google, much less given them permission
  to use his book. But through that settlement, Google now has the right
  to scan his book and post what he has written online. And if he finds
  out what has happened, he can't even sue them in the U.S. for
  copyright infringement.
  
  This agreement is just that bad. We've spent over a century building up
  an effective, low-cost, hassle-free way for authors around to world to
  protect their labors. If that agreement is approved, in the next year or
  two, all those efforts could be shattered, as country after country
  discovers what the settlement actually means and takes appropriate
  action.
  
  --Michael W. Perry, Seattle

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  2

  ErikSherman

  05/12/09 | Report as spam

  RE: Tech Law: DOJ Eyes Google Settlement, Apple Sued, Linux Guns for FAT, More

  Thanks for weighing in. I've been wondering just how hard Google would be looking for copyright holders of orphan works - books out of print but still in copyright. This also makes me wonder whether the settlement could effectivley cause a breakdown of international copyright treaties, as countries back out to avoid the implications for their authors.