Publishers Sue Google Over Print Library Project
The book publishing industry’s main trade group filed a lawsuit against Google Wed. over its plans to digitally copy works and distribute excerpts without permission of the copyright owners. The Assn. of American Publishers (AAP) filed the complaint after lengthy discussions broke down between AAP and Google executives regarding copyright infringement implications of the Google Print Library Project.
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The lawsuit asks the U.S. Dist. Court, N.Y.C. to find that Google commits infringement when it scans entire copyrighted books. It seeks an injunction to stop the search giant from engaging in the activity without permission of the copyright owner. The complaint was lodged on behalf of 5 members of AAP -- McGraw-Hill, Pearson Education, Penguin Group, Simon & Schuster and John Wiley & Sons.
The case against Google, which is being coordinated and funded by AAP, has strong industry backing and was filed on a near unanimous vote by the 20-member AAP Board, which represents the group’s 300-plus member companies. Publishing players had been negotiating with Google since late spring but the talks stopped when the Authors Guild sued Google (WID Sept 22 p11), AAP Pres. Patricia Schroeder told us. She thought the discussions would start up again but when the company sent out a memo earlier this month saying it intended to begin scanning books again Nov. 1 -- the end of its self-imposed moratorium -- publishers realized there would be no more discussions.
All 5 plaintiffs are Google Print partners but don’t support the Print Library Project’s business model, Schroeder said. “They want to participate but they want Google to ask permission,” she said: “Nobody wants to take on somebody with deep pockets and boy, they've got the world’s deepest pockets.” The International Publishers Assn. (IPA) passed a joint resolution Wed. in Frankfurt supporting AAP’s lawsuit, Schroeder told us. The worldwide writer’s group PEN joined IPA in backing the litigation. Much of the publishing world is in Germany this week for the Frankfurt Book Fair, she said.
AAP proposed Google use the ISBN numbering system to identify works under copyright and secure permission from publishers and authors before scanning the works. Google “flatly rejected” the proposal, AAP said. “If Google can scan every book in the English language, surely they can utilize ISBNs,” Schroeder said: “Google left our members no choice but to file this suit.”
Google Vp David Drummond called the project “an historic effort to make millions of books easier for people to find and buy.” He argued that creating an easy to use index of books is fair use under copyright law and supports the purpose of copyright -- to increase the awareness and sales of books directly benefitting copyright holders. “This short-sighted attempt to block Google Print works counter to the interests of not just the world’s readers, but also the world’s authors and publishers,” he said.
Public Knowledge Pres. Gigi Sohn weighed in on the lawsuit Wed., calling the complaint “truly unfortunate.” “Those who produce books should be heartened to see a project that has as its goal the legal distribution of knowledge and insight,” she said. The publishers stand to gain exposure for their books, she said. “They are taking to court a program that would only fully digitize public- domain work and would give readers only a glimpse of copyrighted material,” Sohn said: “That Google project falls squarely within the boundaries of fair use, and the publishers should recognize that.”