News Report #2

“Copyright Head Tells House She Opposes Google Books Settlement”

Gordon Flagg, American Libraries Online

September 16, 2009

http://www.ala.org/ala/alonline/currentnews/newsarchive/2009/september2009/petersopposesgooglebooks091609.cfm

On September 10, Register of Copyrights Marybeth Peters testified before the House Judiciary Committee in opposition of the Google settlement on its Google Book Search project. The settlement allows Google to display up to 20% of a copyrighted book to users free of charge. Google plans to sell access to individual books and offer subscriptions to large collections for libraries and universities. In her testimony, Mrs. Peters called parts of the settlement “fundamentally at odds with the law”. Google asserts that the project is “fully compliant with copyright law” and contends that the project will provide users with choice and competition. Most of the committee members seemed to support the settlement, with Committee Chair and Representative from Michigan John Conyers Jr. saying that Google has “built a better mousetrap in the eyes of the mousetrap purchasers.”

It seems there are many facets to this debate, but the ones I can see most clearly are those of copyright infringement and monopoly over the market. I understand the indignation of authors that their work is in part free to view, but as a consumer, I like the idea of being able to look at a book before I buy it. I have a feeling that the consumer is going to win. However, the monopolistic tendency that the settlement has the ability to create is a little disturbing. The Register of Copyrights is a governmental position, so I would think that the Congress would be more receptive to her testimony, but that is not the case. A certain amount of weight goes with the fact that the Register of Copyrights thinks this is a bad idea, but then again, I think that people could have made the same opposition (generally) when books first became mass-produced instead of handwritten.