Library Groups Ask DOJ To Oversee Google Books

adeelarshad82 writes "Three library associations have asked the Justice Department to oversee Google's plans to create a massive digital library, so as to prevent excessively high pricing for institutional subscriptions. They said that there was unlikely to be an effective competitor to Google's massive project in the near term. They also asked for academic author representation on the Registry board. Google's plan to digitize millions of books has been criticized by a variety of sources and has recently been shut down in France."

Comments

Re:Why do I get

[Ethanol-fueled]

You're right. This isn't about fair prices for consumers, it's about control. Why should I have to pay just to read a paper which was funded with my tax dollars?

They probably think that people will use Google to "steal" what should be in the public domain to begin with. They think that it will ruin their business, just like how the internet "ruined" the newspaper business.

Re:Why do I get

[lorenlal]

I don't think so. I mean, most libraries exist to provide free or low cost access to as much of this information as they can.

I wonder if the library association is interested in this because they worry about their own existence?

Personally, I don't think this is a terrible idea. I mean, many of us don't doubt Google's intentions... But I like this sort of mindset when someone has a de facto monopoly. I'd rather err on the side of suspicion and actually put emphasis protecting competitors.

Good Grief.

[Frosty Piss]

Maybe Google should take their ball and go home. They *are not* required to digitize millions of book for they general perusal of mankind, if they don't want to. Let these selfish "library groups" wallow in the absence of Google Books.

Re:Good Grief.

[Anonymous Coward]

Google has a sweetheart deal that no one else on the planet can get. They worked the writers guild and court system in such a way as to give themselves the rights to all this material in one swoop. Anyone who wants to compete with them would be required to find / negotiate with each copyright holder to get them to give them access. This is a major barrier to any competition.

Re:Why do I get

[spikenerd]

Well said. The public pays the taxes that support all of the government necessary to enable Copyright. The public, therefore, rightfully owns those works after a limited time. By extending Copyright, they effectively robbed all of us of our rightful property. What hypocrisy for them to crack down on "piracy".

Re:Why do I get

[Korin43]

But in this case they will have a monopoly simply because no one else has bothered to do what they're planning to do. Why should they be punished for being the only ones who want to digitize everything? I read constantly about how horrible it will be that Google will be the only ones doing this, but if people actually thought competition would help, there would already be a competitor.

Re:Why do I get

[DarkofPeace]

I agree, by the logic everyone is using, no one should do anything new because they would have a monopoly until someone copied them. The whole point is that Google is trying something no one else has bothered to do, and anyone who wants to put the money and effort can duplicate. The problem is having to drag the old school kicking and screaming into the new millennium.

Re:Why do I get

[Trepidity]

That's certainly the precedent set by JSTOR, a more traditional non-profit initiative with closer ties to libraries. An individual not affiliated with a subscribing institution basically can't get access, outside a few narrow exceptions (like access to a specific journal if you're an individual subscriber to the paper version of the journal). They won't even allow public access to old journals that are in the public domain! Google so far is being much more public-friendly.