Many of these books are available to the public already, in the secondhand book market. Some are available in libraries. Anyone who has invested in obtaining existing physical copies, or in setting up a business based on this activity, has the potential to lose their investment, when copies of their book are scanned and made publicly available. This includes booksellers and libraries. Who else is going to be unhappy about having more access to information? Not many people, I bet. This is unfair to those who invested in those books, but that won't stop it from happening.
It's also conceivable that in some cases, having a scanned version freely available will increase demand, making the existing physical copies more valuable.
Slashdot Mirror
Many of these books are available to the public already, in the secondhand book market. Some are available in libraries. Anyone who has invested in obtaining existing physical copies, or in setting up a business based on this activity, has the potential to lose their investment, when copies of their book are scanned and made publicly available. This includes booksellers and libraries. Who else is going to be unhappy about having more access to information? Not many people, I bet. This is unfair to those who invested in those books, but that won't stop it from happening.
It's also conceivable that in some cases, having a scanned version freely available will increase demand, making the existing physical copies more valuable.