Highlights

LCA Releases Diagram, "GBS March Madness: Paths Forward for the Google Books Settlement” (March 4, '10) [PDF]

ARL Releases Summary re Second Round of Comments in Google Book Search Settlement (Feb. 10, '10) [PDF]

ARL, ALA, and ACRL Write Letter in Regard to the Updated Google Book Search Settlement (Dec. 15, '09) [PDF]

Guide for the Perplexed III: The Amended Google Book Search Settlement by Jonathan Band (Nov. 23, '09) [PDF]

Google Book Search Settlement Background and Update by Brandon Butler (Oct. 13, '09) [PDF]

ALA, ARL, and ACRL Join Group Letter Voicing Privacy Concerns in Google Book Settlement [PDF] (Oct. 6, '09)

Summary on House Committee on the Judiciary Hearing: “Competition and Commerce in Digital Books” (Sept. 10, '09)[PDF]

Press Release: Library Associations Submit Supplemental Filing, Call for Increased Oversight of Google Agreement [PDF] (Sept. 8, 2009)

Library Associations' Supplemental Comments on Google Book Settlement [PDF] (Sept. 8, 2009)

Press Release: Library Groups Advise DOJ on Proposed Google Book Search Settlement (July 30, '09)

Kenny Crews, Columbia, and Dan Clancy, Google, on the Terms and Scope of the Google Book Settlement (June 29, '09)

Kenny Crews, Columbia, on the Google Book Settlement's Implications for Libraries (June 29, '09)

Overview

On October 28, 2008, after several years of legal wrangling, Google, the Association of American Publishers (AAP), and the Authors Guild reached a settlement agreement concerning Google’s scanning of copyrighted works. The scanning of these works has been done in cooperation with research libraries throughout the United States. The settlement agreement requires court approval by the presiding judge in the U.S. District Court in New York because the case was brought as a class action suit on behalf of selected copyright owners.

In large part, the settlement focuses on in-copyright books that are not commercially available. Public domain works fall outside of the settlement and owners of commercially available, in-copyright books created prior to January 5, 2009, may opt-out of the settlement or opt-in to other terms with Google. As a part of the settlement agreement, Google will fund the establishment of the Book Rights Registry. The Registry, jointly run by authors and publishers, will collect and distribute royalties including an up-front payment by Google of $45 million. Users will have several new opportunities to access scanned books, both free and fee-based, via public and university libraries and through institutional subscriptions for academic, corporate, and government libraries and organizations.