Second version of Google Books settlement met with storm of criticism

In November 2009, on Friday the 13th, Google and group of authors and publishers submitted a second concept version of the Books settlement. Until last Friday, one could submit criticism with the court.

Earlier in 2009, the first version was met with much criticism by writers, publishers and governments from all over the world. Furthermore, the American Department of Justice hinted that the settlement would likely conflict with the law. Google and associates reacted by withdrawing the proposal and working on a new one.

In this second version, Google has succeeded in gaining the support of more writers and publishers from the UK, Canada and Australia, writes Ars Technica. But there is a considerable list of documents with criticism, tracked by the public index.

Very strong in their opposition is the Open Book Alliance, an alliance of libraries, writers and Google’s competitors like Amazon and Microsoft. Their view is that "the paltry proposals offered by the parties for amending the Settlement—truly, a disdainful response to the vast outpouring of global criticism—change little."

In a contribution by the Estate of Richard Wright that is overall rather hostile, an interesting point is made. How to treat works that are scanned, but not published? What meaning do those works hold in the context of the machines they are stored on? Currently, learning algorithms for computers are not that strongly developed, but knowledge is progressing. How to treat works that are not made available to people, but can be “read” by the computers they’re stored on? The writers propose to give this issue some consideration now, rather than wait until it happens.

Public Knowledge, a group that advocates the free spread of knowledge, is not negative about Google’s  plans. According to the organisation, Google’s new service fits in their mission of making knowledge and culture available to large groups of people and it doesn’t think the service breaks any laws. But, Public Knowledge writes, orphan works should be in the public domain rather than in the care of Google. This requires amending copyright law rather than amending the settlement.

Many of the large issues remain. In the new version, just as in the older one, Google gains a measure of control over the future market for digital works. Furthermore, the settlement proposes an “opt-out” regime: Google can do its bidding, until a writer or publisher acts to stop the company. This part is seen as problematic by many of parties that voiced criticism. The US Department of Justice has also indicated not to favour such a regime.

February 2, 2010