Open Access News

News from the open access movement


Saturday, May 28, 2005

More on the AAUP complaint against Google Library

University Publishers Question Google Print Library Project, an unsigned news brief from the ALA, May 27, 2005. Excerpt: 'Tom Turvey, Google strategic partner development manager, said in the May 24 industry e-mail newsletter Publishers Lunch that the company asserts no "tacit copyright ownership of books scanned at libraries or the files from those books." Business Week reported May 23 that in recent months publishers John Wiley and Sons and Random House have also sent letters to Google voicing a similar concern. Wiley released a statement that it is "exploring issues and opportunities with Google, including the potential impact of this program on our authors, our customers, and our business." Harvard Law Professor Jonathan Zittrain told Business Week that the problem lay in the ambiguity of the fair-use provision, but "Google's plan doesn't disrupt the market for purchasing the book, and in that sense it should heavily favor them."'