Google's Digital Library Rejected

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Google's idea of creating the
world's largest digital library
and bookstore has stumbled into
a 300-year-old copyright.

Google wanted to digitize every
book published and make them
accessible but was stopped on
Tuesday when a federal judge
in New York rejected a $125
million legal settlement the
company had worked out with
groups representing authors
and publishers.

The project is that of Larry
Page, the Google co-founder
who is to become its chief
executive next month. It has
lots of support inside the
company, whose corporate
mission is to organize all
of the world's information.

"It was very much consistent
with Larry's idealism that
all of the world's information
should be made available
freely," Ken Auletta, author
of "Googled- The End of the
World as We Know It."

Judge Denny Chin pointed-out
copyright, antitrust and
mentioned that the settlement
went too far. It would have
granted Google a "de facto
monopoly" and the right to
profit from books without
the permission of copyright
owners.

Judge Chin recognized that
"the creation of a universal
digital library would benefit
many," but explained that the
suggested agreement was "not
fair, adequate and reasonable."
He left open the possibility
that a substantially revised
agreement could pass legal
muster.

Judge Chin was recently elevated
to the United States Court of
Appeals for the Second Circuit,
but handled the case as a
district court judge.

Source: http://newsblaze.com/story/20110323062847writ.nb/topstory.html