With public libraries reeling under expanded budget cuts, Google's new deal with the publishers seems to threaten public libraries, which offer Internet service.
Karen Coyle's warning about Google's new plan is short enough that I need not summarize it. Google's response seems disingenuous.
Keep in mind that the major university libraries supplied books that were subsidized by public money.
Whatever happened to "do no harm"?
link here
Dan Clancy, the engineering manager for Google Book Search, writes a defense of
Google that strikes me as pretty effective. It is posted after the OCA article. Google has made a lot of material easily available. That wouldn't have happened without Google.
One change that might be helpful would recognize that copyright on books no longer in print is worthless. Why not amend the law to provide that when a book goes out of print, the copyright is void?