GBS 2.0: The New Google Books (Proposed) Settlement

November 17, 2009

One of the basic indicators of successful negotiations is that each party leaves equally satisfied and dissatisfied.  No one gets everything.  Trouble brews, however, when the deal leaves so much dissatisfaction that the good news is overwhelmed.  Such may be the case with the revised Google Books settlement, offered for our consideration at midnight on [...]

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Getting Ready for November 9

November 4, 2009

At the status conference before Judge Chin in early October, the parties to the Google Books litigation agreed to deliver to the court their renegotiated settlement agreement.  Some of the most critical issues were underscored by the U.S. Department of Justice.  Many observers of the developments, myself included, have raised concerns about the legal monopoly [...]

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Google Books Status Conference

October 7, 2009

This morning, at the federal courthouse in Manhattan, was the long-awaited “status conference” in the copyright case involving Google Books.  Everything about the morning signaled a sense of calm.  One of my student research assistants wanted to join me, and she arrived early to watch the sunrise while holding a place in line.  It was [...]

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Justice and Google Books: First Thoughts About the Government’s Brief

September 21, 2009

On September 18, 2009, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), Antitrust Division, submitted to the court its brief addressing principally the antitrust implications of the proposed settlement of the Google Books copyright case.  In summary, the settlement agreement, if approved by the court, would allow Google to become the key player in a massive business [...]

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Copyright, Contracts, and Surf Guitar

September 9, 2009

Is that Kenny Crews with Dick Dale, the great surf guitarist?  (Who saw "Pulp Fiction"?)  What does that have to do with copyright?  Plenty, it turns out!  I had the privilege of attending the Dick Dale concert recently at the City Winery in New York City.  Dick Dale played magnificently and told lots of stories.  [...]

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Google Books: Why I Am Not Opting Out

September 2, 2009

At various times I have had compliments for the Google Book Settlement, and clearly I have a list of critical issues to raise.  Nevertheless, in just a couple of days, on September 4, 2009, all authors will face the deadline to opt out of the pending settlement.  The arguments for and against opting out are [...]

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Google Books Settlement and Author Rights

August 17, 2009

The Google Books Settlement is like an archeological adventure.  Move another stone in the wall and you find another dark and mysterious passage.  Consider Section 3.5(a) of the settlement agreement.  It is one important step in a series of opportunities for authors and rightsholders to wiggle free of the settlement terms.  Unfortunately, each opportunity is [...]

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Google Books Settlement at NYPL

July 29, 2009

Much has been written and said about the Google Book Settlement, and all the detailed explorations are richly warranted.  The complications and long-term implications cannot be overstated.  So I worry when advocates of the settlement discuss it in a low-key manner.  That is exactly what happened when a panel fielded questions about the settlement yesterday [...]

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Moldova and More

November 18, 2008

This may be an unlikely start of my blogging adventure. I have just returned from a journey to Moldova, where I was part of a copyright program for libraries sponsored by IFLA, EBLIDA, and eIFL.org. It was a great opportunity to work with some terrific people in Moldova and in the sponsoring organizations. We should [...]

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Starting Soon!

May 15, 2008

Hello Copyright Friends!

Soon I will begin in earnest to launch this blog from the Copyright Advisory Office. Meanwhile, I am getting warmed up as the guest blogger for the month of May 2008 at this location:
http://chaucer.umuc.edu/blogcip/collectanea/
I am the guest of a wonderful and important friend, Georgia Harper, who is currently serving as the IP [...]

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