Google Book Settlement update

The Google Book Settlement Fairness Hearing has been adjourned and the date for completing a Claim Form to be eligible for Cash Payments is now extended to 5 June, 2010.

A US Court has adjourned the Google Book Settlement Fairness Hearing originally scheduled for 7 October 2009, after parties involved in the Settlement – including Google, the Authors Guild and the Association of American Publishers – asked for more time to amend the agreement.

The Court had set 9 November 2009 as the deadline date for the filing of an amended Settlement Agreement.  This has since been extended to 13 November 2009. The new date for the Fairness Hearing will become known once the revised Settlement has been submitted to the Court.  

In another recent development, the parties have agreed to extend the deadline for completing a Claim Form for Cash Payments from 5 January 2010 to 5 June 2010. Any Australian authors or publishers who wish to claim this cash payment should visit the settlement website and submit their claim by this revised date.

These latest developments are largely due to the US Justice Department’s investigation into the Google Book Settlement. This investigation was in response to public concerns about the deal, both with the United States and internationally. It can be assumed that the revised Settlement will address the three major concerns raised by the Justice Department, namely, that certain aspects of the deal violate copyright, are anti-competitive, and do not fully comply with US Class Action Law. 

While critical of the Agreement in some areas, the US Justice Department is supportive of many key aspects of the deal, especially in relation to orphan works, where they think it can ”breathe life into million of works that are now effectively off limits to the public.”

Michael Lijic, CAL’s Manager of International Relations, says the adjournment is an indication that the deal may be approved –  albeit  in an amended form.

“It’s clear that both the plaintiffs and the defendants have taken the objections from the US Justice Department seriously, and are now working together to try and address those concerns. The fact that the hearing has been adjourned is also a positive indication that the US Court wants this Settlement to work – for all parties involved.”

If approved, the Google Book Settlement as it currently stands will allow  authors and publishers to claim payment of at least $US60 for each of their titles digitised as part of the Google Library project. This was the project where  Google digitised entire collections of participating libraries’ works without permission from copyright owners.

The Settlement will also allow authors and publishers to participate in a variety of other commercial schemes – such as institutional subscriptions, consumer purchases, and advertising revenue from browsing. Revenues from these schemes will be shared, with Google retaining 37% and the balance of 63% to be paid to the Google Book Registry for on-payment to the relevant rightsholders.

Read CAL's comprehensive guide to the Google Book Settlement.