In the publishing biz, one of the hottest issues is the Google Book Search Settlement. The debate is over whether Google should be allowed to scan pages from books and post them on the Web. The Authors Guild, the Association of American Publishers, and a handful of authors and publishers filed a class action lawsuit against Google Book Search, and the parties in the dispute have agreed on a settlement.
What I’d like to know is how this case ever reached the negotiating table. Google clearly broke the law and continues to break the law by posting pages of copyrighted material on the Web. They even mark the pages as copyrighted! Here’s a page from my book The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Computer Basics, which was just published this year.
Now I’m no copyright lawyer, but this looks like an open and shut case. Yet, Google has employed the old strategy of asking for forgiveness rather than permission and has gotten away with it. I guess if you have enough money and power, breaking the law earns you a seat at the negotiating table rather than a court order to cease and desist.
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