Google Books appeal heard

Friday, December 12, 2014

Will Google Books make it even harder for writers to benefit commercially from their work; or will it offer an unprecedented boon to learning?  These were the opposing predictions of the Authors Guild and Google respectively during the Guild’s Dec. 3 appeal of an earlier court decision on Google Books.

The earlier ruling found that Google’s scanning and use of published works without permission for the Google Books database was covered under U.S. copyright law by fair use.

The Authors Guild is contending that because Google benefits commercially from Google Books that the uses constitutes commercial infringement. Google has countered that there has been no evidence that authors have been negatively impacted by Google Books.

No timeline has been set for a ruling on the appeal.