Quoting Jonathan Rochkind <rochkind_at_JHU.EDU>:
> It gets tricky. If we assume that no settlement every happens...
> that doesn't change the contract between the libraries and Google.
It might if it was based on rights being given through the settlement,
rather than current copyright law. I wondered about the contracts when
the settlement came out but no one in the participating libraries
seemed concerned. Those contracts were based on the assumption that
scanning for indexing is fair use. Note that one of the objects in the
original lawsuit was precisely that Google was giving a copy to the
libraries, thus a potential copyright violation.
>
> But if we were assuming the settlement would allow libraries to do
> certain things that might otherwise be prevented under copyright --
> a separate issue than the Google contract -- then this is no longer
> the case, if we assume a settlement never happens.
Actually, the settlement would have RESTRICTED what libraries could do
compared to their original contracts with Google. The settlement took
away things libraries could do with the digitized books in some cases,
but it also would have made possible a Google Books online service
that libraries could subscribe to. It appeared that libraries were
willing to live with the restrictions since they would be getting
expanded access (which they would pay for) as one of the products of
the settlement.
>
> What are those things? Well, clearly libraries can't distribute
> full text of in-copyright works. And clearly libraries can do
> whatever they want with out-of-copyright/non-copyright-items.
Not as I read the contracts. Again, here's a quote:
"University shall implement technological measures... to restrict
automatied access to any portion of the Univeristy Digital Copy or the
portions of the University website on which any portion of the
University Digital Copy is available. University shall also implement
reasonable policities and procedures designed to prevent third parties
from (a) download or otherwise obtain any portion of the University
Digital Copy for commercial purposes..." (UVA contract, but typical.)
And in terms of the public domain, this from the U of Calif contract:
"... University shall have the right to distribute ... all or any
portion of public domain works contain in the University Digital Copy
(but not any portion of the Image Coordinates) to research libraries
for research, scholarly and acadmic purposes... In addition, any
distribution by University to a Recipient Institution is subject to a
written agreement that (A) prohibits the Recipient Institution from
redistributing without first obtaining the prior written consent of
Google,..." etc. etc.
This is definitely NOT "do what you want with public domain
materials." And, as I say, the settlement would have caused Google to
renegotiate these contracts with stricter terms, and I know that some
libraries have already developed that new contract with Google (but I
don't know whether those contracts have been signed).
kc
--
Karen Coyle
kcoyle@kcoyle.net http://kcoyle.net
ph: 1-510-540-7596
m: 1-510-435-8234
skype: kcoylenet
Received on Tue Apr 26 2011 - 19:32:31 EDT