Authors Guild Sues Google

A class action suit against Google was filed today in federal court in Manhattan on behalf of the Authors Guild, two authors, and a poet, alleging massive copyright infringement as a result of Google Print for Libraries project.

"Google knew or should have known that the Copyright Act, 17 U.S.C. 101 et seq. ("the Act") required it to obtain authorization from the holders of the copyrights in these literary works before creating and reproducing digital copies of the Works for its own commercial use and for the use of others. Despite this knowledge, Google has unlawfully reproduced the Works and has announced plans to reproduce and display the Works without the copyright holders' authorization. Google intends to derive revenue from this program by attracting more viewers and advertisers to its site." The complaint seeks unspecified damages and an injunction to halt further infringements. If found guilty of copyright infringement, Google could face fines up to $150,000 per infringement. Before action was filed, Google has defended its project citing a precedent of

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