Google Book Settlement and Orphan Works

Today a final settlement hearing on the Google Book Settlement is slated to take place.  Part of the settlement calls for the creation of an independent registry for orphan works, which will make them more widely available to the public. Orphan works are copyrighted works where it is difficult or impossible to identify or locate the copyright holder (ALA, 2009). There are millions of orphan works that cannot be accessed or used (Peters, 2008). The settlement may give Google an exclusive advantage to become the sole entity to license the display of orphaned works (Siy, 2009). This has implications for libraries who may have to subscribe to the full display of orphaned works or not be able to provide access to users. Currently, anyone can be sued for copyright infringement even when a good faith effort is made to find the copyright holder (ALA, 2009). In 2006 the U.S. Copyright Office published a report of an investigation of orphan works that recommended limiting remedies for copyright infringement to users who performed reasonably diligent searchers to find the copyright holder but were not successful (ALA, 2009). The report also recommended that noncommercial users not receive damages if the user ceases infringement in a timely manner after being notified by the copyright owner (ALA, 2009). Since 2005, the Google Book Project has been scanning the collections of several major research libraries (Google Books, 2010). Both the Authors Guild and Association of American Publishers submitted class action lawsuits against Google for copyright infringement (Electronic Frontier Foundation, 2006). The parties began to negotiate the terms of a settlement out of court. Because earlier legislation died and the Google settlement has moved forward, the settlement will shape access to orphan works. Orphan works legislation was introduced in 2008 but died. A Google Book Project settlement updated version was released in November 2009. Under the terms, Google will fund a Book Rights Registry to dispense funds to copyright holders (Siy, 2009). One significant aspect of the settlement is that authors will be prohibited from suing Google (but can potentially sue a third-party licensing body— Google’s competition) for displaying unclaimed works if Google receives permission from a to-be-created independent body of the Books Rights Registry (Siy, 2009). American Libraries Association, Association of Research Libraries, and the Association of College and Research Libraries (2009) filed a joint letter to Deputy Assistant Attorney General recommending that the court review the pricing of the institutional subscription to realize rights of rights-holders, to ensure broad access to the Books by the public, and to make sure that perspectives of academic authors, as well as libraries, are taken into account. References American Library Association (ALA). (2009). Retrieved January 28, 2010 from http://www.ala.org/ala/issuesadvocacy/copyright/activelegislation/orphanworks/index.cfm Association of Research Libraries (ARL), ALA, Association of College & Research Libraries (ACRL). (2009, December 10). Google Library Project Settlement. Retrieved February 7, 2010, from http://www.arl.org/bm~doc/antitrustdivasa-final.pdf Authors Guild, Inc., Association of American Publishers, Inc., et al. v. Google, Inc., No. 05 CV 8136-DC (S.D. NY 2010). Amended Settlement Agreement. Retrieved January 31, 2010, from http://www.googlebooksettlement.com/r/view_settlement_agreement Butler, B. (2010, February 10). The Google books settlement: second round comments. Association of Research Libraries. Retrieved February 14, 2010 from http://www.arl.org/bm~doc/gbs-pasa-summary.pdf Competition and Commerce in Digital Books: Hearing before the Committee on the Judiciary, House of Representatives, 111 Cong. 1 (2009, September 10). Retrieved February 6, 2010 from http://judiciary.house.gov/hearings/hear_090910.html Electronic Frontier Foundation. (2006). U. of Michigan’s Prez. Retrieved February 7, 2010 from http://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2006/02/u-michigan-prez-googles-digitization-project-about-public-good Google Books (2010). History of Google Books. Retrieved February 7, 2010 from http://books.google.com/googlebooks/history.html H.R. 5889, 110th Congress. (2008). Retrieved January 31, 2010, from http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/z?c110:H.R.5889 “Orphan works” problem and proposed legislation: Hearing before the Subcommittee on Courts, the Internet, and Intellectual Property of the Committee on the Judiciary, House of Representatives, 110 Cong. 2 (2008, March 13) (testimony of Marybeth Peters). Retrieved January 30, 2010 from http://www.copyright.gov/docs/regstat031308.html Siy, S. (2009, November 17). The New Google Book settlement. Retrieved January 30, 2010 from http://www.publicknowledge.org/node/2770 U.S. Department of Justice. (2010, February). Statement of Interest of the United States of America regarding proposed class settlement. Retrieved February 7, 2010 from http://www.justice.gov/atr/cases/f250100/250180.pdf

New: Text Your Questions to NU Libraries

Note: This post contains out-of-date information as of April 2019. Please visit our contact page for current information on how to contact the Library.

Receive an answer to your library questions via text message through the newest addition to Snell Library Reference Services. Here’s how:

Send to 66746
Begin your text message with the word husky

Librarians at the research assistance desk will respond as soon as possible. When the desk is closed you will receive an automated response and we will answer your question the next day.

Text a Librarian assigns a random ID number to each question before forwarding it to the library, so your telephone number remains private. There is no charge from the library for the service; however, charges from your cell phone provider may apply.

Text a Librarian is best suited for brief questions that can be answered in a short message. For more detailed reference help, visit the research assistance desk on the second level of Snell Library, use our ASK 24/7 online chat service or send us an email.

Advice for new faculty: “Get out there and shake it!”

I just read a great blog post on Inside Higher Ed — “Get Out There and Shake It!” by Kerry Ann Rockquemore. It offers valuable advice to new faculty wanting to make connections at their institution, but I think it’s excellent reading for anyone wanting to improve their collegial relationships on campus. In a nutshell, Rockquemore’s advice is, don’t wait for people to come to you. Seeking out your colleagues (as the title suggests, getting out there and shaking hands) is a surefire way to make sure you’re on their radar as well as improving their impressions of you. It’s advice that I needed to hear — as Scholarly Communication Librarian, I definitely need to connect with faculty and help them connect with each other. (So, you can bet you’ll be hearing from me soon!)

Mobile Survey Results and Thanks!

Many thanks to all those who participated in our recent survey of mobile devices and what you’d like us to offer on a mobile platform.

Here’s what you told us you wanted:

Nucat (80.8%) Hours (75%) Renew my books (71%) Text message (53.8%) Journal articles (42.3%)

Among the suggestions that people wrote in, only one appeared more than once, and that was “reserve a group study room.”  There was only one duplicate among the suggestions: “Reserving a study room”–while there’s no online system for doing that, you can call, same day only, 617-373-8778.  

RESPONDENTS:

Altogether we had 52 respondents total.  Undergrad/grad students and library staff participated.  In my view, however, visitors to the library who are not familiar with NU might appreciate being able to get basic access, wireless and lost and found information on their mobile device.  

Most respondents who answered the question about devices are using the blackberry.  I was surprised not to see more i-phones listed, but a lot of people did not answer the question.  

I know it seems like a setup, but we ARE adding a text messaging service to our existing suite of options for contacting a librarian.  You’ll hear more about that if you read our blog this week! 

Finally here! The redesigned IEEE Xplore

A newly redesigned interface for IEEE Xplore is scheduled to arrive on Saturday, February 13. Major new features for the new Xplore are a brand new interface, a more robust search engine, improved search and more personalization.  E-mail alerts, RSS Feeds, the ability to set your preferences, save searches and much more.  Check out the new type ahead features and the search suggestions as well. There is further information about the new interface here including searching tip sheets. Also, check out the video! launch ieee xplore demo Also, start following IEEE Xplore on Twitter Feel free to send your feedback to Joan Omoruyi at j.omoruyi@neu.edu or call her at 617-373-2806.