Authors and publishers are upset at potential copyright losses if Google proceeds with its plan to digitize millions of books. What are your views on this?

boo-hoo! You didn't get into the arts to make money - do it for the love of the art. Don't like it? Move to North Korea.

This is just more sour grapes from the publishers worried about their 10%. All that Google wants to do is get in on the act of others that have been putting books on the internet for quite a long time (15-20 years?) have a look at Project Gutenberg, all books out of copy right book many well worth reading. There is also Carnegie Mellon University, I think they are nearing one million books.

There's an Espresso book shop in London where they'll print a book for you, while you wait. That's good news for people who want the less popular or out of print books that you just can't get on Amazon (if they are available - people used to say that one of the advantages of Amazon was that they would carry those same books, but they don't). For something like that to work they need to be digitised. I've read several e-books, but it's not the same as a real book - not as satisfying, even with the new reader from Amazon.

On the surface this sounds good, Google committing out of print books to file. Google did this to books from Public Libraries, so now they are trying to become the library. Google wants to know what you are reading when it is none of their business. It was Google and Yahoo that blocked Guo Quans name simply because Chinese authorities did not like what he was saying. And in the U.S. who knows what kind of information they are collecting for the Department of Homeland Insecurity. Google and Yahoo are not friends or lovers of freedom.

You didn't get into the arts to make money

Only people whose art doesn't sell well say that.

book publishers, music publishers are being left in the dust, they shud be leading this but have their heads in the said & want to protect their revenue streams, screw them so they can no longer screw us!

People get upset and angry because they are too lazy to adapt to the times and try and make things cheapers for others. They just want to keep the status quo ... well, bully for them. Good luck to Google, I hope they do a good job.

they could do like the do with sheets of musice stick a copy right stamp on the sheets saying you may copy, give, and lend but not sell

I like the idea of Google putting entire books online. I think its a great opportunity that could change the way we read books. That said, I do think its a big threat to the publishing industry, and to authors as well. I hope its done in such a way as to not diminish the publishers and authors revenue streams, but perhaps increase them, as the books become available to a wider market then might otherwise normally find them. Particularly the out of print books.

get off your duff and go to the Library, that's what its there for. Google is basically taking over libraries and I find this ridiculous. They'll make money off you from the ads, and the money does not go to the library system. Fewer people will go to the library, crippling the system. Way to go Google! You have finally achieved evil.

Renew your card, place a hold on a book you want, and read a real book. Serioulsy, when was the last time you read a book? Go to the library, and you'll find a wealth that you own that you haven't known before. Don't give it away and don't be a sell out.

I use google books all the time.... often for overpriced books I would not buy anyway. I also buy books later. This is just publishers not adapting to changing times....

There seems to be massive confusion over this. The only books that can be seen entirely are public domain works. Copyrighted works can be searched but only a few sentences are shown. For copyrighted books from publishers participating in the program, several pages can be previewed, and the publisher receives part of the advertising revenue.

The only thing I can figure is that some publishers are trying to get a bigger piece of the search revenue now that Google is successful because they didn't think of doing it first. But there was never an issue of hurting book sales. So the publishers are trying to create a negative image of Google by spreading confusion and throwing around the word "copyright". They have little legal or ethical argument here so they're using extortion to try to take some revenue away.

Google has no more right to copy protected books than anybody has to pirate music or software. This deal also gives Google an exclusive right to copy some works, which shuts others out. Google used to have a motto of "do no evil" or something like that. They have dropped that motto.

Sort of like the Microsoft of information. Can't be allowed.

On the plus side, it will make things much more difficult for the flat-earthers who think some books should be burned.

Conversely, I really love the smell of an old book and of old, used book stores.

Taka