Yesterday, Andrew DeVore, a lawyer representing the heirs of John Steinbeck and the Philip K. Dick Trust, delivered a brief to Judge Denny Chin asking for a four month extension of the Google Books Settlement so that authors could get their minds around the agreement and what it means for the future of fiction. Judge Chin has agreed, extending the settlement agreement until September 7th.

REPEAT: JOHN STEINBECK AND PHILIP K. DICK HAVE BEEN SUMMONED FROM THE GRAVE BY UNHOLY LEGAL NECROMANCERS TO LEAD ARTISTIC OPPOSITION TO A SETTLEMENT DEEMED DANGEROUS FOR THE MISSING AND THE DEAD.



"What is thy bidding, foul mage? We hear and obey!"

From Andrew DeVore's letter:

"The scope of the proposed settlement is unprecedented. For authors who do not opt out, the settlement if approved would impose a complex scheme for the wholesale allocation of rights and remedies, and compensation for exploitation of those rights, in the digital world. And it would cement the scheme in perpetuity in an area of commerce that has seen explosive growth in just the last five years, and that may well prove to be the most important and valuable channel for the distribution and exploitation of creative works."

DeVore's letter also cites the fact that many authors and publishers have only recently been notified about the settlement, and the fact that Google's database of books is difficult to navigate and full of incorrect information. Additionally, the terms of the settlement are deceptive and unclear as pertains to the rights to non-display uses of books -- uses like data mining ad keyword search.

The Justice Department has also opened an inquiry into the settlement as a result of pressure from the Internet Archive and Consumer Watchdog.

From the New York Times:

"Lawyers for the Justice Department have been in conversations in recent weeks with various groups opposed to the settlement, including the Internet Archive and Consumer Watchdog. More recently, Justice Department lawyers notified the parties to the settlement, including Google, and representatives for the Association of American Publishers and the Authors Guild, that they were looking into various antitrust issues related to the far-reaching agreement.

"The inquiry does not necessarily mean that the department will oppose the settlement, which is subject to a court review. But it suggests that some of the concerns raised by critics, who say the settlement would unfairly give Google an exclusive license to profit from millions of books, have resonated with the Justice Department."

I think we can all safely say that Philip K. Dick at least would not want to deliver the power to manage, sort, and hide the contents of all world literature to a massive internet search company.

I also think we can all safely say that we would all like to see provisions in the settlement for Google to begin research on a fully-functional android containing Philip K. Dick's consciousness that will head their Book Rights Registry and will have the ability to morph into a predator drone to protect the interests of writers.

"OH SHIT IT IS THE DICKBOT. BURN ALL DOCUMENTS AND GO OUT THE WINDOW. THERE IS NO TIME."

Posted by miracle on Wed, 29 Apr 2009 09:09:37 -0400 -- permanent link