Q&A with Peter Brantley, Director of the Bookserver Project at the Internet Archive
Q. What now? Where does this leave not just Google but also Yahoo/Microsoft and the OCA?All of the interested parties have an opportunity to consider next steps in light of their goals. For the Open Book Alliance, we continue to seek ways of fostering an open and competitive market for books online, and to engage with government agencies and the U.S. Congress to advise on long term solutions to the problems created by an aging copyright framework for access and use of digitized content.
Q. Do you see a role for the Library of Congress in constructing a new settlement?
Clearly the Copyright Office voiced strong concerns about the legality of the settlement in the House Judiciary Committee hearing, and I would expect them to continue to articulate their views, in concert with the Department of Justice, which represents them.
Q. Does this set back the cause of having full-text book content on the web? If Google stops its scanning efforts while this is renegotiated, how much time have we lost? What's the up side?
No, in fact, I think it reinvigorates it. The efforts of the Open Content Alliance, the Internet Archive, Microsoft, Yahoo!, Google, and hundreds of individual libraries around the world have indicated the strong desire to have digital books online. We are witnessing an explosion of interest in digital content, new and old, and I think the discussions around the settlement provide an opportunity for us to consider how to engender a robust, competitive, and innovative market - and not just here, but in Europe as well.
Q. What do you think will be the points around which new negotiations will center? What were the stickiest parts of the settlement, in your view?
Clearly, the Rule 23 issues on class representativeness for orphan authors, foreign authors, and academic authors, are significant. The prospective use of copyright in future BRR business models was addressed by the Government, and the antitrust issues surrounding price fixing, constraints on discounting, the institutional license, and achieving fair and competitive access to the books database are going to have to be considered.
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