September 2, 2009

Canadian Writers Launch Internet Campaign to Oppose Google

On Friday September 4, Canadian writers and publishers get their last chance to opt out of the increasingly infamous Google Book Settlement, condemned by dozens of international authors’ associations around the world.

“The best way I can describe this appalling deal is to compare it to a thief breaking into your house in the middle of the night and saying if you haven’t locked your windows, your property is theirs for the taking,” says B.C. author Katherine Gordon. “Google is saying we’re going to put your books online, we’re only telling you we’re doing that because someone caught us out, but unless you tell us you don’t want us doing it we’re going to keep doing it and pocket the profits. It’s outrageous.”

Incensed at the blatant disregard for Canadian legal copyright ownership that the settlement represents, several Canadian writers have been working for months to raise awareness of the settlement’s many flaws. Now authors Katherine Gordon, Kim Goldberg, Mona Fertig, Patricia Robertson and Sarah Sheard have launched a last-ditch internet blitz, using blogs, facebook, social networking sites and list serves, to spread the word as widely as possible in an effort to ensure that this country’s copyright owners have the information they need in time to protect their legal rights.The Google Book Settlement between Google Inc. and the American Authors’ Guild was announced at the end of 2008 to conclude a protracted lawsuit against Google, which had been scanning copyrighted works without permission for commercial purposes. The settlement automatically covers copyrighted works of authors in more than 200 countries around the world, including Canada, unless their authors choose to opt out by September 4. Because Google has done virtually nothing to publicize the settlement, millions of authors remain unaware their rights will be seriously compromised after Friday.

After only 48 hours of blitzing the internet, grateful responses from authors across the country have been pouring in and many of them are choosing to opt out. B.C. author Kim Goldberg doesn’t find that surprising: “This settlement threatens the livelihoods of writers and publishers the world over, as well as the future of libraries. Do we really want one corporation to become the planetary library for all human literary output since the beginning of time? The societal implications of Google’s high-handed corporate actions are vast. Writers need to opt out. And the courts need to quash the deal.”

For more information or to arrange an interview, please contact Katherine Gordon at (250) 247-7285, Kim Goldberg at (250) 741-8577 or Patricia Robertson at 867-633-2065. See www.googlebooksettlement.com for more information on the settlement and http://www.blog.sarahsheard.com for a Canadian author’s perspective.