Adler, Allan, et al.  “The Battle over Books: Authors and Publishers Take on the Google Print Library Project.”  The New York Public Library, New York.  17 Nov. 2005. 

            On November 17, 2005 WIRED magazine and the NYPL sponsored a discussion on the Google Print Library Project.  The panelists were Nick Taylor, representing the Authors Guild, David Drummond, representing Google, Lawrence Lessig, a Stanford Law professor specializing in copyright law, and Allan Adler, representing the Association for American Publishers (AAP).  The discussion was intended to flesh out the issues raised by Google’s project and to gain insight into the future of the digital indexing of books.  However, rather than elucidate the copyright issues inherent in this debate, this discussion illustrated that economic incentives are at the heart of the conflict between Google and its opponents.   

            The first to speak, Taylor, immediately alludes that the Authors Guild’s objection was routed in its lack of economic benefit from Google’s program.  He claims that Google’s actions represent, “a rogue version of eminent domain, only without the compensation that government routinely gives.”  Adler’s statements reveal a similar point-of-view in which the real threat Google poses is an economic one.  Adler declares that since Google is a for-profit company its use of copyrighted material is essentially robbing copyright owners of the ability to exploit the market for their works. 

            Through this discussion it becomes apparent that the Authors Guild and the AAP believe that Google has created a new market for their works.  In addition, they believe that Google’s program will have a negative effect on their ability to access this new market.  Thus, a finding of fair use seems inappropriate to the Authors Guild and the AAP as in their view the fourth factor, effect on the market, should weigh against Google.  However, in the course of this discussion, both the Authors Guild and the AAP failed to show how Google Book Search impedes authors and publishers from licensing their work to search engines or anyone else.   

            On September 20, 2005, the Authors Guild and several individual plaintiffs filed a class action lawsuit against Google.  Following the filing of this lawsuit a press release was posted on the Authors Guild website.  The press release states that the lawsuit is in response to the Google Library Program.  According to this press release, Google’s scanning and digitization of copyrighted materials without the permission of copyright holders is tantamount to “massive copyright infringement.”  The Authors Guild’s conviction that Google is guilty of copyright infringement has its basis in the opinion of Nick Taylor, president of the Authors Guild, who states, “It’s not up to Google or anyone other than the authors, the rightful owners of these copyrights, to decide whether and how their works will be copied.”  As a result of Google’s infringing actions the Authors Guild requests an injunction and for damages to be awarded.