At some point in the coming days, there will be an announcement for the new head of the U.S. Copyright Office. I fully expect that everyone will have their litmus test for whether the new person (called the “Register” for historical reasons that have probably outlived their usefulness) should be appointed. The fact is that […]
The Colbert Report Mon – Thurs 11:30pm / 10:30c Lawrence Lessig http://www.colbertnation.com/ Colbert Report Full Episodes Political Humor Economy This is a hysterical example of what happens when a geek talks down to a comedian on his own show. Note how Lessig blows it in the first 20 seconds with THAT TONE on the word […]
More on this later, but the United States opposes the Google Books settlement. So kind it is almost sarcastic: “[I]t should not be a surprise that the parties did not anticipate all of the difficult legal issues such anambitious undertaking might raise….As presently drafted, theProposed Settlement does not meet the legal standards this Court must […]
I note that the quotations from Fred von Lohman, the Mystic Knight of the EFFluviati, that appeared in the press on the Veoh case were somewhat guarded. We learn from our spectacular defeats—Grokster in Fred’s case. The industry sentiment regarding Veoh reminds me of reaction to the lower court decisions in Grokster—this simply cannot be […]
As if the imploding Google Books wasn’t enough of an example of the damage a crackpot can do when backed by rich schoolboys with absolutely no real world experience, Professor Lyndon Larouche is being welcomed at Harvard with open arms (now that he’s done his best to destroy the entertainment industry, journalism as we know […]
Like the tar baby, the Google Books settlement agreement often raises more questions than it answers. Take something simple–unclaimed funds. Some of you may recall the shock and awe of Elliot Spitzer’s attack on the music industry–that is the attack on the music industry relating to royalties that were earned but unpaid due to a […]
It should come as no surprise to anyone that Reuters is reporting that France will file an objection to the Google Books settlement with Judge Denny Chin. France joins a growing list of countries–yes, COUNTRIES–opposing Google. As I noted in The Register in December of last year (and so many times in MTP that I […]
Today is the opt-out deadline for the Google Books settlement and the Leviathan of Moutain View has had a busy week for enemy-making. The Syndicat National de l’Edition, which is the French book publishers association, and the Federal Republic of Germany, both filed briefs opposing the settlement on similar grounds–it violates every copyright treaty known […]
An excellent article on Google Books from the New Zealand Herald: “‘The deal is cultural imperialism on a par with the 1980s US flexing of military might over nuclear ship visits, says the Auckland branch secretary of the Society of Authors, Adrian Blackburn. ” … This monopolistic pre-emptive grab by a hugely wealthy US business […]
Gary Reback is back. Even in the extraordinary arrogance of the Google Boardroom of Mirrors this should give pause. More later: Tech’s Bigs Put Google’s Books Deal in Crosshairs.
