Authors Guild Fires Back at Amazon

However, Horvath left the door open to changes to the privacy policy, noting that it's not possible to draft a final privacy policy that covers all of the anticipated services and features until the deal is approved and Google Book Search is built.

Meanwhile, Denny Chin, the judge weighing whether to approve the Google Book Search settlement for a U.S. District Court in New York, has extended the deadline for parties to support or oppose the deal from Sept. 4 to Sept. 8 because of computer maintenance in the court. Chin is expected to hold a hearing on whether to approve the deal Oct. 7.

Google has about as many supporters as detractors for Google Book Search. Yesterday, several civil rights groups held a press conference to talk about how important the deal is for bridging the "digital divide." Noting that physical and financial barriers to knowledge continue to inhibit learning among disadvantaged communities and those of color, Wade Henderson, president of the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights, said:

"Google Book Search will help eliminate those barriers, making it possible for low-income students and students in poor quality public schools to access texts that can only be found on the far side of town or the far side of the world. With Book Search, anyone with a computer and an Internet connection will have a key to all of the world's great libraries."

Amazon, which has a competing book scanning service and filed a 49-page complaint to the court blasting Google Book Search, fears Google will have too much control over the market for orphan works, or those whose books that are out of print and whose copyright holders cannot be found. Google has dismissed opposition from rival Amazon as "sour grapes," but the Authors Guild Sept. 3 went a step further:

Amazon's hypocrisy is breathtaking. It dominates online bookselling and the fledgling e-book industry. At this moment it's trying to cement its control of the e-book industry by routinely selling e-books at a loss. It won't do that forever, of course. Eventually, when enough readers are locked in to its Kindle, everyone in the industry expects Amazon to squeeze publishers and authors. The results could be devastating for the economics of authorship.

Amazon, the organization said, will be free to continue its lock on the online distribution of in-print books.  

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