[LINK] Australians due payment from google

[Jan Whitaker]

It's worth searching for you name in the author field. You may be due 
some money.
http://books.google.com/advanced_book_search
I found one linker included.
Jan


Google library a windfall for authors

March 14, 2009

Australian authors and publishers are set to receive a windfall from 
Google's project to put millions of books online.

In recent weeks several Australian publishing industry bodies, such 
as the Australian Society of Authors, the Copyright Agency Limited 
and the Australian Publishers' Association, have been contacting 
members to let them know about the settlement Google has reached with 
American authors and publishers.

Under the terms of this settlement, copyright holders are to be paid 
$US60 ($91.85) a book and $US15 an article or chapter copied from the 
more than 7 million items in the Google Library project.

The project, accessible online only in the US, will allow internet 
users to download and search any book scanned from the collections of 
11 major American university libraries. When the book generates 
income, either from direct use or from advertising, Google will pay 
the copyright holder 63 per cent of that income on top of the initial 
opt-in fee.

Google had tried to ignore the copyright owners but American authors 
and publishers started a class action against it. The parties settled 
the matter last year. The chief executive of the copyright agency, 
Jim Alexander, hailed the agreement as "a substantial victory for 
copyright owners".

Authors and publishers have been notified that they may either opt in 
or out of the deal by May 5. If they opt out, Google may not use 
their book in any way. If they opt in, the copyright holders are 
entitled to a share in revenues and fees.

"What this does is put the copyright owner back in control," Mr 
Alexander said. He said it was impossible to estimate how many 
Australian authors and publishers among the agency's 13,000 members 
would benefit. Google has assigned $US125 million to compensate 
copyright holders and set up a book rights registry that will 
independently oversee how payments are allocated.

A Google spokesman, Rob Shilkin, said Google Australia had been 
waiting for the US deal to be bedded down, but once it was, the 
company would approach potential Australian partners with a view to 
undertaking a similar project.

Malcolm Knox is a director of the Copyright Agency Limited.




Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
jwhit at janwhitaker.com
blog: http://janwhitaker.com/jansblog/
business: http://www.janwhitaker.com

Our truest response to the irrationality of the world is to paint or 
sing or write, for only in such response do we find truth.
~Madeline L'Engle, writer

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