DoJ Calls for Rewrite of Google Deal

News
By Jane McEntegart
published

The United States Department of Justice has said that the proposed settlement between Google and the Authors Guild is in serious need of a rewrite.

The U.S. Justice Department late last week urged the court overseeing the deal to reject the settlement in its current form, adding that the court should encourage the involved parties to renegotiate the terms of the settlement.

"As presently drafted, the Proposed Settlement does not meet the legal standards this Court must apply," the DOJ said according to CNet News. "This Court should reject the Proposed Settlement in its current form and encourage the parties to continue negotiations to modify it so as to comply with Rule 23 (a federal law governing class-action settlements) and the copyright and antitrust laws."

Despite its suggestion that parts of the settlement be rewritten, the filing from the Justice Department (via CNet) also recognizes the fact that a digital library could benefit society.

If Google and the Authors Guild decided to press ahead with the current version of the $125 million settlement, the court will decide the fate of the deal October 7 although any changes made would prolong the case even further.

The filing from the DOJ follows protests from the likes of the U.S. Copyright Office, the European Union, Germany, France, five U.S. attorneys general, Microsoft, Yahoo! and Amazon.

Check out the full story here.

Jane McEntegart
4 Comments Comment from the forums
  • cookies
    If both parties are agreeing to the settlement, why should they be forced to renegotiate?
    Reply
  • Montezuma
    cookiesIf both parties are agreeing to the settlement, why should they be forced to renegotiate?
    It is because our government has become too much of a nanny state and they are just trying to tell us what is in our best interest. Of course, that is total bullshit. The government's job is regulation and they should regulate to make sure a monopoly is not created. Of course, this is not going to come close to creating a monopoly, but the government thinks that it has a right to regulate this the way it wants.

    They are wrong and they need to step out of the way of progress. This is one of the reasons that science and technology has not continue to expand and improve at the exponential rate that it was in the not-too-distant past.
    Reply
  • Blessedman
    Yes this reminds me of the influence the church had over innovation and science way back in the day. There is a reason why they called it the dark ages and we are heading that way once again.
    Reply
  • croc
    montezumaIt is because our government has become too much of a nanny state and they are just trying to tell us what is in our best interest. Of course, that is total bullshit. The government's job is regulation and they should regulate to make sure a monopoly is not created. Of course, this is not going to come close to creating a monopoly, but the government thinks that it has a right to regulate this the way it wants.They are wrong and they need to step out of the way of progress. This is one of the reasons that science and technology has not continue to expand and improve at the exponential rate that it was in the not-too-distant past.
    Or maybe it is an actual violation of various other countries' copyright laws? I didn't hear of any Aussie author sitting in on these negotiations, mate. And apparently the Germans and French, among others, were also not sitting in on negotiations with Google, either. The US is not the center of the world anymore. Get over it, yank-wankers....
    Reply