more on more Google

[David Farber <dave () farber net>]

Begin forwarded message:

From: Cindy Cohn <cindy () eff org>
Date: November 11, 2005 3:05:35 PM EST
To: dave () farber net
Subject: Re: [IP] more Google

Hi Dave,

Dan Steinberg says:
> I do not claim to know in advance the results of any legal  
> challenges issued (and the arguments on both sides are quite  
> interesting).   But at the end of the day, doesn't this all boil  
> down to a company (and its supporters) telling us:
> "it's for your own good"
> "it's not really that bad"

I'm guessing that the "us" here is authors and publishers.

I think that if the debate gets framed as a binary choice between  
authors and publishers on the one hand and Google on the other, it  
would be a shame.  There is another interest here -- those of "us"  
who are trying to find the right thing to read. I submit that we  
"book searchers," more colloquially known as "readers" are an  
important part of this debate and that Google isn't really the same  
as us.

Whatever else one thinks about Google Print, it is unequivocally good  
for readers.  I submit that allowing authors and publishers to  
control who or how easily we can find their works by controlling the  
search tools available to readers is unfair to "us."

Cindy

still not sure why I cannot resist this topic
and happy to discuss other issues where we think Google is wrong:
http://www.eff.org/deeplinks/archives/001425.php

>
********************************************************
Cindy Cohn                                      ---- Cindy () eff org
Legal Director                                  ---- www.eff.org
Electronic Frontier Foundation
454 Shotwell Street
San Francisco, CA 94110
(415) 436-9333 x108
(415) 436-9993 (fax)


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