A Cavalier Approach to Copyright?
Microsoft has accused Google of violating copyright law, and called its business model ‘troubling’.
Thomas Rubin, Associate General Counsel of Microsoft, said that Google systematically violates copyright law, as its move into newer media markets comes at the expense of publishers of books, videos, and software.
Rubin calls Google’s attitude towards copyright protection “weak at best” and cites the many accusations leveled against Google-owned YouTube for its failure to remove copyrighted material. Rubin says Google has a ‘cavalier’ approach to copyright law.
Earlier, in October 2005, the Association of American Publishers filed a lawsuit against Google, alleging the search giant violated copyright by scanning and distributing books protected under copyright law.
Rubin said in his view, Google has chosen the wrong way for the long term, because it violates copyright, and deprives authors and publishers of an important avenue for monetizing their works. By scanning copies of published works without first seeking copyright holders’ permission, Google opens the door to massive infringement.
Denying such allegations, David Drummond, Senior Vice President of Corporate Development, and Chief Legal Officer of Google, said that Google works with more than 10,000 publishing partners to make books searchable online, and has recently added the BBC and NBA basketball league as YouTube video partners. They do this by complying with international copyright laws, and the result has been more exposure, and in many cases, more revenue for authors, publishers, and producers of content.
It is learnt that Google has won support from the Computer and Communications Industry Association (CCIA), which argued that Microsoft has given an “unfortunate mischaracterization” of copyright law that is outdated in the digital age.