Wednesday, 20 December 2006

Google’s e-Book Project Sees Challenge

Google, which is already in copyright troubles over allegations of copyright infringements, has triggered a debate with an alternative project promising better online access......

Google, which is already in copyright troubles over allegations of copyright infringements, has triggered a debate with an alternative project promising better online access to the books, art and historical documents.

Google had announced its intentions to scan books kept in nine libraries and making it accessible on its search engine. However a break away group called as Open Content Alliance does not favour commercialisation of knowledge. This group favours a less restrictive approach.

"You are talking about the fruits of our civilization and culture. You want to keep it open and certainly don't want any company to enclose it," said Doron Weber, programme director of public understanding of science and technology for the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation in New York. The foundation is giving a million grant to the Internet archive to make digital copies of collections owned by libraries.

The grant from Sloan will be used to scan collections at the Boston Public Library, the Getty Research Institute, and the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

The scanned copies also include the personal library of John Adams, America's second President, and thousands of images from the Metropolitan Museum.