World Governments Accuse Google Of Copyright Infringement

Google HQ

The Chinese, German and French governments have correctly accused Google of copyright infringement, in scanning 10,000,000 books, by authors all over the world, without permission.

Google's book scanning endeavor, has prompted legal action in numerous world courts, as they did not obtain the consent of copyright holders before embarking on this endeavor.

The U.S. Government, by way of the Copyright Office/Library Of Congress, has also denounced Google's book scanning project, stating it took away the rights of copyright holders.

The Judiciary Report agrees that the corporate behemoth, Google, should have obtained the permission of copyright holders, before undertaking this massive project. It unintentionally sent the signal that copyright infringement is okay, when it is not.

Many books now appear on the internet for free and pop up in regular searches on numerous topics and celebrities, eliminating the need to purchase the actual book.

This hurts writers all over the globe, who are not being compensated for their copyrighted works. The proposed Google settlement is too small and accurate records of how many times each scanned book was viewed should be provided to gauge the full extent of the financial damage.

The Judiciary Report is all for progress and technological advancement, believing scanning is a great step forward, but within the scope of the law. Obtain permission first.

Side Bar: Speaking of Google News. Someone removed the Judiciary Report from Google News weeks ago, after it had been accepted in the program with a few news articles from the site beginning to appear in search results in Google News.

Apparently, a certain crazy pop tart, Madonna, was angry the site received additional coverage and in her usual misconduct, violated the Civil Rights Act once again, in having it removed from Google News. Madonna's staff at Digilink pulled a similar stunt with the site's WordPress blog, which was later reinstated - a site Madonna's hackers at Digilink have been tampering with, to obscure the page's text.

China authors say Google violated copyrights

Thu Oct 22, 2009 6:06pm EDT, Saturday, 10 Oct 2009 11:09am EDT - SHANGHAI (Reuters) - A group representing authors in China has accused Google of violating copyrights with its digital library, a claim that Google denies by saying the service complies with international law.

Many major publishers and authors have taken up lawsuits against Google for its digitization of their works, accusing Google of copyright infringement. Google has already digitized 10 million books.

The China Written Works Copyright Society (CWWCS) believes Google scanned thousands of books, by over 500 Chinese authors, into its digital library without their permission or compensation, said spokesman Chen Qirong.

"Whether you are a small company or big company you still need to respect the copyright of the authors," Chen said...

http://www.reuters.com

Google, French publishers face off in court

Thu Sep 24, 2009 1:59pm EDT - PARIS (Reuters) - Major publishers accused Google Thursday of "brutally" exploiting France's literary heritage as they launched a court challenge to the Internet giant's drive to scan digital copies of books and put extracts online.

Publishing house La Martiniere, the French Publishers' Association and authors' group SGDL asked a Paris court to fine Google 15 million euros ($22.09 million) and 100,000 euros for each day it continues to violate copyright by digitizing their books.

The trial caps a three-year challenge to what publishers say is the web giant's 2005 plan to create a massive online library without prior approval.

"It's an anarchic way of brutally stockpiling French heritage," Yann Colin, the publishers' lawyer, told the court.

"Digitizing is reproduction," he added. "Once it is digitized, you can't undo it."...

http://www.reuters.com

Germany criticizes Google for copyright infringement

Sat Oct 10, 2009 11:20am EDT - BERLIN (Reuters) - German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Saturday criticized the efforts of Google Inc to build a massive digital library, saying the Internet should not be exempt from copyright laws.

In her weekly video podcast, before Tuesday's opening of the Frankfurt Book Fair, Merkel appealed for more international cooperation on copyright protection and said her government opposed Google's drive to scan libraries full of books.

"The German government has a clear position: copyrights have to be protected in the Internet," Merkel said, adding there are "considerable dangers" for copyright protection in the Internet.

"That's why we reject the scanning in of books without any copyright protection -- like Google is doing. The government places a lot of weight on this position on copyrights to protect writers in Germany."

Google has already digitized 10 million books.

Merkel, who will open the world's largest book fair in Germany's financial capital, said there was a need to discuss the issue in greater detail in international institutions...

http://www.reuters.com

Top US copyright cop opposes Google book deal

SAN FRANCISCO — The nation's top copyright official has joined the mounting opposition to a class-action settlement that would give Google Inc. the digital rights to millions of out-of-print books.

Her objections cast further doubt on whether the agreement will be allowed by a federal court, even as Google offered a concession Thursday aimed at smoothing the way for approval.

Parts of the settlement are "fundamentally at odds with the law," Marybeth Peters, head of the U.S. Copyright Office, testified in a House Judiciary Committee hearing Thursday that was webcast. She also expressed concerns that the settlement would undermine Congress' ability to govern copyrights and could have "serious international implications" for books published outside the United States...

"The so-called settlement would create mechanisms by which Google could continue to scan with impunity, well into the future, and to our great surprise, create yet additional commercial products without the prior consent of rights holders," Peters wrote in a more comprehensive written statement submitted to the Judiciary Committee...

The open-ended nature of the settlement is "tantamount to creating a private compulsory license," Peters wrote, something she believes could circumvent the authority of Congress.

http://www.google.com

Caster Semenya Receives Hero's Welcome

800 meter gold medalist, Caster Semenya, received a heroes welcome in South Africa today, after dismantling the competition at the World Athletics Championships in Berlin, Germany. Winnie Mandela hugging Caster Semenya Semenya won by such a wide margin that when she crossed the finish line, it appeared as though she was running the race by herself, as the other athletes were barely in the frame. It was an outstanding performance. Because she won the race by the widest margin of any athlete at the games, she has been met with significant suspicion in the press, due to reports her gender is in question. Caster Semenya The IAAF ordered full gender tests, after a preliminary test discovered the levels of testosterone in Semenya's system, is three times greater than the average woman (that's still ten times less than Madonna). The additional tests will determine if a genetic anomaly created the elevated testosterone levels.

Usain Bolt Given A Piece Of The Berlin Wall

Usain Bolt

The city of Berlin, Germany honored Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt, with a piece of the Berlin Wall, adorned with a mural of himself for illustrating, "One can tear down walls that had been considered insurmountable." That was a very gracious and kind gift from the city of Berlin.

Bolt gets a piece of Berlin for 'tearing down walls'

August 24, 2009 - BERLIN: Usain Bolt was honoured by the city of Berlin by receiving an original segment of the Berlin Wall.

The Jamaican sprinter, who broke world records in the 100m and 200m at the World Athletics Championships in Berlin last week, was given the chunk of wall at a ceremony on the final day of the world championships yesterday.

The 3.6m high, 2.7 metric tons section will have to be specially delivered to Bolt's training camp in Jamaica. The piece of the wall, which divided communist East Berlin from West Berlin between 1961 and 1989, is decorated with a life-size painting of Bolt running on the blue track of Berlin's Olympic stadium and the words "NEW WR" - new world record.

The mascot of the event is called Berlino, while the phrase "ich bin ein Berliner" was famously used by former US president John F Kennedy in 1963.

Berlin Mayor Klaus Wowereit said Bolt had shown that "one can tear down walls that had been considered insurmountable". - Sapa-AP

http://www.pretorianews.co.za

Usain Bolt Sets Another World Record

Jamaican sprinter, Usain Bolt, fresh off his record setting 100 meter run, set another record at the the World Athletics Championships in Berlin, Germany.

Bolt set a new record in the 200 meter final, winning the race in 9.19 seconds. The IAAF has been sure to emphasize, due to his incredible speed, Bolt has been rigorously tested for steroids, with all his tests coming back negative. His fellow sprinters also faced scrutiny and all their tests came back negative as well.

Well done to all who participated.

Bolt Crushes His Own 200-Meter Record

Published: August 20, 2009 - Usain Bolt clearly does not require the intensity of a close race to obliterate his own world records.

After being pushed close to the finish line in the 100 on Sunday by Tyson Gay as Bolt won in a record-setting 9.58 seconds, Bolt had to do the pushing himself in the final straightaway of the 200 on Thursday. Running alone — strikingly alone — in lane 5 in the final straightaway, he showed no interest in cruising to the finish. Instead, he sprinted through, and the result was a time of 19.19 seconds: 11-hundredths of a second faster than the world record he established a year ago at the Beijing Olympics.

It has been a remarkably productive, efficient performance for Usain Bolt at these world championships. He has raced two finals and broken two of his own world records, with the 4x100 relay still to come. And he has now matched his sprint double at last year’s Olympics with another, even faster double on the blue track here.

Bolt, who will turn 23 on Friday, arrived at the Olympic Stadium wearing a T-shirt that read “Ich Bin Ein Berlino,” a lighthearted take on the famous line from President John F. Kennedy’s speech here in 1963. Kennedy’s “Ich Bin Ein Berliner” (“I am a Berliner”) was a show of rhetorical support for West Berlin...

http://www.nytimes.com

Caster Semenya's Gender Questioned

Caster Semenya

South African sprinter, Caster Semenya, is facing massive scrutiny after winning the 800 meter run, at the World Athletics Championships in Berlin, Germany.

Caster has been forced to take a gender test, administered by a team of doctors, due to her very muscular appearance, pectorals, 6-pack/8-pack stomach, a visible Adams apple and slight bulge at the genital area. In an ironic twist, the first five letters of her name spell the word "semen."

Clearly, she passed the steroids tests, otherwise she would not have been allowed to participate. However, officials seek to determine if she is a man or a woman with genetic male traits that give her an unfair advantage.

Some in South Africa believe statements about her have been xenophobic and racist, because she is not an American.

Respectfully, as a Jamaican black woman, when I first saw her photo, I immediately realized what the controversy was about, as she does exhibit masculine traits and she also has a male swagger.

That statement is not meant to be insulting, but truthful. Not to mention, it has been reported, that even in South Africa, her teacher, bathroom attendants and others, for years have thought she was a man.

It maybe due to a genetic occurrence that caused her to posses both male and female characteristics, which strenuous workouts to build strength and stamina, have accentuated. Pilates would counter that to reduce confusion.

People are also asking questions, because in the past, two European men, who were white (only mentioning that due to the racial claims with Semenya) posed as women and won gold medals that were later revoked.

Women are considered the weaker sex and it really is not very competitive overall, to have men sprinting against women. Therefore, it is a very delicate subject, but it must be addressed in the interest of fairness.

Regardless of the outcome of the gender tests, which are expected in a few weeks, Semenya is an extraordinary athlete, who put on a fine performance. Congrats on your win, as it was very impressive.

Semenya humiliated, says SA athletics chief

Thu Aug 20, 2009 4:56pm GMT - BERLIN (Reuters) - The gender controversy surrounding South Africa's teenage 800 metres world champion Caster Semenya has been humiliating for her, the country's athletics chief said on Thursday.

Semenya's rapid improvement over the past year, in which she has shaved more than eight seconds off her personal best in the two-lap race, prompted the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) to order a gender test.

"I will continue to defend the girl, I will continue to do anything, even if I am to be kicked out of Berlin, Germany, but I am not going to let that girl be humiliated in the manner that she was humiliated because she has not committed a crime whatsoever. Her crime was to be born the way she is born," said Athletics South Africa president Leonard Chuene.

"And now people are not happy, and on that basis she is isolated like a leper, like she has got a disease that will affect other people, and I don't think it's proper," he told Reuters Television.

Powerfully built but smooth running, the 18-year-old Semenya clocked one minute, 55.45 seconds for the year's fastest time and a personal best by more than a second to win gold in the 800 on Wednesday, hours after the IAAF said the procedure for gender testing had started...

http://af.reuters.com

Usain Bolt Sets New World Record

Jamaican sprinter, Usain Bolt, smashed the world record that was his own, running the 100 meters in Berlin Germany, in 9.58 seconds, which was incredible. Congrats to him and all the sprinters, as you are all the best in the world to have even made it there to the finals.

Due to his astonishing speed, Usain is the kind of dude you'd want on your team during a relay... or bank robbery (just kidding).

Superman Bolt: 9.58 100m!

Sunday, August 16, 2009 - Far behind in second was Tyson Gay, whose 9.71 would be the fastest ever were it not for Bolt. Teammate Asafa Powell (who has run 9.72, third fastest of all time) came in behind Gay. So in this race Bolt smashed his own record from Beijing and destroyed the #2 and #3 fastest sprinters of all time. Bolt is the greatest of all time!

http://www.technologyreview.com