Google Book Settlement @ NYPL "Big Brave New World of the Jetsons"

This afternoon at the Celeste Bartos Forum at the New York Public Library, the main players in the Google Book Settlement gathered for a bit of PR soothing for an ornery audience made up of librarians, publishing industry workers, professors, and the NYPL 's general counsel.

To sum up the dominant metaphors in play - Now that Google has finished scanning every book on the face of the earth, the horses have been let out their barns, but lojacked, and we're all sitting around our kitchen tables on the internet, except those of us without access who are waiting in long lines out the door on 42nd Street for the one terminal that the settlement provides free for each public library building to access the new Google Book Search index.

• This settlement covers books out of print & under copyright with a 1/09 cutoff date.
  
• Authors & Rightsholders (publishers) will get a one-time payment of anywhere between $60-$300.
• Books found on the Book Search can be bought from $2-$200 - average price $6-$7.
• Price can be set by rightsholder.
• 37% will go to Google - 63% to Books Rights Registry (which will pay author & rightsholder.)
  
• Orphaned works are thought to comprise 10% of these books.

Best exchange - Google: "Money from [sales of] orphaned works will go to charity."
NYPL Director: "This is the most charitable place."
Google: "The money will be held in escrow for five years."
NYPL Director: "We're here for the long haul."