Google Books Stealing Intellectual Property
Google Books Stealing Intellectual Property
Google's vision and quest to digitize all the world's books is a terrible thing for scholars, authors, journalists and news companies.
As publisher Jack Fuller noted “a lot of content today is provided not cheaply, but free” (2.1 Lecture). The danger however as costs for content trend toward zero and news companies reduce staff is the quality of content likewise declines. Thus what used to be considered “news” means something different today in an age when sports and reality TV is more frequently watched than traditional news read and watched by our parents and grandparents.
The expectation of the online age that digital content and intellectual property should both be provided freely is a misnomer and a bad business model, which hurts both the news industry and consumers seeking valuable content.
As an author of several books, like anybody else working in the marketplace, I expect to be compensated for my research, writings, and editorial work. To expect writers and journalists to work for free and give away their intellectual property is discriminatory and dehumanizing.
Just because Internet advertising generates less revenue for news companies than print and TV adverts does not mean the intellectual property should be discounted and those who researched, assembled and wrote it should work merely as volunteers without compensation.
Like the TV Public Broadcast Service and National Public Radio, newspapers also need to seek sponsorships to support quality journalism and continue to compensate their employees researching and writing informational content.
Google's Richard Gingras has “intimated that newspapers and Yahoo” share a “fundamental problem in common,” they are portals which are disappearing online as consumers pursue other sites related to their preferred interest and niche (2.1).
Algorithm-driven Google News does not serve humans but corporate profitability via generating page views, as evidenced in the first 10 years of Google’s “biggest” news stories (2.1) – few of which resonated with readers. Such a model of creating and delivering “news” is neither noteworthy, nor of any value to the world.
As Jack Thorer observed, “most instances of mass production don't retool quite that often” (2.2). Google’s business model and delivery of digital content (“news” and books) is therefore unlikely to change. Where Google could better serve readers is to provide links to the many articles on particular topics, without diluting the search for keywords with its profit driven algorithm (not likely).
As Kevin Kelly, the original editor of Wired Magazine, has said: ”When people understand that it costs almost nothing to make a copy, nothing is all they are willing to pay.” (2.2) Google has created this evil mindset that tends toward thievery.
Google’s own attorney Alex MacGillivray has admitted “Google’s leadership does not care terribly much about precedent or law” (2.3).
The challenge for news media companies is to somehow persuade Google, other search engines, and online consumers to pay for digital content. This may be more easily accomplished by pursuing lawsuits against Google for stealing and freely providing intellectual property online. But as Siva Vaidhyanathan has acknowledged, the Google Books settlement is insufficient in and of itself to teach Google humility. Unless more lawsuits are filed against Google and settlements made to be paid, Google will continue to encroach upon intellectual property to monetize it for its own gain without compensating its creators (unless forced to do so by law).
http://www.PaulFDavis.com New Media & Author Consultant, Worldwide Motivational Speaker and Life-Changing Author of 20 Books including "The Future of Food" (volumes 1 & 2)
Paul's books - http://www.goodreads.com/review/list/...
http://www.Linkedin.com/in/worldprope...
http://www.Twitter.com/PaulFDavis
http://www.Facebook.com/speakers4insp...
References:
http://www.slate.com/articles/news_an...
Lectures 2.1 and 2.2 Northwestern University, Understanding Media by Understanding Google, Prof. Owen Youngman (2013)
2.3 Presentation, Northwestern University, Understanding Media by Understanding Google, Prof. Owen Youngman (2013)
Google Books Stealing Intellectual Property
Google's vision and quest to digitize all the world's books is a terrible thing for scholars, authors, journalists and news companies.
As publisher Jack Fuller noted “a lot of content today is provided not cheaply, but free” (2.1 Lecture). The danger however as costs for content trend toward zero and news companies reduce staff is the quality of content likewise declines. Thus what used to be considered “news” means something different today in an age when sports and reality TV is more frequently watched than traditional news read and watched by our parents and grandparents.
The expectation of the online age that digital content and intellectual property should both be provided freely is a misnomer and a bad business model, which hurts both the news industry and consumers seeking valuable content.
As an author of several books, like anybody else working in the marketplace, I expect to be compensated for my research, writings, and editorial work. To expect writers and journalists to work for free and give away their intellectual property is discriminatory and dehumanizing.
Just because Internet advertising generates less revenue for news companies than print and TV adverts does not mean the intellectual property should be discounted and those who researched, assembled and wrote it should work merely as volunteers without compensation.
Like the TV Public Broadcast Service and National Public Radio, newspapers also need to seek sponsorships to support quality journalism and continue to compensate their employees researching and writing informational content.
Google's Richard Gingras has “intimated that newspapers and Yahoo” share a “fundamental problem in common,” they are portals which are disappearing online as consumers pursue other sites related to their preferred interest and niche (2.1).
Algorithm-driven Google News does not serve humans but corporate profitability via generating page views, as evidenced in the first 10 years of Google’s “biggest” news stories (2.1) – few of which resonated with readers. Such a model of creating and delivering “news” is neither noteworthy, nor of any value to the world.
As Jack Thorer observed, “most instances of mass production don't retool quite that often” (2.2). Google’s business model and delivery of digital content (“news” and books) is therefore unlikely to change. Where Google could better serve readers is to provide links to the many articles on particular topics, without diluting the search for keywords with its profit driven algorithm (not likely).
As Kevin Kelly, the original editor of Wired Magazine, has said: ”When people understand that it costs almost nothing to make a copy, nothing is all they are willing to pay.” (2.2) Google has created this evil mindset that tends toward thievery.
Google’s own attorney Alex MacGillivray has admitted “Google’s leadership does not care terribly much about precedent or law” (2.3).
The challenge for news media companies is to somehow persuade Google, other search engines, and online consumers to pay for digital content. This may be more easily accomplished by pursuing lawsuits against Google for stealing and freely providing intellectual property online. But as Siva Vaidhyanathan has acknowledged, the Google Books settlement is insufficient in and of itself to teach Google humility. Unless more lawsuits are filed against Google and settlements made to be paid, Google will continue to encroach upon intellectual property to monetize it for its own gain without compensating its creators (unless forced to do so by law).
http://www.PaulFDavis.com New Media & Author Consultant, Worldwide Motivational Speaker and Life-Changing Author of 20 Books including "The Future of Food" (volumes 1 & 2)
Paul's books - http://www.goodreads.com/review/list/...
http://www.Linkedin.com/in/worldprope...
http://www.Twitter.com/PaulFDavis
http://www.Facebook.com/speakers4insp...
References:
http://www.slate.com/articles/news_an...
Lectures 2.1 and 2.2 Northwestern University, Understanding Media by Understanding Google, Prof. Owen Youngman (2013)
2.3 Presentation, Northwestern University, Understanding Media by Understanding Google, Prof. Owen Youngman (2013)
Google Books Stealing Intellectual Property
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