The Google Book Search Project

Session: Intellectual Property & Social Justice: User’s Rights, Public InterestConference theme: Regulating Technology for the Common GoodThis presentation looks at the antitrust and copyright issues arising from the Google Book Search (GBS) settlement. It argues that antitrust concerns of the settlement pertaining to exclusivity and pricing should be viewed as “ancillary restraints” to an overall pro-competitive copyright collective. Accordingly, a “rule of reason” framework is developed for evaluating and balancing anti-competitive and pro-competitive effects of the ancillary restraints to the GBS settlement and copyright collectives generally. It concludes that Google’s de facto exclusivity over orphan works and its book pricing mechanisms should be upheld under antitrust law