at works can be copied only once authors have expressly given their permission," says Piers Blofeld, of the Sheil Land literary agency in London. "Google has reversed this – it has simply copied all these works without bothering toask."

In 2005, the Authors Guild of America, together with a group of US publishers, launched aclass action suit (集团诉讼) against Google that, after more than two years of negotiation, endedwith an announcement last October that Google and the claimants had reached an out-of-courtsettlement. The full details are complicated - the text alone runs to 385 pages– and trying tosummarise it is no easy task. "Part of the problem is that it is basically incomprehensible," saysBlofeld, one of the settlement's most vocal British critics.

Broadly, the deal provides a mechanism for Google to compensate authors and publishers whose rights it has breached (including giving them a share of any future revenue it generates fromtheir works). In exchange for this, the rights holders agree not to sue Google in future.

This settlement hands Google the power - but only with the agreement of individual rights holders – to exploit its database of out-of-print books. It can include them in subscription deals sold to libraries or sell them individually under a consumer licence. It is these commercial provisions that are proving the settlement's most controversial aspect.

Critics point out that, by giving Google the right to commercially exploit its database, thesettlement paves the way for a subtle shift in the company's role from provider of information to seller. "Google's business model has always been to provide information for free, and sell advertising on the basis of the traffic this generates," points out James Grimmelmann, associate professor at New York Law School. Now, he says, because of the settlement's provisions, Google could become a significant force in bookselling.

Interest in this aspect of the settlement has focused on "orphan" works, where there is noknown copyright holder – these make up an estimated 5-10% of the books Google has scanned. Under the settlement, when no rights holders come forward and register their interest in a work, commercial control automatically reverts to Google. Google will be able to display up to 20% oforphan works for free, include them in its subscription deals to libraries and sell them to individual buyers under the consumer licence.

It is by no means certain that the settlement will be enacted (执行) – it is the subject of afairness hearing in the US courts. But if it is enacted, Google will in effect be off the hook as far as copyright violations in the US are concerned. Many people are seriously concerned by this - and the company is likely to face challenges in other courts around the world.

No one knows the precise use Google will make of the intellectual property it has gained byscanning the world's library books, and the truth, as Gleick, an American science writer and member of the Authors Guild, points out, is that the company probably doesn't even know itself. But what is certain is that, in some way or other, Google's entrance into digital bookselling will have a significant impact on the book world in the years to come.

注意：此部分试题请在答题卡1上作答。

1. Google claims its plan for the world's biggest online library is _____.

A)  to serve the interest of the general public

B)  to encourage reading around the world

C)  to save out-of-print books in libraries

D)  to promote its core business of searching

2. According to Santiago de la Mora, Google's book-scanning project will _____.

A)  broaden humanity's intellectual horizons

B)  help the broad masses of readers

C)  revolutionise the entire book industry

D)  make full use of the power of its search engine

3. Opponents of Google Books believe that digitally archiving the world's books should be controlled by _____.

A)  non-profit organisations                               C) multinational companies

B)  the world's leading libraries                          D) the world's tech giants

4. Google has involved itself in a legal battle as it ignored _____.

A)  the copyright of authors of out-of-print books

B)  the copyright of the books it scanned

C)  the interest of traditional booksellers

D)  the differences of in-print and out-of-print books

5. Google defends its scanning in-copyright books by saying that _____.

A)  it displays only a small part of their content

B)  it is willing to compensate the copyright holders

C)  making electronic copies of books is not a violation of copyright

D)  the online display of in-copyright books is not for commercial use

6. What do we learn about the class action suit against Google?

A)  It ended in a victory for the Authors Guild of America.

B)  It was settled after more than two years of negotiation.

C)  It failed to protect the interests of American publishers.

D)  It could lead to more out-of-court settlements of such disputes.

7. What remained controversial after the class action suit ended?

A)  The compensation for cop