Internet search services provider Google, Inc., US, recently filed a motion to dismiss copyright claims against its Google Books project by groups representing authors and photographers. According to Google, the groups could not sue over copyrights they did not own. If granted, only the individual plaintiffs in the two lawsuits would proceed with litigation against the company.
The motion is reportedly the latest development in a legal battle that has been raging since 2005. The Authors Guild and the American Association of Publishers had then sued to block Google from scanning millions of books in libraries and making digitised content from them available in libraries and online. They charged that scanning the books without always seeking permission would violate copyrights. The American Society of Media Photographers (ASMP) filed a similar lawsuit last year, which is being considered alongside the authors' case.
Google's motion seeks to remove the Authors Guild and the ASMP from the lawsuits. The two organisations have until January 23, 2012 to file their responses. Google will then have until February 3 to respond to their opposition. Meanwhile, Denny Chin of the US District Court for the Southern District of Manhattan will have overlapping motions, as Google is scheduled to file its response to the Authors Guild recent motion for class certification motion by January 26.
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