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September 24, 2009 — In addition to this week's NewsBreaks article and the monthly NewsLink Spotlight, Information Today, Inc. (ITI) offers Weekly News Digests that feature recent product news and company announcements. Watch for additional coverage to appear in the next print issue of Information Today. For other up-to-the-minute news, check out ITI’s Twitter account: @ITINewsBreaks. CLICK HERE to view more Weekly News Digest items.

Google Book Search Settlement Hearing to Be Postponed

On Sept. 22, the parties involved in the Google Book Search settlement have asked the federal court to postpone the scheduled Oct. 7 hearing to give them time to work with the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) so that the parties can "(a) amend the Settlement Agreement and (b) seek approval of an amended settlement agreement" (http://thepublicindex.org/docs/motions/hearing/adjourn_memo.pdf). They also asked the court to schedule a "status conference" for Nov. 6.

The key deadlines in the settlement had already been extended by U.S. District Court Judge Denny Chin-from May 5 to Sept. 4 for opting out, and from June 11 to Oct. 7 for the hearing. (See http://newsbreaks.infotoday.com/Spotlight/Update-on-the-Google-Book-Settlement-54998.asp.)

The parties filing for postponement include the plaintiffs: The Authors Guild, Inc.; Association of American Publishers, Inc.; et al. In addition, the memorandum in support of the motion to postpone states, "Google has agreed that plaintiffs may represent that it does not oppose this motion."

The memorandum noted:

As of September 8, 2009, approximately 400 objections, briefs of amici curiae, and statements, both in support of and in opposition to the Settlement Agreement, have been filed with the Court. These include hundreds of objections from individuals and corporate entities within and from outside of the United States, from the Federal Republic of Germany and the Republic of France, and from the Attorneys General of six states (Connecticut, Kansas, Missouri, Pennsylvania, Texas, and Washington).

For a compilation of available documents to view or download in the settlement, see http://news.justia.com/cases/featured/new-york/nysdce/1:2005cv08136/273913/#20090401.

For additional information, see the Google Book Search Bibliography compiled by Charles W. Bailey Jr. at www.digital-scholarship.org/gbsb/gbsb.htm.