Damages Could Exceed $1 Billion in Authors Guild Case Against Google

Aug. 6, 2012

By Andrew Albanese

If the Authors Guild prevails in its legal battle over Google’s library book scanning program the search giant could theoretically be on the hook for over $1 billion in damages. According to the Authors Guild motion for summary judgment, filed on July 27 (but made public in a redacted version on August 3), the Guild asks the court for summary judgment in its favor, and the minimum statutory damage award—$750 per infringement. With as many as four million of the estimated 20 million books scanned by Google thought to still be under U.S. copyright, the damages could run into the hundreds of millions of dollars should Google lose, depending on the ultimate size of the class, and assuming that copyright holders come forward and prove ownership.

Read the full story at Publisher's Weekly.