The Business of Writing > Laws about Writing

An Internet post question

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JIM DOHERTY:
Elena,

Re your comment below


--- Quote from: Elena on January 30, 2009, 11:13:36 AM ---Google clearly (but buried in very fine print) claims all copyright to anything that passes through any of their services.

Whether this wholesale claim where permission is assumed by agreeing to all the terms included in screens and screens of fine print will be supported by courts if a case ever gets there, is dubious. 
--- End quote ---

If I understand you correctly, this means that, if I send a novel, non-fiction book, article, or short story to my publisher or agent as an e-mail attachment, or in the body of an e-mail, through an e-mail service owned or controlled by Googe, Google can claim to own it!

That's positively chilling.

Elena:
Jim,

That is exactly what they say - that they have all rights to everything that goes through their system. I have no idea if this has been challenged in any court, nor do I know if Google has ever tried to use their "right". But, I did read it in their fine print. They also included photos in their laundry list.  Made me wonder what use they have for all those photos of newborns sent around to families and friends.

IMHO they will wind up with a data base so big that between not knowing what to look for, and where it might be it's just puffin' in the wind. But, I sure do wonder what they were thinking.

Elena

B L McAllister:

--- Quote from: JIM DOHERTY on January 30, 2009, 08:24:44 PM ---

If I understand you correctly, this means that, if I send a novel, non-fiction book, article, or short story to my publisher or agent as an e-mail attachment, or in the body of an e-mail, through an e-mail service owned or controlled by Googe, Google can claim to own it!

That's positively chilling.

--- End quote ---

Obviously they can claim anything they want to claim, but can they make it stick?  I suspect not.  If I send a copy of the US Constition and Google pounces on it, I suspect their claim will annoy the courts.  Still, fighting a stupid claim of that sort is expensive, so the big guys sometimes win without worryiing about whether they deserve to or not.

Elena:
Byron,

They are  not going to use your emailed copy of the Constitution. What they might use is information distributed by someone who has subsequently become famous or infamous, and without any specific  permission of the user, since they can claim by clicking on 'accept their terms' you have already turned over all your rights to them.

This data then can be published in some way that earns money for Google, without further permission from the victim, and without paying them. That would be a very valid court case if it were to happen.

Elena

B L McAllister:

--- Quote from: Elena on February 02, 2009, 12:00:09 PM ---Byron,

They are  not going to use your emailed copy of the Constitution. What they might use is information distributed by someone who has subsequently become famous or infamous, and without any specific  permission of the user, since they can claim by clicking on 'accept their terms' you have already turned over all your rights to them.

This data then can be published in some way that earns money for Google, without further permission from the victim, and without paying them. That would be a very valid court case if it were to happen.

Elena

--- End quote ---

Provided one finds out about it, and provided one has enough money to get through the early phases of the suit.  As for the Constitution, my email progrram is Eudora, so the Constitution may be safe.

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