Google Books, a program that’s been raising controversy in the US, has reportedly struck a deal with four publishing houses in China. Baidu, which has been Google Books‘s rival, had deals with Chinese libraries instead – its program has access to 15 million books, the largest online collection of Chinese books in the world.
Working with libraries is the approach Google came under fire for in the US when publishers said their copyrighted material was being included in the program without their permission. The search company took an opt-out approach in the US. It’s notable that Windows Live Book Search has an opt-in program for publishers and Google appears to be following its lead when formulating its China strategy. Google Books Search China will give readers access to excerpts from books and require payment to read the full works.
