In a highly anticipated brief, the Department of Justice on September 18 said the Google Book Search Settlement as currently structured should be rejected by the court overseeing its approval. “As presently drafted the proposed settlement does not meet the legal standards this court must apply,” the DoJ report concluded. "This court should reject the proposed settlement and encourage the parties to continue negotiations to comply with Rule 23 and the copyright and antitrust laws.”
In a silver lining, the DoJ recognized the potential value of a deal to facilitate book digitization, and officials urged the settlement parties to head back to the negotiating table. "A properly structured settlement agreement in this case offers the potential for important societal benefits," reads the DoJ statement. "The United States does not want the opportunity or momentum to be lost."
In a brief statement, Google, the AAP and the Authors Guild, said they will address the concerns of the DoJ. “We are considering the points raised by the Department and look forward to addressing them as the court proceedings continue,” the statement read.
The DoJ's opposition makes it increasingly likely that the October 7 fairness hearing, or at least its outcome, will be delayed. While the DoJ was upbeat about the settlement's potential, suggesting that the parties address DoJ concerns and make the settlement viable, the issues outlined in its brief nevertheless strike deeply at the heart of the deal, and it remains to be seen how quickly these thorny issues, the subject of years of tense negotations, can be resolved, if they can be at all. Without modifications, the DoJ indicated there was "a significant potential" that the Department would conclude that the settlement "violates the Sherman Act."
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