Google Digitize Libraries of Rome and Florence
 

The Government of Italy and Google on March 10 signed an agreement on the digitization of nearly one million books from the two libraries of Rome and Florence. It is reported by AFP.

According to the Ministry of Cultural Heritage of Italy Mario Reske (Mario Resca), an agreement with Google will save the book from damage and loss. Among digitized folio along with other antique editions will include Dante, Machiavelli and Galileo. Scanning will be subject to all the books published before 1868, since they are not subject to Italian laws on copyright.

According to a representative government, the Internet giant's investment in the project will total about 100 million euros. The company will assume all costs of establishing a specialized center, which will transfer the books in digital format.

Google already has an agreement to digitize books from several universities, including Oxford and Columbia University, as well as a number of libraries in Germany, the USA and France. At the same time, signed on March 10 agreement was the first treaty with the government, rather than with individual organizations.

In France, a similar initiative the company faced several challenges. In 2009, against Google on charges of copyright infringement made by the community SGDL, Publishers Association SNE and the publishing house Seuil, belongs to the De la Martiniere. Court recognized that the Internet company violated the copyrights of publishers, but Google has appealed his decision.

http://lenta.ru/news/2010/03/11/googlelibrary/