3 Count: Belgium Non-Waffles

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1: Google Busted for Copyright Violation in Belgium

First off today, Google has lost yet another round in Belgium, with an Appeals Court ruling that Google is violating Belgian copyright law by linking to and displaying excerpts from French and German-language newspapers in the country. The court has ordered Google to remove all such links or face a fine of 25,000 euros (about $35,000) per day it does not comply. This follows a similar pair of defeats in 2007, which forced Google to remove several papers from its index. Those papers were eventually readded. Google, in a statement, said they believe Google News is in full compliance with Belgian copyright law and that they are doing nothing wrong.

2: Radical Copyright Law Reform to Boost Ireland’s Digital Economy?

Next up today, Ireland is considering a “radical” copyright reform that would bring a U.S.-style fair use clause to the country for both commercial and non-commercial use. The country’s Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, Richard Bruton, has initiated a review to determine the feasibility of implementing such a system in Ireland. As part of that review, the government is seeking feedback from the public between now and June 30.

3: Library of Congress Builds the Record Collection of the Century

Finally today, the Library of Congress is expected to unveil a plan tomorrow to allow the public greater access to its library of more than six million works. The LoC is preparing to increase public access to its Mt. Pony, VA warehouse, which is over 45 acres in size, by allowing anyone on site to listen to any track possible while they are on site. The the LoC has said it would like to grant greater access to works online, it acknowledges copyright law prohibits that, especially since pre-1972 sound recordings are not under Federal jurisdiction.

Suggestions

That’s it for the three count today. We will be back tomorrow with three more copyright links. If you have a link that you want to suggest a link for the column or have any proposals to make it better. Feel free to leave a comment or send me an email. I hope to hear from you.

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