Chinese author sues Google
Mian Mian (right), the Chinese author of ‘risque’ novels whose work is mostly banned in China, sued giant US advertising company Google for copyright violation.
In China.
More than 80,000 Chinese books had their copyrights violated by Google, says China Business Times, quoted by China Daily.
“According to a list of Chinese books Google had scanned to put up in its digital library, 8,000 pieces of works of 2,600 writers from Chinese Writers Association were involved in the case, said China Written Works Copyright Society (CWWCS),” the story states, noting, “Books published on the Chinese mainland before 1987 were not listed.”
Well-known Shanghai novelist Mian Mian (right) sued Google China for copyright infringement, and after a two-hour hearing, today, a court “ordered both sides to talk but did not set a deadline for reporting back, according to the author’s lawyer,” says the BBC, going on:
“She is seeking damages of 61,000 yuan ($8,950; £5,576) and a public apology.
Mian said Google scanned her entire novel, Acid Lover, published by the Shanghai Joint Publishing Company, “without notifying her or paying her for copyright permission,” said China Daily recently, continuing Google China deleted the book on November 15, “But she said a Google key-word search still brings up passages of her book.”
It’s a “brutal way to introduce my literary work, because the incoherent passages seen online ruin my story,” she said.
“I also want to ask Google why they only show respect regarding copyright protection to famous American publishing houses.”
Mian is the first Chinese writer to accuse Google “for copyright in the name of herself, and the case could encourage more Chinese writers to get involved in copyright protection,” said her lawyer, Sun Jingwei.
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