EXCLUSIVE-US state AGs looking at Google books deal
* Attorneys general discussed deal on call this week
* No decision made during call
(Adds further detail on call, Google response, background, byline)
By Diane Bartz
WASHINGTON, May 8 (Reuters) - State attorneys general are looking into a proposed settlement Google Inc (GOOG.O: Quote, Profile, Research) reached with author and publisher groups allowing the Internet company to digitize millions of books, a participant in a recent discussion of the matter told Reuters on Friday.
A group of state attorneys general discussed the deal in a one-hour conference call on Tuesday, said Peter Brantley, director of the Internet Archive.
The U.S. Justice Department is also making inquiries about the deal Google struck to settle copyright disputes arising from its project to put millions of books on the Internet.
But the deal has come under fire because it is silent on what Google would eventually charge libraries, who fear the service will become a very pricey must-have. "There was no indication that there was any specific activity planned," by the attorneys general, said Brantley, whose nonprofit Internet Archive also digitizes books in addition to building a digital library of Internet sites. Continued...
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