Google was ordered by a Paris court to pay 300,000 euros (about $430,000 USD) in damages to a French publisher, La Martiniere. A judge ruled that Google violated French copyright law with its Book Search. The company will also be fined 10,000 euros (about $14,340 USD) per day until extracts from La Martiniere’s books are removed from the database. La Martiniere brought the case to court on behalf of a group of fellow French publishers.

Information Week reports:

“We disagree with the judge’s decision and will appeal the judgement,” Google spokeswoman Gabriel Stricker, said in an e-mail sent to Information [Week.] “We believe that displaying a limited number of short extracts from books complies with copyright legislation both in France and the U.S. — and improves access to books.”

Google argues that French readers are the biggest losers, since they won’t have access to a large pool of knowledge. “If readers are able to search and find books, they’re more likely to buy and read them,” Stricker said.

Serge Eyrolles, president of the French publisher’s union Syndicat National de l’Edition, said, “It shows Google that they are not the kings of the world and they can’t do whatever they want.” He said that French publishers would still work with Google, “but only if they stop playing around with us and start respecting intellectual property rights.”

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The Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) has voted to extend the stay of enforcement for the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA) for one year, until February 10, 2011. The extension is a boon to publishers and other businesses that are scrambling to adapt to the law, but is also beneficial to the CPSC itself.
Publishers Weekly reports:

“The extension of the stay was needed in order to give the agency more time to promulgate rules important to the continued implementation of the CPSIA and for the agency to educate our stakeholders on the requirements of those new rules,” CPSC chair Inez Tenenbaum wrote in a statement.
The Commission is still ironing out the testing protocols dictated by the Act, and needs to expand the list of independent laboratories authorized to do the testing, among other pending issues.”

The CPSC also voted to approve a policy that would allow component testing rather than requiring testing of the final product.

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Random House is working with tech company Mobile Roadie to develop iPhone apps for three of its bestselling authors, Steve Berry, Sophie Kinsella, and Karen Marie Moning. The Washington Post’s TechCrunch blog reports, “With this new application, fans will be able to preview books, access bonus content, interact with other fans, check upcoming author appearances, listen to audiobook clips, watch author videos and book trailers, and more.”