News
Microsoft To Launch Online Book Library
- By Becky Nagel
- October 27, 2005
Microsoft is jumping into the online book search world with a new initiative called MSN Book Search.
When launched in beta form next year, the service will feature content from
the Open Content Alliance, a non-profit organization that counts Yahoo! among
its founding supporters. Microsoft is joining the alliance and will donate enough
money to scan 150,000 books for the project, according to reports.
Unlike Google Print -- which is facing lawsuits from publishers who don't want
their works included -- the Open Content Alliance will only scan copyrighted
materials if it has permission from the owner.
"We are excited to be working with libraries worldwide to digitize and
index information from the world's printed materials, taking another step
in our efforts to better answer people's questions with trusted content
from the best sources," Christopher Payne, corporate vice president of
MSN Search at Microsoft, said in a statement.
About the Author
Becky Nagel is the vice president of Web & Digital Strategy for 1105's Converge360 Group, where she oversees the front-end Web team and deals with all aspects of digital projects at the company, including launching and running the group's popular virtual summit and Coffee talk series . She an experienced tech journalist (20 years), and before her current position, was the editorial director of the group's sites. A few years ago she gave a talk at a leading technical publishers conference about how changes in Web browser technology would impact online advertising for publishers. Follow her on twitter @beckynagel.