This morning we have two complaints related to Google. One is from a French publisher in the process of suing the search engine giant. The other is from a UK publishers’ association.

This all stems from Google’s Library Project, whereby Google has made agreements with several large worldwide libraries to copy books over to digital form. These materials are then made available via Google Book Search. Clicking a link from Book Search results provides users with a snippet view, sample view, or book view of the material, if the author or publisher has granted permission. Users can then purchase these books by clicking links to online bookstores.

The French publisher La Martiniere is accusing Google of copyright infringement, stating that Google is granting access to text excerpts of works they own without permission. The company is demanding 100,000 euros for each book Google copies. The lawsuit will be filed in Paris.

UK publishers are also clashing heads with Google over the same issue, feeling the project is jeopardizing the function of the print industry.

“It’s important to remember that publishers want to publish and find markets,” said Hugh Jones of the Publishers’ Association. “We’re not interested in locking up content. We love search engines, but there is an instructive distinction between library services and publisher services.”

Google Europe is defending the project, reiterating that publishers do not have to participate in the program. Google also states that the Library Project will promote higher sales of the materials by leading interested users to online bookstores.

The problem is that Google is digitizing printed materials without permission, then leaving it up to the publishers and authors to ask for the items to be removed if they have issue with it, instead of asking for permission first.

Google is currently being sued in the USA for copyright infringement over the same issue by The Authors Guild and the Association of American Publishers. Both organizations filed suit last fall.