Siding With Google, Judge Says Book Search Does Not Infringe Copyright - NYTimes.com

And so begins a new chapter in Google's book-scanning operation; also see Court Upholds Legality of Google Books: Tremendous Victory for Fair Use and the Public Interest (EFF)

"“What seemed insanely ambitious and this huge effort that seemed very dangerous in 2004 now seems ordinary,” said James Grimmelmann, a law professor at the University of Maryland who has followed the case closely. “Technology and media have moved on so much that it’s just not a big deal.”
The ruling examined whether Google’s use of copyrighted works counted as so-called fair use under copyright law, which Judge Chin determined it did. The decision opened the door for other companies to also scan books."

Siding With Google, Judge Says Book Search Does Not Infringe Copyright - NYTimes.com