Paris match for Google's library plan?

France's president orders a homegrown alternative to the search giant's literary ambitions.

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[TV James]

Bad idea

While I hate the idea of any one company being a monopoly, Google kind of is. The Europeans are worried about becoming "also rans" in this new race to get literary works online. By creating their own system, they are destined to be just that. Instead, they ought to talk to Google and make sure that they're represented alongside any American literary works. Sure, Google's a US company, but they've always conveyed the message that it's all about getting the information to the people, without any sort of commentary or editorial slant.