The Ashes

Amazon.com Inc., Microsoft Corporation, and Yahoo! Inc. are joining several nonprofit groups and other library associations to oppose a class-action settlement that would give Google the rights to digitize millions of books.

The settlement is still waiting on court approval.  The Department of Justice has also opened an antitrust investigation to explore some of the agreement terms.

The coalition against the Google Book project is called the Open Book Alliance.  The Alliance is led by Gary L. Reback, an antitrust lawyer working out of Silicon Valley.