Google Book Search and the University of Michigan

Abstract

In December 2004, Google and the University of Michigan announced they were partnering in an ambitious project to digitize the bound print volumes of the University Library collections. The digitization project, known locally as the Michigan Digitization Project, will provide scholars and the general public with an unprecedented ability to search for and locate books from the University's vast collection. This initiative has the potential to revolutionize the way the world's knowledge is transmitted and to democratize access to information. In addition, university libraries are uniquely tasked by the public to be repositories of human knowledge and information. The digital archive resulting from this project will significantly advance the University of Michigan's ability to meet that responsibility. This paper is an update on the status of the partnership between Google and the University of Michigan, including how and why the partnership came about, what has taken place since the project was announced, and future developments.