[A2k] Open Excess: Der Heidelberger Appell

[Matthias Spielkamp]

Dear everyone,

there is an unfortunate and misinformed campaign brewing in Germany
against Open Access. Peter Suber reported (http://tinyurl.com/d9jckt):

<snip>
German petition against Google Books and OA

A sign-on petition (in German) against Google Books appeared recently on
the web site of Heidelberg's Institut f=FCr Textkritik (ITK).  The gist of
it is that Google Books violates copyright and the freedom of authors.
But in an aside it criticizes the Allianz der deutschen
Wissenschaftsorganisationen (Alliance for German Science Organizations)
for advocating an unlawful interference with the freedom of authors,
apparently by supporting OA.  Read the petition in German or Google's
English.

The authors of the petition do not identify themselves.  It may be a
coincidence, but ITK is the home institution of Roland Reu=DF, who
triggered an intense controversy with a jeremiad against OA last month
in the Frankfurter Allgemeiner Zeitung.  He has also condemned Google Books=
.
</snip>

The problem is that many respected German academics and authors already
signed the petition.

I analysed Reu=DF' arguments (or rather: lack of arguments) in a longish
essay for German online magazine Perlentaucher. Of course it's in German
but I know that some of you read German.

Essay
Open Excess: Der Heidelberger Appell
Von Matthias Spielkamp
24.03.2009. Verleger und Autoren wehren sich auf Initiative des
Heidelberger Professors Roland Reu=DF gegen eine "Enteignung" durch Google
und Open Access. Ihre Argumentation ist haarstr=E4ubend, voller Fehler und
gef=E4hrlich

http://www.perlentaucher.de/artikel/5347.html


Best regards,
Matthias