US still unsure about Google digital book deal

The US government still believes a proposal to give Google the digital rights to millions of hard-to-find books threatens to stifle competition and undermine copyright laws, it emerged today.

The US Justice Department’s opinion, filed in New York federal court, is a significant setback in Google’s effort to win approval of a 15-month-old legal settlement that would put the internet search leader in charge of a vast electronic library and store.