The beta version of Google Print went live in May 2005, after two
earlier steps. In October 2004, Google launched the first part of
Google Print as a project aimed at publishers, for internet users to be
able to see excerpts from their books and order them online. In
December 2004, Google launched the second part of Google Print as a
project intended for libraries, to build up a digital library of 15
million books by digitizing the collections of main partner libraries,
beginning with the universities of Michigan (7 million books), Harvard,
Stanford and Oxford, and the New York Public Library. The planned cost
in 2004 was an average of US $10 per book, and a total budget of $150
to $200 million for ten years. In August 2005, Google Print was stopped
until further notice because of lawsuits filed by associations of
authors and publishers for copyright infringement.