Google has agreed to pay $125 million to settle claims from publishers and writers over the internet company's plans to scan millions of books.

Authors and publishers sued the world's biggest internet company three years ago after it announced plans with many US universities to scan millions of books from their libraries to allow users to search their contents on the web.

Google has now settled with the Authors Guild and Association of American Publishers. As part of the deal, which is subject to approval by the US District Court in New York, Google will set up a non-profit group called the Book Rights Registry to resolve outstanding claims by authors and publishers and cover legal fees from class-action lawsuits against Google.

In a joint statement, Google, the publishers and authors said the settlement agreement "acknowledges the rights and interests of copyright owners, provides an efficient means for them to control how their intellectual property is accessed online and enables them to receive compensation for online access to their works."

Of the $125 million, $30 million will go to creating the Book Rights Registry, $45 million to paying authors and publishers whose books have already been scanned without permission and the remainder to reimburse legal fees.

The agreement also provides future revenue to authors and publishers who agree to digitize their books with the Book Rights Registry.

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