“Google will not have to pay Oracle anything for violating 37 Java copyrights, because they are not copyrightable, a federal judge ruled Thursday,” David Goldman reports for CNNMoney.
“The ruling — the final verdict in a landmark court case between two Silicon Valley titans — affirms the industry’s long-held belief that certain key bits of software code that help applications talk to one another are fair game for anyone to use,” Goldman reports. “Android originally used several lines of code that Sun had written for Java. That code, called application programming interfaces, or APIs, are essentially a way for apps to communicate with the operating system. Since Java is an open-source software, its APIs are generally free and available for public use. Judge William Alsup ruled Thursday that those APIs are not copyrightable because they are so basic and fundamental.”
Goldman reports, “As a result, Alsup threw out a judgment handed down by a jury last month that said Google violated the copyrights on 37 Java APIs owned by Oracle. He also denied Google’s pursuit of a mistrial, calling the issue ‘moot’ since he ultimately ruled in the company’s favor. Google will owe no damages to Oracle. In a separate part of the case, a jury last week cleared Google of violating any of Oracle’s patents with Android. For those keeping score at home, that’s Google 3, Oracle 0.”
Read more in the full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: Justice.
[Thanks to MacDailyNews Reader “Edward W.” for the heads up.]
Related articles:
Google wins patent verdict in Oracle trial – May 23, 2012
Jury finds Google infringed on some Oracle Java copyrights – May 7, 2012
Oracle: Google execs ‘knew this day would come’ – April 30, 2012
Oracle’s slideshow alleging how Google copied Java – April 18, 2012
No settlement: Oracle and Google will go to trial on April 16th – April 2, 2012
Son of a bitch!
I just can’t believe this crap! I’m pissed off to say the least.
It still can be turned around on appeal, this judge has had a number of his verdicts turned around, so all hope is not lost.
I believe MDN’s take is missing a “?”.
Thank god.
I don’t consider this a win for just Google (more was at stake than their interests and I don’t care about them).
I consider it a win for the entire industry and for anyone who wishes to interface their software with another piece of software or implement an api defined in an open source language.
Same here
Where is the justice?
Man I’m glad this is finally over (well at least I am hoping such)!
Is it getting better
Or do you feel the same
Will it make it easier on you now
You got someone to blame
You say…
One love
One life
When it’s one need
In the night
One love
We get to share it
Leaves you baby if you
Don’t care for it
Did I disappoint you
Or leave a bad taste in your mouth
You act like you never had love
And you want me to go without
Well it’s…
Too late
Tonight
To drag the past out into the light
We’re one, but we’re not the same
We get to
Carry each other
Carry each other
One…
Have you come here for forgiveness
Have you come to raise the dead
Have you come here to play Jesus
To the lepers in your head
Did I ask too much
More than a lot
You gave me nothing
Now it’s all I got
We’re one
But we’re not the same
Well we
Hurt each other
Then we do it again
You say
Love is a temple
Love a higher law
Love is a temple
Love the higher law
You ask me to enter
But then you make me crawl
And I can’t be holding on
To what you got
When all you got is hurt
One love
One blood
One life
You got to do what you should
One life
With each other
Sisters
Brothers
One life
But we’re not the same
We get to
Carry each other
Carry each other
One…life
One
You just posted the entirety of a copyrighted work. Thjank God it’s only that blowhard Bono
Ouch! I guess Andy Rubin will get a BIG bonus now.
Do we know if Judge Alsup is sitting on any Apple cases?
i hope that was good for You…
Jeezuz…
Boner
I predicted this right here. Crime pays well in America.
Yeah, do you realize who advices the Obama administration – all the CEO crooks who ran Americas’ best known insurance companies. They robbed the regular joe – people of jobs, property and life policies. Crime does pay. The United States of America is the best nation to allow this; Canada is second to that. Democracy is weak.
When the laws and police and justice fails – democracy fails.
You appear delusional!
You also need a spell checker and meds!
We dump the Kenyan chimp soon.
Take your racist hate elsewhere dirtbag.
Don’t do Evil (unless there is a lot of money in it for you)
Yeah, steal, rape and pillage, that’s the way of the future.
A great day for freedom and theft. Why would anyone innovate anything if he can just steal it from others who worked years to invent it.
Hail to the dumbass judge and clueless dumbass posters here supporting this bullshit. .
I agree.
Judge Alsup learned how to program in Java so that he could better understand the case.
Oracle didn’t invent Java. They bought Sun and Sun released the vast majority of Java as open source, under the GPL for many parts. Oracle waved Java around like a gun.
In other news, Oracle’s CEO Larry Ellison said they are going into the “Search” business to sell advertising to increase revenues. Their model is aided by the internal papers they have received from Google from an earlier court case.
Oracle figures they cannot be sued because the business model of “Search” to sell advertising to increase revenue is, how did the Judge express it, “those APIs are not copyrightable because they are so basic and fundamental.” Just substitute ‘API’ with ‘business model’
How you like that Google, hugs and kisses, Larry!
Fscking ridiculous.
Those saying they can’t believe the verdict have never programmed for a living or are blind raging fanbois. If you were in this world you would understand.
Trying to understand… So in your world, “programming” = theft? Need to update my moron to English translator with that one.
No in his world an API is a specification that is non-copyrightable.
What is theft is a company using the legal system to try and extort money from others who legally used a piece of software in compliance with the licensing terms of the source code.
Google wasn’t remotely in compliance with the licensing terms, they willfully disregarded them. There are 2 licenses. You can use the open source (free) license only if you open source the entire project – which Google was not willing to do. They also willfully broke Java compatibility. Since they were therefore using Java commercially, they should have purchased the commercial license.
ApplePi – I understand where you’re coming from, but there are other choices, many of them free for programmers to choose from. Oracle (Sun) spent a lot of time and money creating a very easy to use and robust programming implementation that they should get paid for if they so choose. Google did NOT have to use Java, they chose to. And they chose to steal it in an underhanded and sneaky way.
The portion of Java that Google used is from the Apache Harmony project, not directly from the Open JDK.
Google never claimed to be compatible with Java, which is why they did not pursue a TCK license.
Oracle breaks java compatibility on their own. The ME framework is not compatible with the full java run time and really compatibility is a moot point since google does not advertise or promote Android as being Java Compatible. Android DEX files are not java byte code.
Sun did choose how they would license java, they open sourced it and specifically allowed the Apache Harmony project to live.
Oracle deciding they want to change the rules at a later date and extract payment does not mean they are entitled to do so.
No one stole anything here. Sun made a series of decisions in regards to source code licensing and Oracle tried to find a way around those decisions so they could pull more money from Java.
Now that facts don’t matter, why bother… Seems that if the ruling were based in fact, the case would not have been heard in the first place. Crime actually does pay, and it pays well.
“Great artists steal.. inspiration not implementation.”
Worth repeating, in case you forgot..
http://www.imore.com/2012/04/06/great-artists-steal/
(really spot on)
Google! You are go for project “Apple Can Kiss My Android Ass”
What it means is, any software advantage you may have over Google, Google may steal at their leisure, Flipboard, Webkit etc…
So does this mean Apple will lose all the lawsuits against Android makers? I do not see this as a good sign for Apple, looks like copying is the way to go.
Google’s claimed motto:
Do no evil.
Google’s Modus Operandi:
Know Google? You Do Know Evil
Judge Alsop will now retire with $$$$$$$$$$ in an offshore acct. Thanks Eric!
Correction: Alsup
So, will this ruling be used to invalidate other software patents and licenses? Did Microshaft and others just lose their lunch as well?