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It looks like a minor snag in deliberations this morning wasn’t enough to keep a jury from reaching a decision in the first leg of Oracle’s trial against Google, and things aren’t so rosy for the tech giant behind Android. A ruling of guilty was passed down in regards to allegations of infringement on Oracle’s Java API. Still, there was no decision on whether the infringement fell under the rules of fair use or not.
While the verdict seems damning for Google, things aren’t all that bad. Based on the jury’s inability to conclude unanimously on all questions asked of them, Google is moving for a mistrial. The outcome looks to be several more months of courtroom hijinks before the true implications of any decision will be known, and in all likelihood things will move towards a tidy (and potentially pricy) out of court settlement between the two parties.
[via Gizmodo]
You know how hard it must have been to find jurors with non-Android powered smartphones? I damn sure couldn’t have been on that Jury. :-P
And having a juror with any other kind of smartphone could mean a bias against Google. Basically they’d have to find jurors with no smartphones at all.
Yes and no. As an Android owner I would certainly defend my beloved Android device but if I were an iPhone/BB/WP7 user I wouldn’t go out of my way to beat Android in court. You gotta be a straight up geek to do that.
In an ideal world that would be true. Given recent examples like Instagram though, there are people out there who take their phones as a religion and would attack another system.
Right you are!
Google will pay out the nose, work out the licensing for future development, and life will go on.
The Oracle saw this coming…
lol
“[ Recap of the day: Google won everything but the one issue that the judge has to decide anyway, the API SSO issue. The jury found, as they had been instructed to assume for the purposes of deliberation, that APIs can be copyrighted, the structure, sequence and arrangement of APIs, but that is by no means established. The same question, in a b) section, asked if fair use excused any infringement if found, and the jury couldn’t resolve that issue. But the judge has to decide whether or not that is true, that APIs can be protected by copyright. That comes later this month. Meanwhile, Oracle prevailed only on 9 lines of code that Google admitted prior to trial to have included by mistake and then removed from current Android. Oracle’s own expert, the judge pointed out in court, valued those 9 lines of code at zero. This is 9 lines out of millions. So that means, if we are looking at damages, that so far Oracle has won nothing. There is no liability. You can’t have infringement without considering fair use, Google asserts, and there will be briefing on that. Somebody has to decide that fair use issue. And then the judge has to decide about the API copyrightability issue. If he rules that APIs can’t be copyrighted, as the EU Court of Justice just ruled, then fair use is moot. And Oracle takes nothing at all from the copyright phase of this litigation, and this was heralded far and wide by Oracle people as the big ticket item, if you recall. Don’t let anyone fool you. Today was a major victory for Google. That’s why after the jury left, our reporter says that Google’s table was laughing, and Oracle’s mighty glum. And I see some journalists are surprised or confused, because they have been listening to a steady flow of Oracle FUD from the wrong people. Remember the headlines about this being a $6 billion dollar case? It never was and now it never will be.]
http://www.groklaw.net/article.php?story=20120507122749740
good read. please post more updates.
What is FUD?
This is f’ing ridiculous!!! When is this going to stop?? It’s like paying the Arab people for using the numerical system or paying the Romans for the Roman numeral system!!! Java is a FUCKING PROGRAMING LANGUAGE WHICH IS NECESSARY TO RIGHT A FUCKING PROGRAM!!!!
write*
HAHAHA! RIGHT!
CAPS-LOCK.
Cruise-control for cool, baby….Oh yeah. ;-)
Why doesn’t Google do what other companies in this situation do. Buy out said accuser and keep what you want/need(patents, copyrights) and sell the shill of company that is left?
In theory great plan, except ORACLE is worth more money then Google.
oracle is worth $60 billion less than google…
Sorry, mistype, I meant to say worth more money then Google has on hand right now. Thanks for the fix :)
what will this suit mean for consumers on either side, especially android users
Right now?
Nothing.
Well, other than giving the religious zealots from all sides much more to harass each-other about.
We’ll have to wait for “consequences” until after the judge has decided penalties (if any) and probably more than a few appeals (or settlements…who knows at this point).
Good thing that Google’s mascot looks like a trash can. Makes putting it out to the curb to be collected much easier.
Google’s own honchos admitted in years past that they needed a license or else make enemies. They signed their own judgement. Rather than play by the rules, they went rogue and suckered you guys into believing they were in the right.
Who’s the sheep now?
This is WHY I HATE OUR LEGAL SYSTEM ITS BULL CRAP 100%!!! those Jurors are probably some uneducated idiots!!! Pathetic Oracle. I wish Google would have bought Java instead.
Woohoo, go Oracle!
We still fall back on 9 lines of value less code and memos stating they didn’t even care to take action on any infringement. Any penalty will be minuscule
The new Disqus sucks! Somebody please get rid of it! I’m seeing all my posts 3 times!
MarcusDW , who are you saying is right?