Google Points Out That Oracle Asked Sun To Open Source The Java Tech It's Now Suing Google Over

from the ah,-history dept

Wed, Oct 6th 2010 12:25am — Mike Masnick

NSILMike points out that Google has now responded to the lawsuit Oracle filed against it over Java-related patents that Oracle got when it took over Sun. The response covers all the usual stuff that you find in every response to a patent lawsuit (i.e., "we didn't infringe on any of these patents, and even if we did, the patents are invalid"). However, it also includes some background on Java, and the fact that Sun had promised to open source the whole thing, but kept some of it back (the part that's now in question). But what makes it a bit more complicated is that it has Oracle on record urging Sun to finish the job and more fully open source Java. While I don't think that actually matters from a legal perspective, you could see it potentially influencing the overall case.

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Filed Under: history, java, patents
Companies: google, oracle, sun

7 Comments

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Anonymous Coward, 6 Oct 2010 @ 1:59am

I hope oracle can build new bridges as quickly as it burns them.
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Anonymous Coward, 6 Oct 2010 @ 2:23am

Google is going full ahead against the suit, including demands for return of cost claiming the case is "exceptional" (baseless).
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Lawrence D'Oliveiro, 6 Oct 2010 @ 4:35am

Oracle Self-Destruction
Oracle seem to be on a mission to destroy all the value in the open-source acquisitions they got as part of Sun: from the mass defections of OpenOffice, the extermination of OpenSolaris, and the uncertainties around MySQL, how it seems they want to antagonize what few Java loyalists are left.

They haven’t realized that they cannot kill an open-source project; they can only kill their own stake in it. MySQL and OpenOffice have already forked. As for this lawsuit, I expect them to come under pressure from their own customers; many of them would be using open source, and at least some of those will have realized that this is a direct attack on their freedom of choice of competing products.

Let’s see how long this nonsense continues once it starts to have a negative impact on the company’s bottom line.
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- Kingster (profile), 6 Oct 2010 @ 5:24am
  
  Re: Oracle Self-Destruction
  As a personal Linux/MySQL/Tomcat user, and a corporate Solaris/Oracle/Weblogic user... I can't wait for Oracle to choke on the Sun acquisition. I've hated them from day one, with their craptastic support system (Sun wasn't much better, mind you), and the mightier-than-thou attitude that they've always taken.
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- Anonymous Coward, 6 Oct 2010 @ 7:20am
  
  Re: Oracle Self-Destruction
  > MySQL and OpenOffice have already forked.
  
  OpenSolaris has already forked too, as Illumos.
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out_of_the_blue, 6 Oct 2010 @ 5:57am

"While I don't think that actually matters from a legal perspective"
Then why the devil is Google or you bringing up the point? Of course the previous attitude of a party matters to any reasonable jury, besides public opinion. Perhaps you're saying that legalistic weenies would ignore the point, but that only proves why juries are selected from the people, not those who serve the legal guild.
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Anonymous Coward, 6 Oct 2010 @ 10:02am

Does Oracle have to finish what Sun Started?
While Oracle may have changed its position (as Google claims), haven't its responsibilities (e.g. to the JCP and licensees) changed legally? Wasn't Sun already engaged in this issue?

Does Oracle have responsibilities to other members of the JCP.org and to licensees to maintain the terms of the license? When Google forked the code base, they not only harmed Oracle, they impacted every other licensee.

I'm interested to hear Mike's perspective on what responsibilities Oracle might have to other licensees? Nothing? Everything?
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