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Did Google Knowingly Violate Java Patents?

Posted by Soulskill on from the pay-no-attention-to-the-man-behind-the-curtain dept.

jfruhlinger writes "Opponents of software patenting have been rather heartened by recent developments in the Oracle-Google lawsuit, which have seemed to indicate that Oracle's patent case is weakening. But now the judge in the case has some sharp questions for Google, given that Google tried to negotiate with Sun over the patents in question before going on to develop Android without them."

4 of 148 comments (clear)

  1. waiting for details by v1 · · Score: 4, Insightful

    may have been a simple "we see you have patented xyz, would you consider our doing abc a violation, and if so, what's licensing going to cost?"

    answer may have been along the lines of "pretty much anything you do we may try to sue you for, so you'd be better off paying us a ton of money upfront now". "OK, no thanks, we'll take our chances in court."

    Or it may have been something completely different. But that's just my guess.

    --
    I work for the Department of Redundancy Department.
  2. Probably by garethw · · Score: 1, Insightful

    Who cares? How does Google's leveraging off Java deprive Sun revenue from its R&D? You know, like what patents are intended for? Fucking lawyers. Unable to create any real value themselves, they resort to contriving some for themselves by destroying it for many others. Utterly, utterly ignoble profession.

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    garethw
  3. Re:Judicial mess by bonch · · Score: 3, Insightful

    As sound as legal analysis from an anonymous poster on pro-Google Slashdot must be, I'm afraid you're not as persuasive as you think you are. What's happening is that the judge is pressuring both parties to reach a settlement, which is probably what's going to happen.

  4. Re:Don't be evil... by Compaqt · · Score: 3, Insightful

    This is pretty generally know if you've been following Java, but since you ask:

    The Java Runtime license states:

    "Software embedded in or bundled with industrial control systems, wireless mobile telephones, wireless handheld devices, kiosks, TV/STB, Blu-ray Disc devices, telematics and network control switching equipment, printers and storage management systems, and other related systems are excluded from this definition and not licensed under this Agreement."

    As for the open source release, that's covered under the Java Language Spec patent grant.

    That only covers fully-conforming versions, not sub or supersets.

    http://en.swpat.org/wiki/Java_and_patents

    It was Sun's intention to give Java away on the desktop, and charge for embedded use.

    --
    I'm not a lawyer, but I play one on the Internet. Blog