14 DAY TRIAL // Oracle has apparently filed an appeal in a case won by Google in 2012, which means the story is not yet over.
The Oracle versus Google case ended up in favor of Google after the judge decided that programming APIs cannot be copyrighted, a stance that got supported by developers across the world who really didn’t want to face legal threats for using “declaring code.”
Well, now, according to Reuters, Oracle has appealed the case, making an appearance in front of a three-judge panel to argue their case.
Oracle’s lawyer said that Google took the most important part of Java by grabbing parts of the API. “Google was very careful to only use what was structural. No one was able to use the Java language as a smartphone platform,” the lawyer said.
One judge said that just because Java is freely available and widely used by programmers doesn’t mean the code can get copyright protection. Asked whether Google could use APIs from companies such as Apple or Microsoft, Google’s lawyer said that yes, but only the command structure, which would lead to rewriting millions of lines of code. “That’s what Android did. Fifteen million lines of Android code are all original,” the lawyer said.
The court could make a decision regarding the appeal even without the presence of another jury, which means they could wrap up the case a lot sooner. Furthermore, it could turn out to go against Google and, implicitly, millions of programmers across the world.
The original trial was held back in April 2012 and it brought CEOs of both companies, Larry Ellison and Larry Page, on the stand.
As mentioned, the judge eventually sided with Google, considering that programming APIs cannot and should not be protected by copyright. Back then, Oracle hoped to get some $1 billion (€732 million) from Google.