Sunday, April 11, 2021
  • About
  • Advertise
  • Careers
Scoftware Magazine
  • Home
  • Politics
  • Business
  • Culture
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Entertainment
  • Login
No Result
View All Result
Scoftware Magazine
Home Tech

Google wins Oracle copyright row at top court, ending long fight

Jaleel M. by Jaleel M.
April 5, 2021
in Tech
0
Google wins Oracle copyright row at top court, ending long fight
0
SHARES
5
VIEWS
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter


The 6-2 ruling, which overturns a victory for Oracle, marks a climax to a decade-old case that divided Silicon Valley and promised to reshape the rules for the software industry. Oracle was seeking as much as $9 billion.

Alphabet rose 3.4% as of 11:12 a.m. in New York. Oracle was up 3.1%.

The court said Google engaged in legitimate “fair use” when it put key aspects of Oracle’s Java programming language in the Android operating system. Writing for the court, Justice Stephen Breyer said Google used “only what was needed to allow users to put their accrued talents to work in a new and transformative program.”

Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito dissented. Justice Amy Coney Barrett didn’t take part in the case, which was argued before she joined the court.

Each side contended the other’s position would undercut innovation. Oracle said that without strong copyright protection, companies would have less incentive to invest the large sums needed to create groundbreaking products.

“The Google platform just got bigger and market power greater — the barriers to entry higher and the ability to compete lower,” Oracle said after the ruling. “They stole Java and spent a decade litigating as only a monopolist can. This behavior is exactly why regulatory authorities around the world and in the United States are examining Google’s business practices.”

Programming Short Cuts

Google called the decision “a victory for consumers, interoperability, and computer science.”

“The decision gives legal certainty to the next generation of developers whose new products and services will benefit consumers,” Google’s chief legal officer Kent Walker, said in a statement.

The Computer & Communications Industry Association, whose members include Google, called the ruling “a win for interoperability, copyright principles and the future of innovation.”

“The high court’s decision that fair use extends to the functional principles of computer code means companies can offer competing, interoperable products,” CCIA President Matt Schruers said in a statement.

At issue were pre-written directions known as application program interfaces, or APIs, which provide instructions for such functions as connecting to the internet or accessing certain types of files. By using those shortcuts, programmers don’t have to write code from scratch for every function in their software, or change it for every type of device.

Oracle said the Java APIs were freely available to those who wanted to build applications that run on computers and mobile devices. But Oracle said it required companies to get a license if they wanted to use the shortcuts for a competing platform or to embed them in an electronic device.

The Supreme Court didn’t address whether the code was eligible for copyright protection, an early point of contention. Instead, Breyer said that for this case the court would “assume, for argument’s sake, that the material was copyrightable.”

That approach drew criticism from Thomas, who said in his dissenting opinion that the majority opinion is “wholly inconsistent with the substantial protection Congress gave to computer code.”

Existential Threat

Oracle said Google was facing an existential threat because its search engine — the source of its advertising revenue — wasn’t being used on smartphones. Google bought the Android mobile operating system in 2005 and copied Java code to attract developers but refused to take a license, Oracle contended.

Breyer said that, though Google copied 11,500 lines of code, Google engineers wrote millions more.

“Google, through Android, provided a new collection of tasks operating in a distinct and different computing environment,” Breyer wrote. “Those tasks were carried out through the use of new implementing code (that Google wrote) designed to operate within that new environment.”

Google argued that software interfaces are categorically ineligible for copyright protection. Google also contended that a federal appeals court restricted the fair-use defense so much as to make it impossible for a developer to reuse an interface in a new application. The appeals court decision reversed a jury finding that Google’s copying was a legitimate fair use.

Tech companies including Mozilla Corp., Microsoft Corp., and International Business Machines Corp. supported Google. Media and entertainment businesses, which rely on strong copyright standards, backed Oracle, as did the Trump administration when the case was argued in October.

Oracle initially sued Google for copyright infringement in 2010. Since then, the case has worked its way up and down the legal system, spurring two jury trials and numerous appeals.

The case is Google v. Oracle America, 18-956.

This story has been published from a wire agency feed without modifications to the text.

Subscribe to Mint Newsletters

* Enter a valid email

* Thank you for subscribing to our newsletter.



Source link

Related posts

What happens to your account when your device gets stolen or lost

What happens to your account when your device gets stolen or lost

April 10, 2021
Personal data of 50 crore LinkedIn users leaked online

Personal data of 50 crore LinkedIn users leaked online

April 10, 2021
Previous Post

Facebook hits record as growth optimism continues to build

Next Post

Clubhouse introduces payment feature for content creators. Here’s how it works

Next Post
Clubhouse introduces payment feature for content creators. Here’s how it works

Clubhouse introduces payment feature for content creators. Here’s how it works

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

RECOMMENDED NEWS

Why Beyoncé and Jay-Z Are Being Sued Over “Black Effect”

Why Beyoncé and Jay-Z Are Being Sued Over “Black Effect”

10 months ago
GST Council fails to reach consensus on compensation to states; next meeting on 12 October

GST Council fails to reach consensus on compensation to states; next meeting on 12 October

6 months ago
Tottenham Star Dele Alli Handed One-Match Ban Over Coronavirus Joke

Tottenham Star Dele Alli Handed One-Match Ban Over Coronavirus Joke

10 months ago
Markets end strong after subdued sessions: Sensex rallies over 990 points, Nifty surges to 9,315; Axis Bank top gainer, soars over 13%

Markets end strong after subdued sessions: Sensex rallies over 990 points, Nifty surges to 9,315; Axis Bank top gainer, soars over 13%

11 months ago

FOLLOW US

  • 85 Followers
  • 29.5k Followers
  • 113k Subscribers

BROWSE BY CATEGORIES

  • Business
  • Culture
  • Entertainment
  • Lifestyle
  • Music
  • National
  • News
  • Opinion
  • Politics
  • Sports
  • Tech
  • Travel
  • World News

BROWSE BY TOPICS

2018 League Balinese Culture Bali United Budget Travel Champions League Chopper Bike Doctor Terawan Istana Negara Market Stories National Exam Visit Bali

POPULAR NEWS

  • Kris Jenner Spills Details About Her Sex Life With Corey Gamble: Watch

    Kris Jenner Spills Details About Her Sex Life With Corey Gamble: Watch

    0 shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • Common Saints Release New Single “Idol Eyes”

    0 shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • Sam Heughan & Graham McTavish Are Men in Kilts for Travel Show

    0 shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • KRISTIN LASH & JAKOB GREY Team Up On “Sleeping With The Lights On”

    0 shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • SEVENTEEN REVEALS PROMOTION SCHEDULE FOR ; SEMICOLON

    0 shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • About
  • Advertise
  • Careers

© 2020 Scoftware.com

No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • Politics
  • Business
  • Culture
  • National
  • Sports
  • Lifestyle
  • Travel
  • Opinion

© 2020 Scoftware.com

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Create New Account!

Fill the forms bellow to register

All fields are required. Log In

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In

Terms and Conditions - Privacy Policy