Ellison's take on Apple, Google: Is he right?

Oracle CEO Larry Ellison ripped Google and specifically CEO Larry Page over Android and allegedly stealing code and added that Apple will never be the same without Steve Jobs. Ellison also hinted that Apple won't nearly be as successful with Tim Cook at the helm.

In both cases, the ever-quotable Ellison, speaking to CBS This Morning, is likely to spur a good bit of debate. Regarding Android, much of the Oracle vs. Google battle has played out in the courtroom. Google appears to have the win. Ellison said:

"Larry ... makes the decisions over there. He runs that company. ... And they decided, let me be very clear ... When you write a program for the Android phone, you write it. You use the Oracle tool, Oracle Java tools, for everything. And at the very end, you press a button and said, 'Convert this to android format.'"

The Google banter is likely to be dismissed as Ellison being a poor loser.

Regarding Apple, Ellison's comments are notable. Ellison was a close friend of Steve Jobs, sits on Apple's board and is saying publicly what a lot of folks fear. Can Apple be successful without Jobs? Ellison's comments aren't that shocking. "I'm not shorting Apple. I like Tim Cook. I think there are a lot of talented people there. ... But Steve is irreplaceable," Ellison said.

The reality is that it may be too early to make that call on Apple. Time will tell whether the new normal for Apple will translate into new product categories. As usual, Ellison is one of the few people in tech who will say out loud what people are thinking.