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Topic: Oracle

Oracle, Google CEOs lined up as witnesses in Android IP trial

Summary: Both Google and Oracle's CEOs have been named as witnesses by Oracle in its lawsuit over patent and copyright infringement claims surrounding Java and Android.

Rachel King

By for Between the Lines |

The two Larrys of Oracle and Google are heading to court again soon,  but this time they'll be facing a jury.

The long-awaited patent and copyright infringement trial between these two Silicon Valley giants kicked off on Monday morning with jury selection as a first look at the witness list was also published.

See also: Oracle v. Google: What's at stake

Here's a look at Oracle's current list of its anticipated first ten trial witnesses being prepped to take the stand over the course of the next eight weeks:

1. Bloch, Joshua 2. Cizek, Leo 3. Ellison, Larry 4. Gupta, Vineet (by video) 5. Kurian, Thomas 6. Lee, Bob 7. Page, Larry (live and by video) 8. Reinhold, Mark 9. Screven, Edward 10. Swetland, Brian

Interestingly, this list is evenly divided between current Oracle and Google employees, and it includes at least one former Sun employee from both sides of the case.

Remember, Sun Microsystems -- the force behind Java and original owner of any related patents -- was acquired by Oracle in 2010.

Oracle is suing Google over patent and copyright violations, asserting that Google has been using Java technology on its Android mobile platform illegally. Google reasserts time and again that Sun was a big supporter of Android, and that the programming language was free to use. Oracle obviously disagrees.

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7 comments
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  • Is this going to be streamed anywhere?

    Wouldn't mind watching Page and Ellison squirm
    the.nameless.drifter
    Reply Vote

  • Oracle will lose handily

    and those Oracle witnesses will be put to shame and exposed for their lies and bias against FOSS.
    The Linux Geek
    Reply Vote

    • RE: Oracle will lose handily

      @The Linux Geek: Do you have any legal reasoning for that opinion, or is it just wishful thinking?

      I love FOSS as much as the next guy, but unfortunately for Google, the relationship they describe with Sun was, at best, a "gentleman's agreement" and not a legal contract. Even if Sun supported Android and didn't enforce their patents, it's Oracle's prerogative to do that since they own the patents now. It sounds as though Sun kind of threw Google under the bus by not tying up all these loose ends before their acquisition, and that Google didn't realize their legal liability until after they were being sued (which is why they've offered to settle on more than one occasion).
      strickerj
      Reply Vote

      • In several states that is legally binding...

        a "Gentleman's Agreement" be it a specific verbal agreement, with or without a handshake (varies by state) is legally binding in SEVERAL US states. Now, if that holds over to a company buyout, who knows. it is Possible that that Oracle signed an agreement to honor all previous agreements made by Sun, if so, Oracle is in for a world of hurt... But I am sure their lawyers made stipulations on several of Sun's previous agreements as to how far they would have to honor them, and quite possibly only included "documented" agreements. if so, Google may have to payout, and if they do, Microsoft will be lining up to take their swing at Android direct from Google as well.
        aiellenon
        Reply Vote

  • RE: Oracle, Google CEOs lined up as witnesses in Android IP trial

    That said, I have mixed feelings about software patents in general, so I'll be watching this case closely - it's poised to set a significant legal precedent, at least for the U.S.
    strickerj
    Reply Vote

    • not about patents

      this is, quite simply, about taking GPL code, copying it, removing the GPL boilerplate, and pasting it. At best that plagiarism. I would also call that breaking the GPL. What would you call that?
      THUFIR.HAWAT
      Reply Vote

  • I'd love to see...

    ...Larry Ellison's face when his legal team is reduced to dust by the Google team.
    rbanffy
    Reply Vote
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