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Computer industry veteran Simon Phipps is at large in the open source movement and sending dispatches with the latest news from the inside. A director at OSI, a C-level exec at open source identity startup ForgeRock and an activist in the software freedom movement, expect the unexpected, the fascinating and the infuriating.

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No Comment on Oracle vs Google

Oracle's litigation against Google needs no comment, really, Just some data points.

Published

I have no comment on the news that Oracle is suing Google over Android's use of Java. But there are a few data points I'd like to draw to your attention.

The news:
  • Oracle sues Google over Android and mobile Java Hmm. Aren't these both Linux Foundation members and OIN licensees? Fighting over open source technology in a Linux distribution? Wasn't that what both organisations were supposed to prevent?

  • Oracle's complaint against Google, on Scribd Makes it clear this is both copyright and patent related - the full force of the Java specification beartrap, where you only get protection from this stuff and a licence to the specification if you comply with the specification sufficiently to pass the test suite (TCK). Which you have to buy.
Background:
  • FT interview with Larry Ellison FT: "Is open source going to be disruptive to Oracle?" LE: "No. If an open source product gets good enough, we'll simply take it."

  • Interview: Open for Business
    Edward Screven (effectively Oracle's CTO) said "Oracle doesn't really have an open source-specific strategy" and went on in this article to avoid mentioning community, co-development or reputation in the context of open source.
The right response:

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