A US JUDGE who clearly didn’t understand the full repercussions of what they were doing, has ruled that Google’s use of Java APIs in the original Android code did not constitute fair use, and that reparations are due.
Some analysts believe that Google could be $8bn to $9bn poorer as a result of the ruling, the latest chapter in a long-running dispute.
The story runs thus: Google used the Java code, formally owned by Sun Microsystems to create large swaths of the Android code.
That’s fine because the code is open-source. However, the Java APIs, now owned by Oracle, are not, and Oracle has long since argued that it deserves a piece of the billions made by Google through the Android platform.
Additionally, the precedent could result in Oracle being able to pursue thousands of other companies in the same way.
https://www.theinquirer.net/inquirer/news/3029302/a-google-vs-oracle-copyright-ruling-could-well-kill-small-scale-open-source-projects
origin - https://www.pipiscrew.com/2018/03/a-google-vs-oracle-copyright-ruling-could-well-kill-small-scale-open-source-projects/ a-google-vs-oracle-copyright-ruling-could-well-kill-small-scale-open-source-projects