Skip to main content

Jury finds Google's use of Java APIs in Android 'fair use,' dealing blow to Oracle

google vs oracle win android robot
Image used with permission by copyright holder
The jury has reached its verdict — and the result is a sigh of relief for Google.

In 2010, Oracle filed a lawsuit against Google, seeking $2.6 billion in damages for using 37 unlicensed Java APIs in its Android mobile operating system. Google countered and said its use of Java APIs from Sun Microsystems is protected by “fair use.” Oracle had bought Sun Microsystems, and thereby acquired Java, seven months before it decided to file a suit against Google.

Oracle has tripled the amount it believed Google should pay to about $9 billion — but it looks like it won’t be seeing a penny. The case has been working its way through the court system for more than six years, but following a trial, a jury finally reached a verdict, and sided with Google’s “fair use” claim, Ars Technica has reported. The trial began at the beginning of May under U.S. District Judge William Alsup, who has been overseeing the litigation since it began in 2010.

If Google had lost, the jury would have stayed on to deliberate the estimated damages the search giant would have had to pay Oracle. But with a finding of no liability, Google will owe no damages.

“Today’s verdict that Android makes fair use of Java APIs represents a win for the Android ecosystem, for the Java programming community, and for software developers who rely on open and free programming languages to build innovative consumer products,” a Google spokesperson told Digital Trends.

Many developers believe APIs are free to use, and that was Google’s argument, which centered on when Java was first created.

Oracle’s lawsuit looked to changed that notion — and if it had won, the company would be able to go after any other firm that used its Java APIs without a license. But while APIs can still be protected by copyright law, the precedent has now been set for them to generally fall under “fair use.”

Of course, Google’s not out of these lawyer-infested waters just yet. Oracle will inevitably appeal the case, and we’ll have to wait and see what happens next.

Editors' Recommendations

Julian Chokkattu
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Julian is the mobile and wearables editor at Digital Trends, covering smartphones, fitness trackers, smartwatches, and more…
I’ve used Android phones for 10 years, and I hate these ones the most
pixel 4 xl rear sticking out

I’ve been using and reviewing Android smartphones for at least a decade, and during that time, I’ve spent time with a massive variety of devices that mostly fall into three distinct categories: good, passable, and bad. But what about the ones that have really stirred my emotions in a negative way? The phones that have elicited a visceral, guttural response? I’m not talking about the ones I love, but the ones I’ve downright hated.

Here are the six models that have irked me the most over the last 10 years of using and reviewing smartphones, and the reasons why they’ve made this list.
Google Pixel 4

Read more
Google just announced 9 new features for your Android phone and watch
Samsung Galaxy S23 showing Google Photos

Google has announced some big new features coming to Android and Wear OS devices during the Mobile World Congress 2023 event in Barcelona, Spain. These new features are beginning to roll out starting today, February 27, with others to come later.
New Android features available starting February 27

Google Drive users will now be able to do freehand annotation on Android phones and tablets. This means you are now able to use a stylus or your fingers to annotate PDFs directly in the Google Drive app on Android.

Read more
When is my phone getting Android 13? Google, Samsung, OnePlus, and more
Android 13 logo on a Google Pixel 6a.

Android 13 has been available for Android phones since late 2022, and it's a pretty minor update from Google. Well, we say minor, but that's only in comparison to the positively gargantuan number of changes that were in Android 12 — and in light of Google's policy of trickling out improvements to Android apps over the course of a year as soon as they're ready. Android 13 is more of a tune-up to the engine that powers your phone than anything else. But it's still one worth getting excited for.

Tablet and foldable owners will see the most benefits, and there will be some updates to Material You to improve Android's customizability. There really isn't much else to say about Android 13. It's a very under-the-hood update, and that trend appears to be continuing with the upcoming Android 14 as well.

Read more