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Very important note that tends to be overlooked: "[Judge Alsup] has yet to decide on the overall copyrightability of the structure, sequence, and organization
by gvb 14y ago
Very important note that tends to be overlooked:
"[Judge Alsup] has yet to decide on the overall copyrightability of the structure, sequence, and organization of the 37 Java APIs themselves. Ruling that the APIs are not covered would render today's decision entirely meaningless, essentially throwing away the jury's earlier finding of infringement on the SSO issue."
The judge instructed the jury to assume the API is copyrightable when they determined whether Google violated that (assumed) copyright. The actual ruling whether the API is copyrightable will be decided by the judge as a matter of law.
- Tobu 14y agoI disagree with that analysis. The Judge asked the jury to decide fair use assuming API copyrightability because he had them at hand, and it was an opportunity to make his eventual ruling more appeal-proof. Finding APIs copyrightable rather than purely functional would create new barriers to interoperability, which would be a little more important than having part of a jury's verdict moot.
- debacle 14y agoThe judge was probably hoping he wouldn't have to decide, and still might not have to decide.