No no no. It’s not a question of reverse engineering. Java is free to implement, but there are limitations for commercial use. Limitations that extract royalties once you start using it commercially. Even if you fork the distribution as Google has done.
And this so-called “tremendous precedent for reverse engineering implementations” was ruined and very weakened by the DMCA. But even the remnants of such precedence won’t protect you very long if you start “black boxing” API’s and hardware.
So innovation has already been stifled due to the DMCA and the precedence set through DMCA lawsuits that have been filed.
IMHO this decision has more to do with Googles influence then “reverse engineering”.
“No no no. It’s not a question of reverse engineering. Java is free to implement, but there are limitations for commercial use. Limitations that extract royalties once you start using it commercially. Even if you fork the distribution as Google has done.”
That’s across the board incorrect. The only requirement as far as licensing goes is that to call it “Java”, you must pass the compatibility tests, for which Sun/Oracle charge a pretty hefty fee. If you didn’t call it “Java”, different story and no restrictions on commercial use.
Today, there’s a fully open source JDK - “OpenJDK”.
“And this so-called “tremendous precedent for reverse engineering implementations” was ruined and very weakened by the DMCA.”
Nope. The DMCA is to protect copyrighted material. It allows entities to go after those who defeat encryption protecting copyrighted materials, like DVD rippers. It has nothing to do with reverse-engineering software.
“But even the remnants of such precedence won’t protect you very long if you start “black boxing” API’s and hardware.”
It’s “precedents”, FYI.
Copyrights on software refer to the exact implementation. Reverse engineered implementations are not covered by said copyright. That’s the entire point. Thus, the DMCA has nothing to do with it. Nor was the DMCA invoked in the Oracle/Google trial.
“So innovation has already been stifled due to the DMCA and the precedence set through DMCA lawsuits that have been filed.”
Not software innovation.
‘IMHO this decision has more to do with Googles influence then “reverse engineering”.’
It has to do with what’s acceptable “fair use” of copyrighted material, as advertised. It’s a huge win for the tech industry.