Oracle sued Google six years ago, claiming that Google needs a license to use parts of the Java platform in Google's Android operating system. The companies went to trial in 2012 but the jury was split on the crucial question of whether Google's use of Java was protected by "fair use," which permits copying under limited circumstances. 

In the first trial, a jury found Google had infringed Oracle's copyright by copying into Android the "structure, sequence and organization" of 37 Java application programming interfaces. However, The trial judge later ruled that APIs aren't eligible for protection under U.S. copyright law. An appeals court overturned that ruling. Google appealed to the Supreme Court, which declined to take the case. So it now heads back to the district court to retry the issue of fair use.

Google denies any wrongdoing. It says its use of Java is covered by fair use, which allows copying in limited cases. Factors include whether the use of the copyright work was transformative, meaning whether it turned it into something new; the amount of the original work that was copied, and the impact of the copying on the market value of the original work. 

In addition, Google argues that damages can only be claimed for profits that are "attributable to" the infringing code and that the 37 APIs are "a fraction of a percent of the code in the complex Android smartphone platform."  17 U.S. Code § 504 provides that "the copyright owner is entitled to recover the actual damages suffered by him or her as a result of the infringement, and any profits of the infringer that are attributable to the infringement and are not taken into account in computing the actual damages." 

The parties are headed back to a federal district court in San Francisco for a new trial due to begin May 9. To read more about this case, see the story: Oracle seeks $9.3 billion for Google's use of Java in Android

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