The ongoing copyright battle between Google (GOOG) and Oracle (ORCL) is more contentious than ever, now that there’s a price tag.
In a recent court filing, Google objected to an independent assessment that could value damages owed to Oracle at nearly $9 billion, according to Bloomberg. The 6-year-long court battle is set to go before a jury in May.
The lawsuit concerns whether Google should be allowed to use parts of Oracle’s Java software under fair use. The more than $8.8 billion that Oracle is claiming was estimated from profits that Google has made from Android, which integrates Java into its operating system.
In a court filing Wednesday, Google urged the U.S. District judge in San Francisco to disregard the court-appointed expert’s assessment, “as unreliable opinion testimony that is divorced from the guidance of copyright law, and is highly likely to mislead and confuse,” Bloomberg reported.
The multi-billion-dollar damages Oracle is seeking are worth even more than it cost the company to buy Sun Microsystems, which developed Java.
The case heads to district court after Google’ petition to be heard by the Supreme Court was rejected last year.
