Oracle, NEC resolve contract, copyright dispute over database software

A sign marks a building housing Oracle offices in Burlington, Massachusetts, U.S., June 21, 2017. REUTERS/Brian Snyder

(Reuters) – Oracle and NEC have agreed to end their legal dispute over NEC’s use of Oracle’s popular database software, according to a filing in San Francisco federal court.

The joint Tuesday filing said the companies agreed to dismiss the case with prejudice, which means it cannot be revived.

The companies and their attorneys did not immediately respond to a request for comment. They told the court in January that they were discussing a potential settlement.

Oracle sued Japanese information-technology company NEC last year, arguing it had exceeded its license to Oracle’s flagship database-management software and requesting more than $7 million in damages.

The lawsuit said NEC used the software with its biometric identification system in ways Oracle never authorized, including by exceeding its distribution rights and paying less in licensing fees than it should have.

Oracle also accused NEC of infringing its copyrights in the software.

NEC responded that it was a victim of Oracle’s “predatory business strategy” to push clients into restrictive licenses “with the expectation that the client’s intended use of the Oracle software would violate the restrictions.”

It accused Oracle of fraud, which U.S. District Judge Charles Breyer later dismissed because NEC failed to show that Oracle made any false statements.

The case is Oracle America Inc v. NEC Corp Of America, U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, No. 5:21-cv-05270.

For Oracle: Nathan Walker, Fred Norton and Bree Hann of the Norton Law Firm

For NEC: Li Chen and Kristoffer Leftwich of Chen Leftwich

Read more:

Oracle sues NEC over alleged software contract, copyright violations

Oracle beats NEC’s fraud claims in dispute over database license

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