Oracle sues Google over Android

In a lather over Java

Oracle has filed a lawsuit against Google, accusing the search monster of infringing patents related to Java in its Android phone software.

"In developing Android, Google knowingly, directly and repeatedly infringed Oracle's Java-related intellectual property. This lawsuit seeks appropriate remedies for their infringement," Oracle spokeswoman Karen Tillman said in a statement.

The suit was filed last night in U.S. District Court in San Francisco.

Java was developed by Sun MicroSystems which was snaffled up by Oracle last year. It allows small apps to run on any platform that has the Java virtual machine installed.

Google's Android includes the Java-like Dalvik which is able to run Java apps and which  Google claims to have make all on its own.

But Oracle reckons Dalvik infringes several of its patents. "Android (including without limitation the Dalvik VM and the Android software development kit) and devices that operate Android infringe one or more claims of each of United States Patents Nos. 6,125,447; 6,192,476; 5,966,702; 7,426,720; RE38,104; 6,910,205; and 6,061,520," the complaint says.

Oracle also notes that Google hired "certain former Sun Java engineers" and was therefore certainly not unaware of the patents.

Google is yet to repsoned to the claim.