Oracle and Google look to end Android Java horror show as Halloween trial approaches

Google and Oracle will have further talks in court on Friday in what could be the final chance to settle the long-running Android/Java patent dispute before the trial starts on 31 October.

Chief executives Larry Page and Larry Ellison failed to reach agreement in a previous meeting, so it is unlikely that they will attend in person a second time.

Oracle originally claimed up to $6bn in damages, but has since revised this to $1.16bn, an amount that Google disputes.

Both companies continue to prepare for the trial, and Oracle has filed a case management statement specifying 26 patent claims.

Patents expert Florian Mueller believes that a settlement at this stage is unlikely, but that it will be in Google's interests to reach an agreement before the jury trial starts.

"Google's proposed acquisition of Motorola Mobility is now under in-depth regulatory scrutiny, and I think Google probably won't settle as long as it hopes to obtain clearance for that acquisition prior to a final decision in the Oracle case," he said on the Foss Patents blog.

"If the Halloween trial date was confirmed definitively, Oracle would be reasonably likely to obtain an injunction well ahead of the conclusion of the merger review, and then Google may realise that it has to settle to prevent the worst."

Mueller also suggested that Oracle's narrowing of claims from 132 to 26 will not negatively affect the firm's chances.

"It's all about case management: the judge wants to make sure the trial isn't overly burdensome on the court and the jury, so Oracle has to focus," he said.

It remains to be seen just how much Google would be willing to pay to settle the dispute out of court, considering that Android is facing legal action from other competitors including Apple.

A US Federal court heard previously that Google rejected the chance to pay Sun Microsystems $100m to use Java when it was developing Android.