Oracle Starts Laying Mines In JavaScript Trademark Battle (theregister.com) 36
The Register's Thomas Claburn reports: Oracle this week asked the US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) to partially dismiss a challenge to its JavaScript trademark. The move has been criticized as an attempt to either stall or water down legal action against the database goliath over the programming language's name. Deno Land, the outfit behind the Deno JavaScript runtime, filed a petition with the USPTO back in November in an effort to make the trademarked term available to the JavaScript community. This legal effort is led by Node.js creator and Deno Land CEO Ryan Dahl, summarized on the JavaScript.tm website, and supported by more than 16,000 members of the JavaScript community. It aims to remove the fear of an Oracle lawsuit for using the term "JavaScript" in a conference title or business venture.
"Programmers working with JavaScript have formed innumerable community organizations," the website explains. "These organizations, like the standards bodies, have been forced to painstakingly avoid naming the programming language they are built around -- for example, JSConf. Sadly, without risking a legal trademark challenge against Oracle, there can be no 'JavaScript Conference' nor a 'JavaScript Specification.' The world's most popular programming language cannot even have a conference in its name." [...] In the initial trademark complaint, Deno Land makes three arguments to invalidate Oracle's ownership of "JavaScript." The biz claims that JavaScript has become a generic term; that Oracle committed fraud in 2019 when it applied to renew its trademark; and that Oracle has abandoned its trademark because it does not offer JavaScript products or services.
Oracle's motion on Monday focuses on the dismissal of the fraud claim, while arguing that it expects to prevail on the other two claims, citing corporate use of the trademarked term "in connection with a variety of offerings, including its JavaScript Extension Toolkit as well as developer's guides and educational resources, and also that relevant consumers do not perceive JavaScript as a generic term." The fraud claim follows from Deno Land's assertion that the material Oracle submitted in support of its trademark renewal application has nothing to do with any Oracle product. "Oracle, through its attorney, submitted specimens showing screen captures of the Node.js website, a project created by Ryan Dahl, Petitioner's Chief Executive Officer," the trademark cancellation petition says. "Node.js is not affiliated with Oracle, and the use of screen captures of the 'nodejs.org' website as a specimen did not show any use of the mark by Oracle or on behalf of Oracle."
Oracle contends that in fact it submitted two specimens to the USPTO -- a screenshot from the Node.js website and another from its own Oracle JavaScript Extension Toolkit. And this, among other reasons, invalidates the fraud claim, Big Red's attorneys contend. "Where, as here, Registrant 'provided the USPTO with [two specimens]' at least one of which shows use of the mark in commerce, Petitioner cannot plausibly allege that the inclusion of a second, purportedly defective specimen, was material," Oracle's motion argues, adding that no evidence of fraudulent intent has been presented. Beyond asking the court to toss the fraud claim, Oracle has requested an additional thirty days to respond to the other two claims.
"Programmers working with JavaScript have formed innumerable community organizations," the website explains. "These organizations, like the standards bodies, have been forced to painstakingly avoid naming the programming language they are built around -- for example, JSConf. Sadly, without risking a legal trademark challenge against Oracle, there can be no 'JavaScript Conference' nor a 'JavaScript Specification.' The world's most popular programming language cannot even have a conference in its name." [...] In the initial trademark complaint, Deno Land makes three arguments to invalidate Oracle's ownership of "JavaScript." The biz claims that JavaScript has become a generic term; that Oracle committed fraud in 2019 when it applied to renew its trademark; and that Oracle has abandoned its trademark because it does not offer JavaScript products or services.
Oracle's motion on Monday focuses on the dismissal of the fraud claim, while arguing that it expects to prevail on the other two claims, citing corporate use of the trademarked term "in connection with a variety of offerings, including its JavaScript Extension Toolkit as well as developer's guides and educational resources, and also that relevant consumers do not perceive JavaScript as a generic term." The fraud claim follows from Deno Land's assertion that the material Oracle submitted in support of its trademark renewal application has nothing to do with any Oracle product. "Oracle, through its attorney, submitted specimens showing screen captures of the Node.js website, a project created by Ryan Dahl, Petitioner's Chief Executive Officer," the trademark cancellation petition says. "Node.js is not affiliated with Oracle, and the use of screen captures of the 'nodejs.org' website as a specimen did not show any use of the mark by Oracle or on behalf of Oracle."
Oracle contends that in fact it submitted two specimens to the USPTO -- a screenshot from the Node.js website and another from its own Oracle JavaScript Extension Toolkit. And this, among other reasons, invalidates the fraud claim, Big Red's attorneys contend. "Where, as here, Registrant 'provided the USPTO with [two specimens]' at least one of which shows use of the mark in commerce, Petitioner cannot plausibly allege that the inclusion of a second, purportedly defective specimen, was material," Oracle's motion argues, adding that no evidence of fraudulent intent has been presented. Beyond asking the court to toss the fraud claim, Oracle has requested an additional thirty days to respond to the other two claims.
Solution! (Score:3)
Rename it to FuckOracleScript, or FOscript for short.
Re: Mark my words all billionaires (Score:3)
Were you under the mistaken impression that our electoral system is rational? Why should a club popularity contest be any different than anything else we do, where it's clear some votes count more than others?
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:1)
"You can't just start slashing them and then pack the courts full of pro-corporate sycophants and not have consequences."
You are forgetting the calculus the current alleged administration is using. la Presidenta and Elmo do not care about the consequences. They know that the consequence will only occur after they are gone. So they can fuck up the U.S. to their hearts content, the Maggots will rejoice, and the R eunuch's in Congress will bend over for them.
la Presidenta hates anything she does not control an
I prefer: (Score:2)
Rename it to FuckOracleScript, or FOscript for short.
I prefer "OneRichAssholeCalledLarryEllisonScript". Has a nice ring to it.
Re:Solution! (Score:5, Insightful)
I thought it already had another name: ECMAScript.
Re: (Score:1)
JavaScript and EMCAscript at not the same. EMCAscript is a standard defines the language and features like syntax, scope rules, etc. JavaScript which I don't believe is actually a standard defines the environment some EMCAScript is running it; ie a browser exposes the HTML DOM, or node.js makes its particular runtime environment available.
To that end I don't see what the value of 'JavaScript' as a name for anyone using it at this point. Most developers and anyone who actually cares understands 'EMCAScrip
Re: (Score:3)
How about "Fuck Oracle Software Script", or "FOSS" for short. We'll know if this terminology has caught on if we ever see Slashdot posting stories with FOSS in the title.
not most popular (Score:5, Insightful)
"The world's most popular programming language..."
Javascript may be the world's most pervasive programming language, but no way is it the most popular. Popular refers to how well liked it is.
Re: (Score:2)
"The world's most popular programming language..."
Javascript may be the world's most pervasive programming language, but no way is it the most popular. Popular refers to how well liked it is.
If you're going to nitpick at words then you should make sure you are correct about it.
How popular something is can refer to how well like it is among the general public but it can also mean how common something is.
see also: https://www.merriam-webster.co... [merriam-webster.com]
3: frequently encountered or widely accepted
a popular theory
4: commonly liked or approved
a very popular girl
Re: not most popular (Score:1)
Due to that ambiguity, a different word might be more appropriate.
Same thing goes for Microsoft Windows, iinm.
Re: (Score:2)
Maybe it's time to end the reign of javascript?
Many web page makers will hate it, especially those pushing ads and trackers.
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Re: not most popular (Score:3)
Re: (Score:2)
Yeah, "popular" is not the right word. Javascript is popular like Comcast is "popular". They're pervasive and widely hated by those paying attention.
oracle has some fucking stupid lawyers (Score:1)
The reason for defence? (Score:5, Interesting)
One can only assume that they want to retain it for a rainy day when they can shakedown some companies for cash.
Re: (Score:2)
They do sell a programming language called Java.
When Netscape introduced their browser scripting language, they wanted people to think it was associated with Java, and asked the then Java trademark owner Sun Microsystems for permission to do so.
Re: (Score:2)
Oracle has JavaScript engines in the Java libraries.
Most likely in its Database, too.
I guess the correct way to do it, would be giving the Trademark to an non profit that grants usage on request at no fee.
However evil Ellis is waiting to cash in on the trademark somehow.
Re: (Score:2)
Netscape made a deal with Sun for branding Netscape's LiveScript as JavaScript to increase the awareness and popularity of their browsers scripting language and to help it win the browser scripting engine war. This seems to have worked. Oracle now uses the tenuous argument that this co-marketing deal from 1995 is still in force and that deal included Sun, now Oracle owning the trademark
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We have the "property" so that individual consumers get what they think they're buying and don't have to sue individually to make sure that happens. We have "product" listings to ensure that consumers can find BANANA brand computers for sale in spite of the existence of the fruit. And that consumers can also buy BANANA brand matches rather than carry a mental in
JavaScript is very much a generic term... (Score:2)
JavaScript has been used to refer to things not made by Sun (now Oracle) for decades at this point.
Apple for example has had JavaScriptCore (the JavaScript engine in their browsers and OSs) since at least 2002.
Really lost any respect for oracle (Score:4, Informative)
Re: Really lost any respect for oracle (Score:1)
This is a job for super-PJ! Groklaw to the rescue!
Seems appropriate (Score:2)