A jury determined Friday that SAP must pay Oracle $1.3 billion in damages for stealing software and copyrighted material from Oracle support Websites.
The award, issued in U.S. District Court in Oakland, Calif., is believed to be the largest ever issued in a copyright infringement case, Oracle lawyers said after the verdict.
SAP issued a statement following the verdict. "We are, of course, disappointed by this verdict and will pursue all available options, including post-trial motions and appeal if necessary," SAP said.
SAP had admitted before the trial that a subsidiary, TomorrowNow, had unlawfully downloaded millions of Oracle's files. The jury in the case was instructed to determine the amount of damages owed to Oracle by SAP. While SAP said damages should not top $40 million, Oracle asked for at least $1.65 billion.
Following he verdict, Oracle attorney David Boies said that while SAP could appeal, a retrial could result in an even higher award. "If I were SAP, and I'm not, but if I were SAP, I'm not sure I would want to have another trial," Boies said, according to Reuters.
Dorian Daley, Oracle general counsel, in a statement issued late Monday before the verdict, said SAP should pay heavily for their actions.
"The pretrial admissions and testimony over the last few weeks have exposed SAP's scheme to capitalize on the use of stolen intellectual property," said Daley. "While Oracle seeks damages to fairly compensate it for this massive theft, it is perhaps more important to expose the illegal conduct by a dominant player in the industry and to send a message that intellectual property rights must be respected."
Oracle CEO Larry Ellison testified in the trial Nov. 8 that Oracle may have lost up to $4 billion as TomorrowNow could have jeopardized up to 30 percent of the customer base Oracle received with its 2005 acquisition of PeopleSoft.
