Myriad picks up a bank bundle and joins the fray.

This feels like a trial balloon for Google, particularly with the shared law firm, though Apache would likely be the larger beneficiary.

At this point, the strategy of the anti-JCP coalition (for lack of a better label) seems to be injecting uncertainty into the Java ecosystem until Oracle cries “uncle”, lest one of its most visible brand acquisitions be sidelined by the development community at large. This may be good strategy for organizations like Google and Apache, and now Myriad, but the Java community is tangentially at risk. Avoiding this collateral damage, I think, was partly the unvoiced motivation behind the recent JCP vote.

Oracle needs to end this game of legal chicken. Here’s how I see it:

• If Oracle yields, Oracle loses a little, the anti-JCP coalition gain a lot, and the Java community is unaffected.
• If Oracle holds, Oracle gains a little, the anti-JCP coalition loses a lot, and the Java community is unaffected if the anti-JCP coalition yields.
• If Oracle holds and the anti-JCP coalition holds, the Java community stagnates.

Two things to note here: First, this is a prisoner’s dilemma, but only for the Java community (though ultimately, what is bad for the community will probably be bad for everyone else). Second, by and large, the result for the anti-JCP coalition is independent of whether they yield. This should be the lesson for Oracle, that they should not expect the legal monkey business to subside.

Given the history here, Oracle’s stance on licensing the TCK (post Sun acquisition) seems remarkably short sighted. Let the slapping continue.