The short answer: Mars, the US confectionery company, filed a court action against Oracle over its software license audit practices. It asked the Superior Court of California, County of San Francisco, to limit Oracle’s audit to what its agreement allows.
Mars made revenues of $33bn in 2014. It filed the action in October of the year before this report was written, and the case showed how far Oracle would go to make money through its much-criticized audit practices.
What Mars asked the court to do
Mars wanted the court to order Oracle to limit its audit activities in line with the audit clause in its 1993 Software License and Services Agreement with Mars. It also wanted the court to bar Oracle from carrying out a threat to end Mars’ license and software update license from October, if Mars did not comply with the demands Oracle had made during the audit.
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The full report is at Computing: Mars wanted to sue Oracle in licensing dispute.
If you face a similar audit, read our page on Oracle license audit defense. The author is Sheshagiri Anegondi, our Managing Partner.
Sheshagiri Anegondi
Managing Partner of Rythium Technologies. Seventeen years at Oracle, from 1998 to 2015, in leadership roles including Vice President Sales, after Compaq and Digital Equipment Corporation.
Author of “Licensing Oracle: The Reference Manual for Managing Oracle License Compliance & Procuring Oracle Software, Hardware, Cloud & Services” (2021, ISBN 10: 1639046887).
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