Enterprise software support giant Rimini Street has entered into a confidential settlement agreement with Oracle, signaling the two companies may be nearing the end of their long-running legal dispute.
Rimini Street, which provides long-term support packages for Oracle and SAP products, confirmed the deal in regulatory filings earlier this week.
The dispute is more than a decade old. It started in 2010, when Oracle sued Rimini for copyright infringement, winning a trial verdict in 2015 and ultimately $90 million in damages, fees, and costs. It also won a permanent injunction against copyright infringement.
A later but related case started in 2014, when Rimini Street sought a declaratory judgment action, claiming that it had changed its software support practices and asking the court to declare that it hadn’t infringed Oracle’s copyrights since July 31, 2014. This would be a way of resolving legal uncertainty for investors and users. Oracle snapped back with counterclaims for copyright infringement and alleged that Rimini had breached business terms. This case, dubbed Rimini II, is the one the newly announced agreement may settle.
In an 8k filing to the Securities and Exchange Commission this week, Rimini said that if “all parties complete their agreed upon responsibilities, the Settlement Agreement will allow for the final resolution and ultimate dismissal of … Rimini II.”
The statement said that after a trial in 2022, the Rimini II matter was sent to the District Court to resolve Oracle’s claims “related solely to the manner in which Rimini provided certain support services to a subset of Rimini’s Oracle PeopleSoft clients.”
In April, the District Court issued a permanent injunction requiring Rimini Street to comply with digital copyright legislation and stop making four statements, which it said were not part of its current marketing.
The settlement also states that neither party admits liability or wrongdoing, and requires Rimini Street to complete its previously announced wind-down of support and services for Oracle’s PeopleSoft software by July 31, 2028. It should also notify all existing customers it supports on PeopleSoft, provide progress reports to Oracle, and make a public statement when the wind-down period is complete.
As part of the agreement, Oracle has agreed to pay some of Rimini Street’s legal fees and costs.
In July last year, Rimini Street told investors it “had unilaterally decided to wind down its offering of support and services for Oracle PeopleSoft software,” which it said at the time contributed annual revenue of around $36 million.
In the Rimini II case, the company had previously lost a contempt of court claim, and a separate case alleging copyright infringement and false statements, which it said it would appeal. ®