The Billion Dollar Code (2021) s01e04 Episode Script
Episode 4
[guard] Documents, please.
[man] There you go.
[guard] Mr Callaghan,
go straight, turn first right to Block 8.
[Callaghan] Thank you.
[dramatic music playing]
This way, please.
[scanning, beeps]
[techno music playing]
[Carsten] So this is where it all ends.
In Delaware, America's tax haven.
ART+COM VS. GOOGLE - THE TRIAL
In 1993, in a post-Cold War Berlin,
Juri and I had the idea for Terravision.
An art project, which was to become
one of the most important inventions
of the computer age.
And now, over 25 years later,
we were here in America
for the final duel against Google.
Almost half a lifetime
after that night at the kebab stand,
we would know within six days
whether we would finally get justice.
Whether Google would finally acknowledge
who the actual inventors
of the algorithm behind Google Earth were.
[Eric] How is he?
It's good that he's here,
but do you think he'll be able to hold up?
I don't know.
We stopped speaking for 15 years.
You can't just change that.
- How much depends on him?
- One more?
[Eric] It depends on everything.
The damages,
the infringement of the patent.
[Lea] Oh, come on. No way.
[Eric] Your testimonies, of course.
You're managing well.
But we have no idea
what Google has in store for us.
Our mission each day is
to stay ahead of what they're doing.
DAY 1: OPENING STATEMENTS
[Eric] And anything you can do
to avoid what happened in Berlin,
I would really appreciate.
[indistinct chatter]
[Carsten] The judge had determined
a series of questions
the jury would have to answer
at the end of the trial.
But the critical question
was the first one.
Was Google infringing
our Terravision patent?
- Or simply
- All rise.
had Google stolen Terravision?
This court is now in session.
The Honourable Judge Ferrell presiding.
[Carsten] On the first day,
we heard the opening statements.
Lea had been racking her brains
for weeks on how to do it,
until Juri gave her the crucial idea.
When I was little,
I had a globe with a light in it
that you could turn on and it would glow.
Once I'd flown to America,
it was the America
just as I'd imagined it in my fantasy.
As a pilot?
[Juri] What?
As a kid, when you were dreaming
of flying around the world,
were you a pilot?
- No.
- [Carsten] Superman.
Not a pilot.
"When he flies, the world is not shaky."
I would imagine for a while
I had superpowers
and I would fly around the globe.
To Mount Everest,
to America, wherever I wanted.
[Lea] Ladies and gentlemen
of the jury, Your Honour,
this case is about flying.
About the view you get
if you really could fly around the world,
the powerful visual sensation
of moving anywhere in the world
and looking down and seeing what you'd see
if you were actually hovering above.
Ever since the 1930s, when Superman
debuted in the Action comic books,
kids everywhere
have had this dream of flying.
Maybe circling Mount Everest,
seeing what it would look like.
- And this Superman
- [translator speaking German]
was also in the imagination
of a young boy
[translator speaking German]
that would look at a globe
and dream of flying.
And this boy,
sitting in this courtroom with us today
he's Juri Müller,
one of the two men
who invented Terravision.
He and his partner Carsten Schlüter,
developed the computer programme
that made that dream of flying come true,
back before Google even existed.
And they do not wanna sit here.
They tried to resolve their issue
with Google on several occasions.
Unfortunately, this lawsuit
was the only way
they could make Google listen.
This case
is not about flying.
This case is not about Superman.
This case is
not about geographies and places.
This case is solely
and exclusively a patent case.
Now, my name is Warren Stewart,
and along with the rest of our team,
I am proud to represent Google.
You might have heard of Google Earth.
You might even remember
the first time ever using it.
[Carsten] As usual in the USA, the jury
consisted of randomly selected citizens,
most of whom had close
to no technical background.
It starts 10 years before in Berlin.
You'll be learning about how enthusiastic
they were about their invention
and how they came to the U.S.A
[Carsten]
They formed their opinions emotionally,
and often as early
as the opening statements.
Now, Google Earth is
very popular for good reasons.
It's very cool, right? [chuckles]
And it solves a number of issues
that people have
[Carsten] And now two German artists
and former hackers
were running up against
the perfect American success story.
The odds definitely
could have been better.
[Warren]
Google does not infringe the patent.
We appreciate you're taking the time
to resolve this important dispute.
And I wanna thank you
in advance for the attention
I know you're gonna give
to the evidence in this case.
Thank you very much.
Thank you very much.
[Carsten] Therefore, our hopes rested
on our expert witness, Dr Callaghan.
Once the trial started,
he was granted permission
to visit Google's infrastructures
and read Google Earth's source code
inside a bug proof
and guarded secure room.
And every day, he would enter
the "heart of darkness", as we called it,
to try to find out whether,
contrary to Google's allegations,
Terravision and Google Earth
were identical.
[tense music builds]
[Lea] We can't assume anyone on the jury
has any background knowledge.
We have two parcel couriers, a retiree,
a housewife, a clerk, and so on.
The only one with some possible
degree of understanding of our case
is an IT student.
If his opinions turn out
to be the general consensus,
he could tip the scale.
That's enough about the jury.
On to the next few days.
This here is
our financial expert, Ms Martinez.
And that's Google's, Matt Boyd.
They'll be assessing the damages
the jury has to establish, if we win.
And after that,
it's your turn, Herr Schlüter.
This here is Dr Callaghan,
our technical expert,
and his Google counterpart, Dr Chen.
They'll discuss the patent infringement
around the end of the week.
And on the last day,
it's your turn, Herr Müller.
- And Brian Andersson.
- [Eric] Excuse us, Lea.
- Herr Müller, Herr Schlüter.
- Hi.
[Eric] This is Ralph.
Ralph is one of the most renowned
human behaviour specialists out there.
He specializes in preparing witnesses
for their court testimonials.
[Lea] Witness preparation,
like we told you about before.
[Ralph] I'm delighted to meet you.
Over the next few days,
Ralph will work with you both.
It definitely will
seem a bit strange at first,
but, believe me,
it makes a huge difference.
What exactly do you mean by that?
Body language, facial expressions,
clothing. I tell the truth.
Your hair and general appearance
need to be spotless.
That's fundamental.
We can do the preparation together,
or I can work with each of you separately.
As you wish.
- Maybe the same time.
- [Ralph] Wonderful.
We start in an hour, then.
Did he say anything?
I guess he could be somewhere
working on his appearance,
shaving or something.
Shaving, you think?
It was just a joke, I suppose. Sorry.
You're saying he's not shaving now?
[knocking on door]
[sighs]
What are you doing in here?
You asked me in Budapest
what the point was for me.
And I explained that.
What about yours?
I want Google to admit that it's our
invention they've been using all along.
You know they'll only do that if the jury
decides that they infringed our patent.
And the jury will only decide
that Google's made patent infringement
if we're both credible.
And anything we can do
for them to believe us is
- Not by some acting course.
- This is not some acting course.
When the first thing he says
is bound to be regarding my appearance
Nobody's forcing you here.
Ralph is not against us.
And I'm also not against you.
- I'm still your friend.
- We're not friends, Carsten.
We were friends.
DAY 2:
THE COMPENSATORY DAMAGE ASSESSMEN
[Ferrell] Mr Stewart,
your witness, please.
Mr Boyd. How much money
does Google make with Google Earth?
Since Google Earth is free,
Google doesn't
make any money with it directly.
Google Earth is a free product?
Yes.
[Warren] Has it always been for free?
[Boyd] Yes.
Does Google include currently any ads in
any of the accused Google Earth products?
[Boyd] No, it does not.
Why is that?
Well, it's simply a fact that people
don't go to Google Earth to buy a new TV.
You go there
to kind of browse around the world.
Nobody clicks on ads in Earth
because they're really not relevant.
These are basically the two reasons Google
never made any money with Google Earth,
no ads and it's free.
And what decision did Google take
with regards to the fact that it doesn't
make any money with Google Earth?
They decided to move into
a group called Geo For Good,
which is a philanthropic arm of Google.
There's a lot of good things
that the group does,
and Google Earth meets the needs
of having a positive impact on the world.
Now it's part of that organisation.
Thank you, Mr Boyd.
Pass the witness, Your Honour.
Mrs Hauswirth, cross-examination.
The plaintiffs will forego
cross-examination.
We're calling our own expert to the stand.
Ms Martinez, Google's argument
is that Google Earth is free,
and there are no ads on Google Earth.
Therefore, Google earns
almost no money with Google Earth.
Can you follow this argument?
No.
Why can't you follow this argument?
Because, in my opinion,
that is not how Google's business works.
And what did you look at
to understand Google's business?
I looked at Google's documents.
And to start my analysis,
I looked at their overall strategy,
which is called the network effect.
I think we have a slide.
Your Honour,
this Google document is confidential.
It will show up only on the small screen.
So the overall strategy
of Google's framework is,
you have users,
you have information about the users,
and you have advertising.
They want to get as many users
as they can onto their platforms
that stay as long as possible
on their network.
And how long does
an average user stay on Google Earth?
An average session length is
more than 20 minutes on a desktop.
- [audience murmuring]
- [Lea] Is that long?
[Martinez chuckles] Yes. In the world
of the Internet, it's an eternity.
So, more users spending more time,
providing more information,
which increases ad targeting
and relevance.
That's what they call the network effect.
And why is increasing targeting
and relevance important?
Well, because Google would be able to
obtain additional advertising revenues
and even higher rates
if businesses could target.
I'll give you an example.
You go to your computer
and you look up a restaurant.
Now, a restaurant here in Wilmington
would be willing to pay more for an ad
if they knew that you were here
right at that moment.
So they pay more
when they have more information.
Could you calculate how many
users of Google Earth there've been?
Yes.
There is an internal Google spreadsheet
that shows all worldwide activations.
So I summarised all users for every year,
and you'll see that
there's several billion per year,
for a total of
7,009,171,846 uses.
That is a seven billion number.
That's really hard to grasp.
- Would you write it down for us?
- Of course.
[Lea] So once you looked
at Google's strategy and uses,
how did you calculate the proper damages?
Let's say Spotify music service wants
to offer Beatles music to its clients.
So Spotify would go to The Beatles
and they would say,
"We'd like to play your songs."
And The Beatles would say,
"Hey, let's sign an agreement."
"Your customers can play our music,
but you'll have to pay us
each time they do this."
In the e-mail
that Mr Müller wrote to Google,
he offered a typical rate per use.
What was the per-use rate
expressed in that e-mail?
The e-mail referred
to a 10-cent-per-use rate.
[Lea] That's seven billion,
multiplied by ten cents, equals
more than $700 million.
Thank you, Mrs Martinez.
You're welcome.
No further questions, Your Honour.
[Ferrell] Then this court is in recess
until 10:00 a.m. tomorrow.
- Court is adjourned.
- [indistinct]
Seven billion users.
That's the population of the entire world.
One hundred million days.
Seven billion users worldwide,
times about 20 minutes
every user stays on Google Earth,
that's over two billion hours,
which is about 100 million days.
Unbelievable, right? Remember Kyoto?
We couldn't have imagined it, could we?
[Juri] No.
[rousing music playing]
[Ralph] So, in today's session,
we'll be working
on your presentation for the jury.
The most important thing
during questioning is, as we call it,
the body language.
The jury decides in 33 milliseconds
whether to believe you or not.
So how best to sit properly
in the witness stand?
- [clears throat]
- [Ralph] Self-confident.
I know what I'm talking about.
But relax. [chuckles]
Have no stress.
I feel good. I am completely myself.
Okay. And that's probably enough for me.
So this is the witness stand here.
Please enter the room and sit down.
- You wanna go first?
- Seriously?
Come on, come on, move.
Okay. [chuckles lightly]
This here is the witness stand.
And we are totally relaxed.
- [Juri chuckling]
- What is it, Juri?
[Juri] Nothing.
- Carsten.
- Mm-hm. I'm coming.
- [exhales]
- [Ralph] Very good.
- [Carsten and Juri laughing]
- [Ralph] Very good.
Come on, Juri. What's up?
- [Juri] Nothing.
- Then concentrate a little, please.
I found out they have different meanings.
Look here.
Blue apparently stands for
intelligence and reliability.
But it lacks emotion.
Or
[clears throat]
[chuckles] Self-confident but aggressive.
- Hey.
- Hey.
So, what brought you
to my apartment anyway?
Deutsch adventure novels.
Are these the right ones?
- Yeah.
- Frieda is helping me choose a tie.
This one, for example.
Optimistic, yeah, but suicidal.
- Suicidal?
- That's what Ralph said.
[Julia] This Ralph guy
sounds like an odd fish to me.
Ralph is the best, so say Lea and Eric,
but I can't see it yet, if I'm honest.
- I've got something you're going to like.
- Okay.
And how are you feeling?
Today was the financial expert's turn,
and they informed us
of Google Earth's worth.
And Google's financial expert,
in all seriousness, believes
they've not made a cent from it.
What was said by your financial expert?
- She was of a different opinion.
- How much different?
Ah, you want all of the details
all of a sudden?
Yes, I want to know all the details.
I mean, we aren't officially divorced yet.
- [chuckling]
- [Carsten] What?
- [chuckling]
- [Frieda] Papa.
- Cool, no?
- Hold it down.
What is that?
- That's what you should do to Google.
- Exactly, that's right.
[laughing]
[sighs]
- [Julia] Good luck, tomorrow.
- Oh, man.
DAY 3: QUESTIONING OF CARSTEN SCHLÜTER
- [Warren] Good morning, Mr Schlüter.
- [translator in earpiece]
Good morning.
Did you sleep well?
Eh, thank you.
Not much, but the little I got was great.
How do you feel about testifying today?
Fine, thank you. I'll do my best today.
[Warren] Mr Schlüter,
your lawyer opened this trial
by telling us
that your invention was about flying?
As far as I can remember so, yes.
But you didn't invent flying?
[chuckles] No, of course not.
Mr Schlüter, do you know
what a flight simulator is?
Yeah.
A flight simulator would allow people
to fly around in space
and move from one place to another?
[Carsten] Yes.
And flight simulators existed
long before Terravision?
Long before you filed your patent?
Yes, they have indeed.
You didn't invent
the flight simulator, did you?
[Carsten] No.
Now, Mr Schlüter, the patent claim
requires using a quadtree?
[Carsten] Yes.
- You didn't invent the quadtree, did you?
- No.
People were using quadtrees
long before you filed the patent?
Yes, naturally.
Now, Mr Schlüter,
the patent claim requires the idea
of converting one coordinate system
into another coordinate system.
- Is that correct?
- Yeah, that is correct.
You didn't invent
the idea of a coordinate system?
[Carsten] No.
People have been using coordinate systems
for hundreds of years, haven't they?
Naturally.
You didn't even invent the idea
of converting one coordinate system
into another coordinate system, did you?
No.
And, Mr Schlüter, the patent claim
requires using a computer?
[Carsten] Yes.
You did not invent
a special kind of computer, did you?
No. Of course not.
It was a computer that already existed.
A Silicon Graphics computer.
Yes, exactly. But you knew that before.
[Ralph]
Questioning is always about the rhythm.
They will ask you questions in a way
that you can only answer with "yes", "no",
or "maybe".
- Mm-hm.
- Yes, no, maybe.
And at some point they've got you
in a place where you feel like
you're driving down a one-way street,
and then you give up internally,
and that's when you make a mistake.
- You cross your arms.
- Sorry.
Or you run your finger
through your hair, huh?
Game over.
[Warren] Now, Mr Schlüter,
you understand that this case
is about claims of a patent, correct?
Yeah, that is correct.
[Warren]
That's a kind of intellectual property?
[Carsten] Yes.
- [Warren] It's not in the public domain?
- [Carsten] Exactly. Yes.
You cannot get a patent on something
that is in the public domain?
No, naturally not.
And your patent is in the general area
of visualising geographic information?
Mm-hm. Yeah.
You didn't invent the field
of visualising geographic information?
No, naturally not.
[Warren]
That's been around for a long time?
Yeah, a while.
[Warren] People have been
visualising geographic information
for thousands of years?
[exhales deeply]
[Carsten] Quite possibly, yeah.
Then would you agree that the field
of visualising geographic information
is in the public domain?
And, Mr Schlüter, would you agree
that quadtrees are in the public domain?
Just like coordinate systems
are in the public domain?
Just like converting one coordinate system
into another coordinate system
is in the public domain?
And, Mr Schlüter, you recall
that you agreed two minutes ago
that you cannot get a patent
on something that is in the public domain?
[Ralph] You need to break that rhythm.
Repeat the question even.
"Sorry, can I hear the question again?"
[Warren] Mr Schlüter,
do you recall
that you agreed two minutes ago
that you cannot get a patent
on something that is in the public domain?
Naturally, yeah. We also Could you?
Speak a little more clearly
into the microphone,
make it easier
for the translators to hear you.
- Is this any better?
- [microphone feedback]
Oh, I'm sorry, that was too near.
Yeah. Now you can hear me, right?
Is this good? Yeah?
Maybe because I couldn't hear anything.
Is this good? Yeah? Sorry.
- I touched the microphone. Is this good?
- [Warren] Are we okay?
Okay, Mr Schlüter.
Do you recall that you agreed
that you cannot get a patent
on something that is in the public domain?
Naturally, we made use
of things that had existed before.
All patents work in this way.
Had Google invented search algorithm?
- No, no, Mr
- No.
Did they invent
searching on the Internet then?
No, naturally not.
Someone has access to a technology
and for this technology,
a new use is found.
That's what happens.
And this new use discovered by us
that's what this is about.
And that is what the patent's regarding.
Mr Schlüter,
my question was slightly different, sir.
I'm sorry, could I hear
the question one more time?
[Warren sighs]
I'll withdraw the question.
Mr Schlüter, in computer graphics,
people use polygons
to represent images, correct?
I'm sorry, one second.
Polygons to represent images?
You are the experts,
not the other way around.
So don't make it easy for the lawyer then.
Get into details, try to split hairs even.
You use polygons to draw images?
[Carsten] Um, no, no.
You use polygons to draw geometric shapes.
Correct.
Not images.
[Warren] Yeah, that's correct.
You draw geometry and not images.
- That's right.
- [Warren] I'll withdraw the question.
[chuckles lightly]
Damn, he was good! Really. I thought,
"Any more of this, I'll be going under."
It was like being in quicksand,
like being sucked into a vortex.
And at the beginning,
he was acting so nice to me, wasn't he?
So that's it. That's what this
is all about, that's their strategy.
It was never about patent infringement.
No, but the patent itself is in question.
- [Eric] But you foiled their attempt.
- Yeah, but with Juri's help.
- With Ralph's, naturally.
- Mm-hm.
- And we'll get Juri up to speed as well.
- That was good.
We need to keep it up.
Gentlemen, Dr Callaghan is here.
He's waiting in the lobby.
Yeah, and?
Google Earth violates your patent
every single step of the way,
every single one.
There's nothing they aren't doing
exactly the same way as you.
Addressing protocols, everything.
Even the consecutive numbering
in the quadtree is identical,
exactly the same
as you did with Terravision.
- They even copied the numbering system?
- Yes!
That can't be a coincidence. There are
millions of possible ways of doing that.
All our suspicions are substantiated
by the source code Google Earth employs.
[breathes deeply]
The proof lies in the source code.
[Callaghan] Indeed.
- Dr Callaghan.
- [Carsten] Schlüter.
- Müller.
- [Callaghan] Good to finally meet you.
Can you please state
and spell your full name for the record?
DAY 4: DR CALLAGHAN
ART+COM'S TECHNICAL EXPER
My name is Richard Callaghan.
C-A-L-L-A-G-H-A-N.
- Good morning, Dr Callaghan.
- Good morning.
By the sound of your accent,
you're from Great Britain?
That's correct, yes.
[Lea] But you now live
and work in the United States?
That's right.
Dr Callaghan,
would you tell us what this is?
[Callaghan] Yes. This is a book
about digital image processing
that I wrote and published.
It's used as a textbook
for graduate and undergraduate courses.
Is it only used in Great Britain
for this purpose?
[Callaghan] No, it's been
translated into several languages.
And have you received any awards
or recognition for your work in that area?
[Callaghan] Yes. I am in
the Space Technology Hall of Fame.
Dr Callaghan, how long have you spent
analysing the plaintiffs' claim?
I spent approximately
250 hours on the study.
And have you formed any opinions as to
whether Google infringes this patent?
Yes, I have.
And what have you concluded?
My study showed that
Google Earth infringes the patent.
[Lea] And you prepared exhibits
in which you excerpted and highlighted
the Google Earth source code file
to prove your conclusion?
[Callaghan] Yes, I have.
[Lea] Your Honour, the excerpts
of the source code file are confidential.
So, what have you highlighted
from the source code file?
The first routine I'd like to highlight
is a routine called Navigator JS.
Now, this is the routine at a high level
that takes the data from the user,
about what he wants to look at,
and creates what is called
the camera statement.
This is basically the position
and the pointing angle
of that imaginary camera.
So this routine translates
user interaction into globe camera state?
[Callaghan] Yes, that's right.
Now, next, I've highlighted
a routine called Build Visible Tree.
This performs
the frustum intersection test.
- The beauty about frustum is
- Sorry. Sorry to interrupt.
Would you first explain
to the jury what frustum is?
Well, frustum can be thought of
as a sort of pyramid region of space,
with potentially caps on the top
and bottom of the pyramid.
You'd use it to select
what node data instances to render
and also to decide what metadata and data
to fetch and load into the GPU memory.
[Lea] Just to make sure
the jury fully understands,
is there any way of putting it
into more non-technical words?
Build Visible Tree means
going through the whole tree,
isolating particular branches
of that tree
So the visible tree is what the user gets
to see on his or her screen?
[Callaghan] Yes, exactly.
Now, next I've highlighted
a routine called Traverse.
I should probably add
that traversal is a process
of moving down the tree from node to node.
This routine is called the Traverse.
Just to make sure
the jury fully understands
- [Callaghan] This is the Request.
- Sorry to interrupt.
- A routine called Fetch.
- [Lea] Could you please rephrase?
- I should add
- called Request.
the jury fully understands
what the user gets to see on his
[Callaghan] and isolate
the branches that contain data
nodes from the
From the server.
[indistinct chatter]
Would you?
Would you explain to the jury
what you mean by queued up?
[Callaghan] I've highlighted a routine
[Carsten] Juri.
Nobody knows what that means.
[clears throat]
Fuck. He'll never be able to
handle the pressure from Stewart.
Shit.
Mr Stewart, cross-examination.
Dr Callaghan,
I just wanna be clear.
For this case, you've been hired
by Art+Com to provide testimony, correct?
[Callaghan] Yes, that's right.
[Warren]
You're doing that as a paid consultant?
Yes.
[Warren] And Art+Com is paying you
$400 an hour for your testimony?
That's right.
And I think you said
you'd spent about 250 hours so far?
Yes, on the infringement part of the case.
So, in total, a little over 310 hours.
So we're talking about,
using your hourly rate,
more than $100,000 so far?
[Callaghan]
Whatever the maths add up to, yes.
You would agree with me that
this patent issue is related to the area
of geographical information systems?
Definitely related.
Now Art+Com's counsel
questioned you about your book,
the one that distinguishes you
as an expert in this case.
Yes.
But your book isn't about
geographical information systems, right?
Your book doesn't even use the term
"geographical information systems"
anywhere in it, correct?
Probably not. Uh, I'm not sure.
It doesn't even use
the word "geographical," right?
[Callaghan] I'm not sure.
[Warren] Or "geography"?
It doesn't talk about
any of those things, does it?
Not as I remember.
[sighs]
[Warren]
No further questions, Your Honour.
Okay.
We'll see you later on.
Thank you.
- [rock music playing over speakers]
- [Lea] Fuck!
You can't just storm out
of the courtroom. You can't do that.
- [Juri] Sorry, I had to leave.
- [Lea] No, you didn't.
Do you think the jury didn't notice
you running out of that room?
What are they thinking now, huh?
What do you think they're thinking?
The man was incredibly hard to follow.
I was watching the jury.
Nobody understood it!
[Lea] But we had to do it that way.
We have the burden of proof though,
and Google doesn't.
That's how patent trials
always work, get it?
The jury expects us to prove
that Google is infringing your patent,
and the only way to do that is
a detailed analysis of the source code.
That's the only way.
And, yeah, Google is probably gonna use
a completely different strategy tomorrow.
They won't touch on the source code.
There's no way.
Their expert will address the jury
as if they're all schoolchildren.
DAY 5: DR CHEN
GOOGLE'S TECHNICAL EXPER
Dr Chen.
Yesterday, did you hear
Dr Callaghan's opinion
regarding how Google Earth works?
Yes, I did.
[Warren] Are there parts of Dr Callaghan's
opinion that you disagree with?
- Yes.
- [Warren] Why do you disagree?
Because Google Earth uses
a fundamentally different method
than Terravision.
Now, have you prepared a presentation
to show why the methods are different?
Yes.
Let's say I wanted to fly
to the courthouse here in Wilmington.
When I'm far away, the resolution is bad.
So I divide this image into smaller images
in order to get higher resolution.
And I repeat this step
until I reach my desired destination.
We call it the Metadata Tree.
That's the idea
behind Terravision and Google Earth.
But Terravision requests, stores,
and represents each
of the smaller sections.
And it does this step over and over again.
I call it a repeating process.
Google Earth does it differently.
Google searches the tree
using a traversal process. Why?
Because it is smart enough
to identify the ones it really wants
and skip the ones it doesn't want.
I call it a parallel,
out-of-order process.
It's simply a very different process,
and Google's process
is guaranteed to be more efficient.
This is analysis by Mickey Mouse.
They could not make that happen.
If they did, they'd constantly
have images that were blurry.
- [Chen] process of division
- They're listening to her.
Images would always be blurry while
the algorithm searches for nodes, sorts,
prioritizes, all of those things at once.
- I know Yeah.
- Never gonna do it!
- [Chen] The user doesn't have to wait
- Everything okay?
for the data as it would
under the Art+Com patent.
In conclusion,
there is no patent infringement.
Thank you, Dr Chen.
If I don't manage to crack Dr Chen,
we can just forget it.
There will be too much weight
on the other side of the scale.
And you need to take some responsibility.
I mean, the training at least.
Take it seriously.
Why do you think we hired Ralph?
So that something like this
wouldn't happen to us.
Shit!
Before we leave this shithole,
I intend to beat you.
[Lea] Dr Chen, have there ever been times
that you've made a repeat visit
to a restaurant you like?
[Chen] Oh, several.
And I take it that when you did,
you finished
your meal the first time around
before you paid the repeat visit, right?
Yes.
And that's because, generally,
in order to repeat something,
you first have to finish
the thing you're repeating, correct?
Yes.
Yet Google, at least according to you,
seems to have discovered the secret
of how to repeat doing something
that has not been finished, right?
I'm not sure I understand.
In your presentation,
in drawing a contrast between the way
how Google Earth and Terravision work,
you focused on the fact that Google Earth
supposedly just skips some steps.
Yes.
Have you ever tested Google Earth
to see how often this happens?
No.
Have you seen a Google document
telling us how often this happens?
No.
Did you talk to Mr Andersson
or any Google engineer
to see if this even happens once?
I don't recall.
The presentation you showed
about whether or not
Google infringes this patent,
it was prepared in a joint effort
with Mr Andersson, right?
It was not prepared with Mr Andersson.
It was prepared by me
in consultation with the attorneys.
The animation you showed to the jury
was prepared in consultation with
Google's lawyers?
Yes.
You must have spent 200 or
even more than 200 hours
in connection with this lawsuit?
To the end of last month,
I had spent 250 hours.
You've reviewed thousands of documents.
Yes.
You reviewed testimony
from dozens of witnesses.
Yes.
And instead of providing the jury
with the detailed source code analysis,
with the detailed analysis
of those documents,
or with testimony from these witnesses
who developed the products,
you chose instead to rely primarily
on a presentation you developed
with Google's lawyers.
[hesitates] Well
No further questions.
That was really good.
[Ferrell] Ladies and gentlemen, we are
in recess until 10:00 a.m. tomorrow.
[Ralph] As soon as the lawyer asks
a question that is bad for us,
your first reflex always is,
"I can't remember, I have to say."
Or even better, formal English:
"As I sit here today,
I'm sorry, but I cannot recall."
Come on. Let's try it together. Shall we?
[both] As I sit here today,
I'm sorry, but I can't recall.
As I sit here today,
I'm sorry, but I can't recall.
[Eric] Especially if there's a point
when your membership
with the Chaos Computer Club comes up.
That's our weak spot.
It is. It's your weak spot, Juri.
[Eric] I'm sorry it always has
to come back to this.
But we can't afford the questioning
to go the way it did in Berlin.
If they ask you
about the Chaos Computer Club,
you say you have no memory of it.
- Yeah, but it exists in my memory.
- Not in court.
The Chaos Computer Club
is a criminal organisation.
No, it isn't.
[Eric] Herr Müller [sighs]
I'm not trying to argue with you.
But the Chaos Computer Club
has hacked public institutions.
Even the Pentagon was hacked.
The jury will hate that.
And they won't care
whether you participated or not,
only that you were a member.
I can only repeat what I said before.
Each time you get asked
about the Chaos Computer Club
- [Ralph] "I can't recall."
- [Eric] "I can't recall."
This isn't a request, Herr Müller.
It's a necessity.
[Ralph] "I can't recall."
Anything else is a killer, Juri.
[exhales]
[door shuts]
I promise I won't run out
of the courtroom tomorrow.
But my past, I won't deny.
- At stake is $700 million.
- I know.
And that is the problem.
Against $700 million, you can't argue.
Yes, and do you know why?
Do you know what those $700 million say?
They say that we are right,
and that Google is not right.
And they say it loud,
because $700 million are loud.
They are louder than anything.
No, listen to me, okay? There is a lot
at stake here, not only for you and me.
For Lea, Eric, the entire team.
So, you had better just get over yourself.
- Get over myself?
- Yeah.
Yeah, you don't even have to lie.
Just say, "I don't remember." Yeah?
Yeah.
Yeah. I would that's why you've become
a professor, and I became a gardener.
And I'd also say the reason why you left
our company before it sank and I hung on,
and that was because you couldn't
get over yourself, was it?
[sighs]
You've forgotten about Christine?
And Alex? And Dos? All gone?
You know that's not the case
and I don't mean that.
Come on.
- [man] Are the gentlemen ready to order?
- No! The gentlemen are not ready!
[breathes deeply]
- We weren't criminals.
- [sighs]
We wanted to use computers
to change life for the better, remember?
We wanted to make art, things of beauty,
and not just money and power and
[breathes deeply]
Being a hacker meant something.
Being one of the Chaos Computer Club
members was an honour
that was actually worth something.
And now I have to disavow it?
We should be proud of what we were.
And if that's the reason
why we don't win, then, so be it.
- If that is also given up on
- Yeah, you're right.
- [sighs, huffs]
- No, you are right. Absolutely.
If that's why we lose this,
the deciding factor
then it shall be so.
[breathes deeply]
And quite honestly,
if they ask me about
the Chaos Computer Club tomorrow,
it won't help me by saying,
"I can't recall," anyway.
I can't handle our own lawyers,
how am I supposed to deal with theirs?
So I might as well be honest.
"We could have gotten millions for it,
yeah, but my partner Juri was
a member of the Chaos Computer Club."
- "That's the bitter fact."
- Oh, shut up.
"Maybe it was all the Pong he played there
or the Lego spaceship he built,
but that's what it was
that finally screwed us."
- [Juri chuckles]
- [Carsten sighs]
[both laugh]
Yeah.
You idiot.
[chuckling]
[pensive music playing]
[takes a deep breath]
[video call ringing]
[Christine] Juri?
- Hello, Christine.
- Hey!
- [chuckles] How are you?
- [chuckles softly]
LAST DAY OF THE TRIAL: QUESTIONING
OF JURI MÜLLER AND BRIAN ANDERSSON
The Chaos Computer Club
had membership application forms.
The Chaos Computer Club had membership
details like any German club you'd find.
- [Carsten] What?
- Yes. I didn't know until last night.
[chuckling]
The greatest threat to homeland security,
the "most subversive organisation
of state enemies" had membership details.
Application forms just like
a shooting club or a sheepdog club.
- Happily, Christine told me last night.
- Our Christine?
Yeah. But I never filled out such a form.
She and Alex sent it to me
at least five times.
But which of us ever opened post
back then? But what's important
I was never officially a member
of the Chaos Computer Club.
And I have the document to prove it.
- We gotta talk to the judge.
- Yeah.
As long as I don't need to say,
"I can't recall"
Yeah.
- And yeah, you're right.
- Hmm?
$700 million are very loud.
[exhales deeply]
- So Juri has to prove nothing
- It would be irresponsible to not allow
Thank you.
[conversation continues indistinctly]
[Eric] Gentlemen.
The judge delivered a ruling.
He won't allow any questions about
the Chaos Computer Club during the case.
[grunts happily]
I know we had a hard time, but, hey.
Membership application?
[chuckling]
[Eric] Gotta love Germany.
Thirty minutes.
[both sigh in relief]
[Warren] Mr Müller,
I'd like to talk to you about the offer
that you made to Google.
- Is that the offer?
- Yes, I'd say it was.
I'd like you to look
at the highlighted part.
According to what it says here,
you agreed that Art+Com would accept
3 to 5 million dollars for the patent.
Is that right?
Yeah.
But there were conditions to the offer.
We wanted to collaborate.
We wanted a package deal.
A package that would have
benefited everyone.
Mr Müller, I'd like you to try
and focus on my question, sir.
You wrote Google
and told them you'd sell them Terravision
for 3 to 5 million dollars.
Is that right?
That's what this paragraph
you highlighted says.
It wasn't only concerning the patent,
it was about collaborating.
Mr Müller, I'm talking
about what you wrote to Google, sir.
If your lawyers wanna ask
what was in your head,
well, we've heard a lot about that.
I'm trying to figure out
what you told Google.
There were lots of things it was about.
Anyone here can read what's on there
and make up their own mind about it.
You've highlighted the section
where finances were talked about,
but there's another section
you haven't brought up.
That section mentions collaboration
as a prerequisite for the deal.
And that collaboration never happened
because Google refused it.
Mr Müller, I'd like you to answer
only the questions that I ask.
Could you do that, please?
- I am answering your questions.
- I don't think you are.
That's what I'm doing.
Let's switch gears
a little bit here, Mr Müller,
and talk about the e-mail
that you sent to Mr Andersson
after his visit to Berlin.
Could we blow this up?
Make it easier for everybody to read?
[programme beeping]
Thank you.
I'd like you to look
at the highlighted part at the top.
"You've figured out
most of the same things on your own."
Did you write that to Mr Andersson?
Yes, I believe that was me.
[Warren] And by the same things
that Mr Andersson figured out on his own,
you meant similarities
between Terravision and Google Earth?
When Brian came to Berlin to visit,
he said the two programmes
would have similarities,
but theirs were different to Terravision.
- I had made the decision
- [door opens]
[footsteps approaching]
[soft murmuring]
I had made the decision to believe him.
[Warren] But what you
never wrote to Mr Andersson
is that you believed
Google was infringing your patent?
Mr Müller.
Did you ever write
that Google infringed your patent?
We thought,
if there was patent infringement,
they would address the situation.
Because if they knew there was patent
infringement and hadn't said anything,
it would be them in trouble.
That's what we thought. Besides, I didn't
want to dig any deeper into the subject
because collaboration and future projects
could have been jeopardized
if at that time we had spoken
about patent infringement.
It simply wasn't the way
we wanted to do things.
[whispering indistinctly]
Maybe we were a bit naive.
But we blindly believed
what Brian said to us back then.
[Warren] Your Honour, the defence calls
its next witness, Mr Brian Andersson.
- Mr Andersson.
- Hmm.
Do you remember this picture?
Oh. [chuckles] Yeah.
Uh, that's me before my beard was grey.
And my team at Google Earth,
an outstanding team.
And what was going on in that picture?
Well, that evening,
I wanted to change parts of the software,
but everyone said I can't, it's too late,
we have a deadline tomorrow.
So, I started buying whisky and pretzels
and things for my people
to actually do the work anyway.
And we programmed it in one night
in the dining room of my house.
Why were you
in the dining room of your house?
Well, because my garage
was filled with boxes,
so we couldn't really do
the garage start-up style.
[all chuckling]
Mr Andersson, let's discuss a point
that has been at issue
a lot in this trial,
when you went to Berlin and met
with Juri Müller and Carsten Schlüter,
the plaintiffs claim that you decided
to do projects together.
Well, it's hard to remember. Could've been
that we discussed something like that.
But decided? No, definitely not.
[Warren] And did you ever say:
"Art+Com is so cool that I think
we have to have shares in Art+Com"?
Uh, well, I don't know if I said that.
It's a very long time ago.
Um, but to be honest,
it doesn't really sound like me, so
And how are you familiar with Juri Müller?
[Brian] We met somewhere.
Um, don't really remember exactly where.
Sorry to say, I don't know if it was
at the showroom at Silicon Graphics
or somewhere else.
I'd speak to thousands of people a year,
I'd travel hundreds
and thousands of miles, so it's all
kind of the same after a while, really.
And, finally,
I have one personal question.
Why do you think
Google Earth is so popular?
What is the reason?
Because it's from Google.
I mean, Google announcing it caused
the whole world to notice Google Earth.
I mean, it was the Google name
that made it. Nothing else.
[Warren] Pass the witness.
[Ferrell] I think it's now time
for our morning break.
We'll recess for 15 minutes
and come back, let's say, at 11:30.
Thank you.
- You're all good? That was okay?
- Great job. See you in a minute.
Maybe we are so unimportant
that you don't remember
anything you told us. Maybe
Maybe we are so unimportant
that you can't remember
you wanted to work with us.
And I don't give a shit
if I'm so unimportant
that you don't even remember me, but
at least you could remember Juri,
because he gave you something
nobody else in the world
was able to do at the time.
And you know it.
Brian, let's go. What are you doing, man?
Mrs Hauswirth, your witness.
Mr Andersson,
this is an internal Google e-mail
you wrote about Terravision
after your visit in Berlin. Do you see it?
I do.
And that e-mail starts with the sentence,
"Art+Com is cool."
- Do you see that?
- I do.
And it also talks about "favoured option."
Do you see that?
Would you please read
the highlighted parts to us?
"Payment, plus big block of design,
plus consulting services
would be my favoured option."
Okay.
So, it was your intention
to work with Art+Com?
Obviously.
Nevertheless, you just told the jury
that you can hardly remember Juri Müller.
It was a long time ago,
but I remember liking him a lot.
Um, I mean, personally.
Eh, I'm a pretty good judge,
I think, of engineering talents,
and he's a talented, nice guy.
And, uh [chuckling] What he made is, uh
They used our computers.
And it's like you work in a music factory
and you make trumpets,
and someone comes and says
they wanna play the trumpet for you.
And you wanna hear it because I might
have hammered on that trumpet
and I wanna hear good music.
So, Terravision was good music to you?
To be honest, it was fantastic then,
and it's fantastic now.
Mr Andersson, did you tell Mr Müller
that Google Earth never would have
been possible without Terravision?
That Terravision was the inspiration
for you to build Google Earth?
Objection. Your Honour,
the question is irrelevant to the case.
- [Ferrell] Overruled.
- [sighs]
There's no relevance in inspiration.
It's overruled.
You can cover it in redirect.
Did you tell Mr Müller
that Google Earth never would have
been possible without Terravision?
Yes, I said that.
- [audience murmuring]
- In that club in Berlin. And I meant it.
Without Terravision, Google Earth
would have never been possible.
[Lea] No further questions.
[hopeful music playing]
[chuckles softly]
[exhales]
[stifled chuckling]
[Carsten] "Without Terravision,
Google Earth would
never have been possible."
This one sentence that tipped the scale
between victory and defeat.
This one sentence,
worth billions of dollars,
thanks to which Google offered us
three times the amount of the damages
if we signed a nondisclosure agreement,
so that the world would never know.
This sentence, that allowed us to say,
"Fuck you, Google,"
and encouraged hundreds of small companies
to claim their right
because we'd set a precedent.
This one sentence,
which allowed us to return to Berlin,
to round up our old companions
and work on a new kind of Internet,
on the version of the Internet
we'd dreamed of 25 years before
[all shouting, cheering]
[Carsten] This one decisive sentence
was sadly never uttered.
[audio rewinds]
Brian never stated in front of the court
that Google Earth would have never
been possible without Terravision.
That we were his inspiration.
That Google Earth would have
never existed without Terravision.
Instead of that, he said
Did you tell Mr Müller
that Google Earth never would have
been possible without Terravision?
Like I said before,
I speak to so many people.
I travel so much.
And it's always been my purpose,
in creating Google Earth,
is bring people together.
There are seven billion people,
and as far as I'm concerned,
the only thing that we really have
in common is that we live on this planet.
It doesn't matter
where you're from, what culture.
I mean, we're all brothers and sisters
in that we live on the Earth,
and it's our home.
And I thought that if we could see that,
people would understand
that the people in that country,
that we're about to bomb,
they have kids too,
and their kids play soccer
just like our kids play soccer.
So, maybe I could help the world
if we could embrace that
and see that for ourselves.
People that travel,
they have a broader worldview.
And I thought that with virtual travel,
people would just be kinder and nicer
and really, really embrace each other.
And that was the only motivation
I needed to created Google Earth.
Nothing else.
[Lea] They are ready.
Has the jury reached a verdict
in this case?
We have, Your Honour.
[Ferrell] Would you please
hand the verdict to the court deputy?
All rise.
[Ferrell] I will now read the verdict.
The first question is:
"Do you find that Art+Com has proven
that Google Earth infringes the patent?"
Answer:
No.
- [Carsten sighs]
- [Ferrell] Next question:
"Do you find that Google Earth
has proven clearly and convincingly
that the patent is invalid?"
Answer: Yes.
Third question:
"Do you find that Google Earth uses
a fundamentally different method
than Terravision?"
Answer: Yes.
- Congratulations.
- Congratulations.
Hey.
Hey!
Are you, uh, back on Earth?
Yeah.
No skipping. It means no reloading.
- [door opens]
- [guard] Stop!
[Juri] Now imagine if you could do that
with the entire world.
- But really close in.
- [both panting, laughing]
What have you called this idea?
Does it have a name?
- Terra
- [Carsten] Vision.
Our office.
- You're the boss. All right, Kyoto.
- [all chanting] Kyoto! Kyoto! Kyoto!
[clamouring, laughing]
A globe!
That's our interface.
[Lea] They did teach us
something in law school.
And when I say "teach,"
I mean it was always hammered.
"Emotional involvement
should never happen."
"You will win, you will lose."
"But you should not set your heart
on any single case. Never."
But fuck, man! I'd have really liked
to have won this one.
Yeah, and us.
You told me that you didn't drink.
[sighs] And I don't normally.
But today I am.
[Lea sighs]
Do you know what the real irony is?
The trial ultimately would have cost
each party around $20 million each.
That's four times what you asked
Google for in the first place.
My flight's leaving in two hours.
It's my last chance.
[boot zips]
I believe I made you a promise.
[rock music playing over speakers]
- [beeps]
- [shouts] Haha!
- Oh, right, you let me win, didn't you?
- No.
- Of course you did. You did it on purpose.
- No.
[Lea] No?
Of course, he let you win that one.
Huh?
I know what we'd have done
with the money if we had won.
If we had won, first, we'd have bought
this place and started the playlist over.
- [chuckles]
- [game beeps]
We don't need to own it to do that.
What are you doing?
Their speakers, they're from Sonos.
Their sound systems work with the Wi-Fi.
Access the network traffic here in the bar
and run a handshaking protocol.
Which track?
[techno music playing over speakers]
[Carsten laughing] I love this one!
[man] Hey! Barry!
- What is this shit, man?
- Turn it up!
I'm locked out!
- [man] Turn it down, Barry!
- I can't!
Yeah! Louder!
[Barry] I can't!
Yeah!
[Barry] Hey, weirdos!
Hey. Guys, is this your music?
[man 1] Turn that shit off.
No, no, it's computer music.
- [man 2] Get out of here!
- [man 3] Get the fuck out!
[man 4] Get out of here,
you stupid motherfuckers.
- Bye!
- [man 5] Get the fuck out of here!
[all laughing]
[Lea] I gotta go.
Eric is waiting to catch the next flight.
New file.
Ah, the future's here.
The algorithm for autonomous driving was
a direct development from Google Earth.
It all comes back to you, in the end.
And to think that
no one will ever know. Yeah.
No.
I will know.
- [Carsten] Thank you.
- [Juri] Thank you.
It was a pleasure.
[vehicle beeping]
I'm hungry.
Let's see if we can find a diner.
Yeah. Okay.
Don't you want to move back to Berlin?
- We've got garden centres too, you know.
- I've actually been thinking about that.
- Really?
- Yeah.
[Carsten]
In the history of the digital revolution,
there have been a handful
of ground-breaking inventions.
This invention I mean, seriously,
imagine for a minute you could fly
from outer space
all the way here to this kebab stand.
The other inventors
have a name and a story.
They became rich, famous,
and they ruled over a new world.
I have a new idea.
For a secure messaging service,
with an encrypted HTTPS access.
Somewhat based on
our original idea for Terravision.
Yeah? Would that be another revolution?
I just want to know what I'm getting into.
- I'm not going through all this again.
- [Juri laughing]
That could show every person the world.
From up there.
[Carsten] Terravision didn't make us rich,
nor did it make us famous.
And we definitely aren't leaders
of the new world.
But it changed the way
people see the world.
And that's our story.
[dramatic music playing]
["Alles Was Ich Mache" playing]
[slow electronic music plays]
Subtitle translation by
Michele Jochem Yunus
[man] There you go.
[guard] Mr Callaghan,
go straight, turn first right to Block 8.
[Callaghan] Thank you.
[dramatic music playing]
This way, please.
[scanning, beeps]
[techno music playing]
[Carsten] So this is where it all ends.
In Delaware, America's tax haven.
ART+COM VS. GOOGLE - THE TRIAL
In 1993, in a post-Cold War Berlin,
Juri and I had the idea for Terravision.
An art project, which was to become
one of the most important inventions
of the computer age.
And now, over 25 years later,
we were here in America
for the final duel against Google.
Almost half a lifetime
after that night at the kebab stand,
we would know within six days
whether we would finally get justice.
Whether Google would finally acknowledge
who the actual inventors
of the algorithm behind Google Earth were.
[Eric] How is he?
It's good that he's here,
but do you think he'll be able to hold up?
I don't know.
We stopped speaking for 15 years.
You can't just change that.
- How much depends on him?
- One more?
[Eric] It depends on everything.
The damages,
the infringement of the patent.
[Lea] Oh, come on. No way.
[Eric] Your testimonies, of course.
You're managing well.
But we have no idea
what Google has in store for us.
Our mission each day is
to stay ahead of what they're doing.
DAY 1: OPENING STATEMENTS
[Eric] And anything you can do
to avoid what happened in Berlin,
I would really appreciate.
[indistinct chatter]
[Carsten] The judge had determined
a series of questions
the jury would have to answer
at the end of the trial.
But the critical question
was the first one.
Was Google infringing
our Terravision patent?
- Or simply
- All rise.
had Google stolen Terravision?
This court is now in session.
The Honourable Judge Ferrell presiding.
[Carsten] On the first day,
we heard the opening statements.
Lea had been racking her brains
for weeks on how to do it,
until Juri gave her the crucial idea.
When I was little,
I had a globe with a light in it
that you could turn on and it would glow.
Once I'd flown to America,
it was the America
just as I'd imagined it in my fantasy.
As a pilot?
[Juri] What?
As a kid, when you were dreaming
of flying around the world,
were you a pilot?
- No.
- [Carsten] Superman.
Not a pilot.
"When he flies, the world is not shaky."
I would imagine for a while
I had superpowers
and I would fly around the globe.
To Mount Everest,
to America, wherever I wanted.
[Lea] Ladies and gentlemen
of the jury, Your Honour,
this case is about flying.
About the view you get
if you really could fly around the world,
the powerful visual sensation
of moving anywhere in the world
and looking down and seeing what you'd see
if you were actually hovering above.
Ever since the 1930s, when Superman
debuted in the Action comic books,
kids everywhere
have had this dream of flying.
Maybe circling Mount Everest,
seeing what it would look like.
- And this Superman
- [translator speaking German]
was also in the imagination
of a young boy
[translator speaking German]
that would look at a globe
and dream of flying.
And this boy,
sitting in this courtroom with us today
he's Juri Müller,
one of the two men
who invented Terravision.
He and his partner Carsten Schlüter,
developed the computer programme
that made that dream of flying come true,
back before Google even existed.
And they do not wanna sit here.
They tried to resolve their issue
with Google on several occasions.
Unfortunately, this lawsuit
was the only way
they could make Google listen.
This case
is not about flying.
This case is not about Superman.
This case is
not about geographies and places.
This case is solely
and exclusively a patent case.
Now, my name is Warren Stewart,
and along with the rest of our team,
I am proud to represent Google.
You might have heard of Google Earth.
You might even remember
the first time ever using it.
[Carsten] As usual in the USA, the jury
consisted of randomly selected citizens,
most of whom had close
to no technical background.
It starts 10 years before in Berlin.
You'll be learning about how enthusiastic
they were about their invention
and how they came to the U.S.A
[Carsten]
They formed their opinions emotionally,
and often as early
as the opening statements.
Now, Google Earth is
very popular for good reasons.
It's very cool, right? [chuckles]
And it solves a number of issues
that people have
[Carsten] And now two German artists
and former hackers
were running up against
the perfect American success story.
The odds definitely
could have been better.
[Warren]
Google does not infringe the patent.
We appreciate you're taking the time
to resolve this important dispute.
And I wanna thank you
in advance for the attention
I know you're gonna give
to the evidence in this case.
Thank you very much.
Thank you very much.
[Carsten] Therefore, our hopes rested
on our expert witness, Dr Callaghan.
Once the trial started,
he was granted permission
to visit Google's infrastructures
and read Google Earth's source code
inside a bug proof
and guarded secure room.
And every day, he would enter
the "heart of darkness", as we called it,
to try to find out whether,
contrary to Google's allegations,
Terravision and Google Earth
were identical.
[tense music builds]
[Lea] We can't assume anyone on the jury
has any background knowledge.
We have two parcel couriers, a retiree,
a housewife, a clerk, and so on.
The only one with some possible
degree of understanding of our case
is an IT student.
If his opinions turn out
to be the general consensus,
he could tip the scale.
That's enough about the jury.
On to the next few days.
This here is
our financial expert, Ms Martinez.
And that's Google's, Matt Boyd.
They'll be assessing the damages
the jury has to establish, if we win.
And after that,
it's your turn, Herr Schlüter.
This here is Dr Callaghan,
our technical expert,
and his Google counterpart, Dr Chen.
They'll discuss the patent infringement
around the end of the week.
And on the last day,
it's your turn, Herr Müller.
- And Brian Andersson.
- [Eric] Excuse us, Lea.
- Herr Müller, Herr Schlüter.
- Hi.
[Eric] This is Ralph.
Ralph is one of the most renowned
human behaviour specialists out there.
He specializes in preparing witnesses
for their court testimonials.
[Lea] Witness preparation,
like we told you about before.
[Ralph] I'm delighted to meet you.
Over the next few days,
Ralph will work with you both.
It definitely will
seem a bit strange at first,
but, believe me,
it makes a huge difference.
What exactly do you mean by that?
Body language, facial expressions,
clothing. I tell the truth.
Your hair and general appearance
need to be spotless.
That's fundamental.
We can do the preparation together,
or I can work with each of you separately.
As you wish.
- Maybe the same time.
- [Ralph] Wonderful.
We start in an hour, then.
Did he say anything?
I guess he could be somewhere
working on his appearance,
shaving or something.
Shaving, you think?
It was just a joke, I suppose. Sorry.
You're saying he's not shaving now?
[knocking on door]
[sighs]
What are you doing in here?
You asked me in Budapest
what the point was for me.
And I explained that.
What about yours?
I want Google to admit that it's our
invention they've been using all along.
You know they'll only do that if the jury
decides that they infringed our patent.
And the jury will only decide
that Google's made patent infringement
if we're both credible.
And anything we can do
for them to believe us is
- Not by some acting course.
- This is not some acting course.
When the first thing he says
is bound to be regarding my appearance
Nobody's forcing you here.
Ralph is not against us.
And I'm also not against you.
- I'm still your friend.
- We're not friends, Carsten.
We were friends.
DAY 2:
THE COMPENSATORY DAMAGE ASSESSMEN
[Ferrell] Mr Stewart,
your witness, please.
Mr Boyd. How much money
does Google make with Google Earth?
Since Google Earth is free,
Google doesn't
make any money with it directly.
Google Earth is a free product?
Yes.
[Warren] Has it always been for free?
[Boyd] Yes.
Does Google include currently any ads in
any of the accused Google Earth products?
[Boyd] No, it does not.
Why is that?
Well, it's simply a fact that people
don't go to Google Earth to buy a new TV.
You go there
to kind of browse around the world.
Nobody clicks on ads in Earth
because they're really not relevant.
These are basically the two reasons Google
never made any money with Google Earth,
no ads and it's free.
And what decision did Google take
with regards to the fact that it doesn't
make any money with Google Earth?
They decided to move into
a group called Geo For Good,
which is a philanthropic arm of Google.
There's a lot of good things
that the group does,
and Google Earth meets the needs
of having a positive impact on the world.
Now it's part of that organisation.
Thank you, Mr Boyd.
Pass the witness, Your Honour.
Mrs Hauswirth, cross-examination.
The plaintiffs will forego
cross-examination.
We're calling our own expert to the stand.
Ms Martinez, Google's argument
is that Google Earth is free,
and there are no ads on Google Earth.
Therefore, Google earns
almost no money with Google Earth.
Can you follow this argument?
No.
Why can't you follow this argument?
Because, in my opinion,
that is not how Google's business works.
And what did you look at
to understand Google's business?
I looked at Google's documents.
And to start my analysis,
I looked at their overall strategy,
which is called the network effect.
I think we have a slide.
Your Honour,
this Google document is confidential.
It will show up only on the small screen.
So the overall strategy
of Google's framework is,
you have users,
you have information about the users,
and you have advertising.
They want to get as many users
as they can onto their platforms
that stay as long as possible
on their network.
And how long does
an average user stay on Google Earth?
An average session length is
more than 20 minutes on a desktop.
- [audience murmuring]
- [Lea] Is that long?
[Martinez chuckles] Yes. In the world
of the Internet, it's an eternity.
So, more users spending more time,
providing more information,
which increases ad targeting
and relevance.
That's what they call the network effect.
And why is increasing targeting
and relevance important?
Well, because Google would be able to
obtain additional advertising revenues
and even higher rates
if businesses could target.
I'll give you an example.
You go to your computer
and you look up a restaurant.
Now, a restaurant here in Wilmington
would be willing to pay more for an ad
if they knew that you were here
right at that moment.
So they pay more
when they have more information.
Could you calculate how many
users of Google Earth there've been?
Yes.
There is an internal Google spreadsheet
that shows all worldwide activations.
So I summarised all users for every year,
and you'll see that
there's several billion per year,
for a total of
7,009,171,846 uses.
That is a seven billion number.
That's really hard to grasp.
- Would you write it down for us?
- Of course.
[Lea] So once you looked
at Google's strategy and uses,
how did you calculate the proper damages?
Let's say Spotify music service wants
to offer Beatles music to its clients.
So Spotify would go to The Beatles
and they would say,
"We'd like to play your songs."
And The Beatles would say,
"Hey, let's sign an agreement."
"Your customers can play our music,
but you'll have to pay us
each time they do this."
In the e-mail
that Mr Müller wrote to Google,
he offered a typical rate per use.
What was the per-use rate
expressed in that e-mail?
The e-mail referred
to a 10-cent-per-use rate.
[Lea] That's seven billion,
multiplied by ten cents, equals
more than $700 million.
Thank you, Mrs Martinez.
You're welcome.
No further questions, Your Honour.
[Ferrell] Then this court is in recess
until 10:00 a.m. tomorrow.
- Court is adjourned.
- [indistinct]
Seven billion users.
That's the population of the entire world.
One hundred million days.
Seven billion users worldwide,
times about 20 minutes
every user stays on Google Earth,
that's over two billion hours,
which is about 100 million days.
Unbelievable, right? Remember Kyoto?
We couldn't have imagined it, could we?
[Juri] No.
[rousing music playing]
[Ralph] So, in today's session,
we'll be working
on your presentation for the jury.
The most important thing
during questioning is, as we call it,
the body language.
The jury decides in 33 milliseconds
whether to believe you or not.
So how best to sit properly
in the witness stand?
- [clears throat]
- [Ralph] Self-confident.
I know what I'm talking about.
But relax. [chuckles]
Have no stress.
I feel good. I am completely myself.
Okay. And that's probably enough for me.
So this is the witness stand here.
Please enter the room and sit down.
- You wanna go first?
- Seriously?
Come on, come on, move.
Okay. [chuckles lightly]
This here is the witness stand.
And we are totally relaxed.
- [Juri chuckling]
- What is it, Juri?
[Juri] Nothing.
- Carsten.
- Mm-hm. I'm coming.
- [exhales]
- [Ralph] Very good.
- [Carsten and Juri laughing]
- [Ralph] Very good.
Come on, Juri. What's up?
- [Juri] Nothing.
- Then concentrate a little, please.
I found out they have different meanings.
Look here.
Blue apparently stands for
intelligence and reliability.
But it lacks emotion.
Or
[clears throat]
[chuckles] Self-confident but aggressive.
- Hey.
- Hey.
So, what brought you
to my apartment anyway?
Deutsch adventure novels.
Are these the right ones?
- Yeah.
- Frieda is helping me choose a tie.
This one, for example.
Optimistic, yeah, but suicidal.
- Suicidal?
- That's what Ralph said.
[Julia] This Ralph guy
sounds like an odd fish to me.
Ralph is the best, so say Lea and Eric,
but I can't see it yet, if I'm honest.
- I've got something you're going to like.
- Okay.
And how are you feeling?
Today was the financial expert's turn,
and they informed us
of Google Earth's worth.
And Google's financial expert,
in all seriousness, believes
they've not made a cent from it.
What was said by your financial expert?
- She was of a different opinion.
- How much different?
Ah, you want all of the details
all of a sudden?
Yes, I want to know all the details.
I mean, we aren't officially divorced yet.
- [chuckling]
- [Carsten] What?
- [chuckling]
- [Frieda] Papa.
- Cool, no?
- Hold it down.
What is that?
- That's what you should do to Google.
- Exactly, that's right.
[laughing]
[sighs]
- [Julia] Good luck, tomorrow.
- Oh, man.
DAY 3: QUESTIONING OF CARSTEN SCHLÜTER
- [Warren] Good morning, Mr Schlüter.
- [translator in earpiece]
Good morning.
Did you sleep well?
Eh, thank you.
Not much, but the little I got was great.
How do you feel about testifying today?
Fine, thank you. I'll do my best today.
[Warren] Mr Schlüter,
your lawyer opened this trial
by telling us
that your invention was about flying?
As far as I can remember so, yes.
But you didn't invent flying?
[chuckles] No, of course not.
Mr Schlüter, do you know
what a flight simulator is?
Yeah.
A flight simulator would allow people
to fly around in space
and move from one place to another?
[Carsten] Yes.
And flight simulators existed
long before Terravision?
Long before you filed your patent?
Yes, they have indeed.
You didn't invent
the flight simulator, did you?
[Carsten] No.
Now, Mr Schlüter, the patent claim
requires using a quadtree?
[Carsten] Yes.
- You didn't invent the quadtree, did you?
- No.
People were using quadtrees
long before you filed the patent?
Yes, naturally.
Now, Mr Schlüter,
the patent claim requires the idea
of converting one coordinate system
into another coordinate system.
- Is that correct?
- Yeah, that is correct.
You didn't invent
the idea of a coordinate system?
[Carsten] No.
People have been using coordinate systems
for hundreds of years, haven't they?
Naturally.
You didn't even invent the idea
of converting one coordinate system
into another coordinate system, did you?
No.
And, Mr Schlüter, the patent claim
requires using a computer?
[Carsten] Yes.
You did not invent
a special kind of computer, did you?
No. Of course not.
It was a computer that already existed.
A Silicon Graphics computer.
Yes, exactly. But you knew that before.
[Ralph]
Questioning is always about the rhythm.
They will ask you questions in a way
that you can only answer with "yes", "no",
or "maybe".
- Mm-hm.
- Yes, no, maybe.
And at some point they've got you
in a place where you feel like
you're driving down a one-way street,
and then you give up internally,
and that's when you make a mistake.
- You cross your arms.
- Sorry.
Or you run your finger
through your hair, huh?
Game over.
[Warren] Now, Mr Schlüter,
you understand that this case
is about claims of a patent, correct?
Yeah, that is correct.
[Warren]
That's a kind of intellectual property?
[Carsten] Yes.
- [Warren] It's not in the public domain?
- [Carsten] Exactly. Yes.
You cannot get a patent on something
that is in the public domain?
No, naturally not.
And your patent is in the general area
of visualising geographic information?
Mm-hm. Yeah.
You didn't invent the field
of visualising geographic information?
No, naturally not.
[Warren]
That's been around for a long time?
Yeah, a while.
[Warren] People have been
visualising geographic information
for thousands of years?
[exhales deeply]
[Carsten] Quite possibly, yeah.
Then would you agree that the field
of visualising geographic information
is in the public domain?
And, Mr Schlüter, would you agree
that quadtrees are in the public domain?
Just like coordinate systems
are in the public domain?
Just like converting one coordinate system
into another coordinate system
is in the public domain?
And, Mr Schlüter, you recall
that you agreed two minutes ago
that you cannot get a patent
on something that is in the public domain?
[Ralph] You need to break that rhythm.
Repeat the question even.
"Sorry, can I hear the question again?"
[Warren] Mr Schlüter,
do you recall
that you agreed two minutes ago
that you cannot get a patent
on something that is in the public domain?
Naturally, yeah. We also Could you?
Speak a little more clearly
into the microphone,
make it easier
for the translators to hear you.
- Is this any better?
- [microphone feedback]
Oh, I'm sorry, that was too near.
Yeah. Now you can hear me, right?
Is this good? Yeah?
Maybe because I couldn't hear anything.
Is this good? Yeah? Sorry.
- I touched the microphone. Is this good?
- [Warren] Are we okay?
Okay, Mr Schlüter.
Do you recall that you agreed
that you cannot get a patent
on something that is in the public domain?
Naturally, we made use
of things that had existed before.
All patents work in this way.
Had Google invented search algorithm?
- No, no, Mr
- No.
Did they invent
searching on the Internet then?
No, naturally not.
Someone has access to a technology
and for this technology,
a new use is found.
That's what happens.
And this new use discovered by us
that's what this is about.
And that is what the patent's regarding.
Mr Schlüter,
my question was slightly different, sir.
I'm sorry, could I hear
the question one more time?
[Warren sighs]
I'll withdraw the question.
Mr Schlüter, in computer graphics,
people use polygons
to represent images, correct?
I'm sorry, one second.
Polygons to represent images?
You are the experts,
not the other way around.
So don't make it easy for the lawyer then.
Get into details, try to split hairs even.
You use polygons to draw images?
[Carsten] Um, no, no.
You use polygons to draw geometric shapes.
Correct.
Not images.
[Warren] Yeah, that's correct.
You draw geometry and not images.
- That's right.
- [Warren] I'll withdraw the question.
[chuckles lightly]
Damn, he was good! Really. I thought,
"Any more of this, I'll be going under."
It was like being in quicksand,
like being sucked into a vortex.
And at the beginning,
he was acting so nice to me, wasn't he?
So that's it. That's what this
is all about, that's their strategy.
It was never about patent infringement.
No, but the patent itself is in question.
- [Eric] But you foiled their attempt.
- Yeah, but with Juri's help.
- With Ralph's, naturally.
- Mm-hm.
- And we'll get Juri up to speed as well.
- That was good.
We need to keep it up.
Gentlemen, Dr Callaghan is here.
He's waiting in the lobby.
Yeah, and?
Google Earth violates your patent
every single step of the way,
every single one.
There's nothing they aren't doing
exactly the same way as you.
Addressing protocols, everything.
Even the consecutive numbering
in the quadtree is identical,
exactly the same
as you did with Terravision.
- They even copied the numbering system?
- Yes!
That can't be a coincidence. There are
millions of possible ways of doing that.
All our suspicions are substantiated
by the source code Google Earth employs.
[breathes deeply]
The proof lies in the source code.
[Callaghan] Indeed.
- Dr Callaghan.
- [Carsten] Schlüter.
- Müller.
- [Callaghan] Good to finally meet you.
Can you please state
and spell your full name for the record?
DAY 4: DR CALLAGHAN
ART+COM'S TECHNICAL EXPER
My name is Richard Callaghan.
C-A-L-L-A-G-H-A-N.
- Good morning, Dr Callaghan.
- Good morning.
By the sound of your accent,
you're from Great Britain?
That's correct, yes.
[Lea] But you now live
and work in the United States?
That's right.
Dr Callaghan,
would you tell us what this is?
[Callaghan] Yes. This is a book
about digital image processing
that I wrote and published.
It's used as a textbook
for graduate and undergraduate courses.
Is it only used in Great Britain
for this purpose?
[Callaghan] No, it's been
translated into several languages.
And have you received any awards
or recognition for your work in that area?
[Callaghan] Yes. I am in
the Space Technology Hall of Fame.
Dr Callaghan, how long have you spent
analysing the plaintiffs' claim?
I spent approximately
250 hours on the study.
And have you formed any opinions as to
whether Google infringes this patent?
Yes, I have.
And what have you concluded?
My study showed that
Google Earth infringes the patent.
[Lea] And you prepared exhibits
in which you excerpted and highlighted
the Google Earth source code file
to prove your conclusion?
[Callaghan] Yes, I have.
[Lea] Your Honour, the excerpts
of the source code file are confidential.
So, what have you highlighted
from the source code file?
The first routine I'd like to highlight
is a routine called Navigator JS.
Now, this is the routine at a high level
that takes the data from the user,
about what he wants to look at,
and creates what is called
the camera statement.
This is basically the position
and the pointing angle
of that imaginary camera.
So this routine translates
user interaction into globe camera state?
[Callaghan] Yes, that's right.
Now, next, I've highlighted
a routine called Build Visible Tree.
This performs
the frustum intersection test.
- The beauty about frustum is
- Sorry. Sorry to interrupt.
Would you first explain
to the jury what frustum is?
Well, frustum can be thought of
as a sort of pyramid region of space,
with potentially caps on the top
and bottom of the pyramid.
You'd use it to select
what node data instances to render
and also to decide what metadata and data
to fetch and load into the GPU memory.
[Lea] Just to make sure
the jury fully understands,
is there any way of putting it
into more non-technical words?
Build Visible Tree means
going through the whole tree,
isolating particular branches
of that tree
So the visible tree is what the user gets
to see on his or her screen?
[Callaghan] Yes, exactly.
Now, next I've highlighted
a routine called Traverse.
I should probably add
that traversal is a process
of moving down the tree from node to node.
This routine is called the Traverse.
Just to make sure
the jury fully understands
- [Callaghan] This is the Request.
- Sorry to interrupt.
- A routine called Fetch.
- [Lea] Could you please rephrase?
- I should add
- called Request.
the jury fully understands
what the user gets to see on his
[Callaghan] and isolate
the branches that contain data
nodes from the
From the server.
[indistinct chatter]
Would you?
Would you explain to the jury
what you mean by queued up?
[Callaghan] I've highlighted a routine
[Carsten] Juri.
Nobody knows what that means.
[clears throat]
Fuck. He'll never be able to
handle the pressure from Stewart.
Shit.
Mr Stewart, cross-examination.
Dr Callaghan,
I just wanna be clear.
For this case, you've been hired
by Art+Com to provide testimony, correct?
[Callaghan] Yes, that's right.
[Warren]
You're doing that as a paid consultant?
Yes.
[Warren] And Art+Com is paying you
$400 an hour for your testimony?
That's right.
And I think you said
you'd spent about 250 hours so far?
Yes, on the infringement part of the case.
So, in total, a little over 310 hours.
So we're talking about,
using your hourly rate,
more than $100,000 so far?
[Callaghan]
Whatever the maths add up to, yes.
You would agree with me that
this patent issue is related to the area
of geographical information systems?
Definitely related.
Now Art+Com's counsel
questioned you about your book,
the one that distinguishes you
as an expert in this case.
Yes.
But your book isn't about
geographical information systems, right?
Your book doesn't even use the term
"geographical information systems"
anywhere in it, correct?
Probably not. Uh, I'm not sure.
It doesn't even use
the word "geographical," right?
[Callaghan] I'm not sure.
[Warren] Or "geography"?
It doesn't talk about
any of those things, does it?
Not as I remember.
[sighs]
[Warren]
No further questions, Your Honour.
Okay.
We'll see you later on.
Thank you.
- [rock music playing over speakers]
- [Lea] Fuck!
You can't just storm out
of the courtroom. You can't do that.
- [Juri] Sorry, I had to leave.
- [Lea] No, you didn't.
Do you think the jury didn't notice
you running out of that room?
What are they thinking now, huh?
What do you think they're thinking?
The man was incredibly hard to follow.
I was watching the jury.
Nobody understood it!
[Lea] But we had to do it that way.
We have the burden of proof though,
and Google doesn't.
That's how patent trials
always work, get it?
The jury expects us to prove
that Google is infringing your patent,
and the only way to do that is
a detailed analysis of the source code.
That's the only way.
And, yeah, Google is probably gonna use
a completely different strategy tomorrow.
They won't touch on the source code.
There's no way.
Their expert will address the jury
as if they're all schoolchildren.
DAY 5: DR CHEN
GOOGLE'S TECHNICAL EXPER
Dr Chen.
Yesterday, did you hear
Dr Callaghan's opinion
regarding how Google Earth works?
Yes, I did.
[Warren] Are there parts of Dr Callaghan's
opinion that you disagree with?
- Yes.
- [Warren] Why do you disagree?
Because Google Earth uses
a fundamentally different method
than Terravision.
Now, have you prepared a presentation
to show why the methods are different?
Yes.
Let's say I wanted to fly
to the courthouse here in Wilmington.
When I'm far away, the resolution is bad.
So I divide this image into smaller images
in order to get higher resolution.
And I repeat this step
until I reach my desired destination.
We call it the Metadata Tree.
That's the idea
behind Terravision and Google Earth.
But Terravision requests, stores,
and represents each
of the smaller sections.
And it does this step over and over again.
I call it a repeating process.
Google Earth does it differently.
Google searches the tree
using a traversal process. Why?
Because it is smart enough
to identify the ones it really wants
and skip the ones it doesn't want.
I call it a parallel,
out-of-order process.
It's simply a very different process,
and Google's process
is guaranteed to be more efficient.
This is analysis by Mickey Mouse.
They could not make that happen.
If they did, they'd constantly
have images that were blurry.
- [Chen] process of division
- They're listening to her.
Images would always be blurry while
the algorithm searches for nodes, sorts,
prioritizes, all of those things at once.
- I know Yeah.
- Never gonna do it!
- [Chen] The user doesn't have to wait
- Everything okay?
for the data as it would
under the Art+Com patent.
In conclusion,
there is no patent infringement.
Thank you, Dr Chen.
If I don't manage to crack Dr Chen,
we can just forget it.
There will be too much weight
on the other side of the scale.
And you need to take some responsibility.
I mean, the training at least.
Take it seriously.
Why do you think we hired Ralph?
So that something like this
wouldn't happen to us.
Shit!
Before we leave this shithole,
I intend to beat you.
[Lea] Dr Chen, have there ever been times
that you've made a repeat visit
to a restaurant you like?
[Chen] Oh, several.
And I take it that when you did,
you finished
your meal the first time around
before you paid the repeat visit, right?
Yes.
And that's because, generally,
in order to repeat something,
you first have to finish
the thing you're repeating, correct?
Yes.
Yet Google, at least according to you,
seems to have discovered the secret
of how to repeat doing something
that has not been finished, right?
I'm not sure I understand.
In your presentation,
in drawing a contrast between the way
how Google Earth and Terravision work,
you focused on the fact that Google Earth
supposedly just skips some steps.
Yes.
Have you ever tested Google Earth
to see how often this happens?
No.
Have you seen a Google document
telling us how often this happens?
No.
Did you talk to Mr Andersson
or any Google engineer
to see if this even happens once?
I don't recall.
The presentation you showed
about whether or not
Google infringes this patent,
it was prepared in a joint effort
with Mr Andersson, right?
It was not prepared with Mr Andersson.
It was prepared by me
in consultation with the attorneys.
The animation you showed to the jury
was prepared in consultation with
Google's lawyers?
Yes.
You must have spent 200 or
even more than 200 hours
in connection with this lawsuit?
To the end of last month,
I had spent 250 hours.
You've reviewed thousands of documents.
Yes.
You reviewed testimony
from dozens of witnesses.
Yes.
And instead of providing the jury
with the detailed source code analysis,
with the detailed analysis
of those documents,
or with testimony from these witnesses
who developed the products,
you chose instead to rely primarily
on a presentation you developed
with Google's lawyers.
[hesitates] Well
No further questions.
That was really good.
[Ferrell] Ladies and gentlemen, we are
in recess until 10:00 a.m. tomorrow.
[Ralph] As soon as the lawyer asks
a question that is bad for us,
your first reflex always is,
"I can't remember, I have to say."
Or even better, formal English:
"As I sit here today,
I'm sorry, but I cannot recall."
Come on. Let's try it together. Shall we?
[both] As I sit here today,
I'm sorry, but I can't recall.
As I sit here today,
I'm sorry, but I can't recall.
[Eric] Especially if there's a point
when your membership
with the Chaos Computer Club comes up.
That's our weak spot.
It is. It's your weak spot, Juri.
[Eric] I'm sorry it always has
to come back to this.
But we can't afford the questioning
to go the way it did in Berlin.
If they ask you
about the Chaos Computer Club,
you say you have no memory of it.
- Yeah, but it exists in my memory.
- Not in court.
The Chaos Computer Club
is a criminal organisation.
No, it isn't.
[Eric] Herr Müller [sighs]
I'm not trying to argue with you.
But the Chaos Computer Club
has hacked public institutions.
Even the Pentagon was hacked.
The jury will hate that.
And they won't care
whether you participated or not,
only that you were a member.
I can only repeat what I said before.
Each time you get asked
about the Chaos Computer Club
- [Ralph] "I can't recall."
- [Eric] "I can't recall."
This isn't a request, Herr Müller.
It's a necessity.
[Ralph] "I can't recall."
Anything else is a killer, Juri.
[exhales]
[door shuts]
I promise I won't run out
of the courtroom tomorrow.
But my past, I won't deny.
- At stake is $700 million.
- I know.
And that is the problem.
Against $700 million, you can't argue.
Yes, and do you know why?
Do you know what those $700 million say?
They say that we are right,
and that Google is not right.
And they say it loud,
because $700 million are loud.
They are louder than anything.
No, listen to me, okay? There is a lot
at stake here, not only for you and me.
For Lea, Eric, the entire team.
So, you had better just get over yourself.
- Get over myself?
- Yeah.
Yeah, you don't even have to lie.
Just say, "I don't remember." Yeah?
Yeah.
Yeah. I would that's why you've become
a professor, and I became a gardener.
And I'd also say the reason why you left
our company before it sank and I hung on,
and that was because you couldn't
get over yourself, was it?
[sighs]
You've forgotten about Christine?
And Alex? And Dos? All gone?
You know that's not the case
and I don't mean that.
Come on.
- [man] Are the gentlemen ready to order?
- No! The gentlemen are not ready!
[breathes deeply]
- We weren't criminals.
- [sighs]
We wanted to use computers
to change life for the better, remember?
We wanted to make art, things of beauty,
and not just money and power and
[breathes deeply]
Being a hacker meant something.
Being one of the Chaos Computer Club
members was an honour
that was actually worth something.
And now I have to disavow it?
We should be proud of what we were.
And if that's the reason
why we don't win, then, so be it.
- If that is also given up on
- Yeah, you're right.
- [sighs, huffs]
- No, you are right. Absolutely.
If that's why we lose this,
the deciding factor
then it shall be so.
[breathes deeply]
And quite honestly,
if they ask me about
the Chaos Computer Club tomorrow,
it won't help me by saying,
"I can't recall," anyway.
I can't handle our own lawyers,
how am I supposed to deal with theirs?
So I might as well be honest.
"We could have gotten millions for it,
yeah, but my partner Juri was
a member of the Chaos Computer Club."
- "That's the bitter fact."
- Oh, shut up.
"Maybe it was all the Pong he played there
or the Lego spaceship he built,
but that's what it was
that finally screwed us."
- [Juri chuckles]
- [Carsten sighs]
[both laugh]
Yeah.
You idiot.
[chuckling]
[pensive music playing]
[takes a deep breath]
[video call ringing]
[Christine] Juri?
- Hello, Christine.
- Hey!
- [chuckles] How are you?
- [chuckles softly]
LAST DAY OF THE TRIAL: QUESTIONING
OF JURI MÜLLER AND BRIAN ANDERSSON
The Chaos Computer Club
had membership application forms.
The Chaos Computer Club had membership
details like any German club you'd find.
- [Carsten] What?
- Yes. I didn't know until last night.
[chuckling]
The greatest threat to homeland security,
the "most subversive organisation
of state enemies" had membership details.
Application forms just like
a shooting club or a sheepdog club.
- Happily, Christine told me last night.
- Our Christine?
Yeah. But I never filled out such a form.
She and Alex sent it to me
at least five times.
But which of us ever opened post
back then? But what's important
I was never officially a member
of the Chaos Computer Club.
And I have the document to prove it.
- We gotta talk to the judge.
- Yeah.
As long as I don't need to say,
"I can't recall"
Yeah.
- And yeah, you're right.
- Hmm?
$700 million are very loud.
[exhales deeply]
- So Juri has to prove nothing
- It would be irresponsible to not allow
Thank you.
[conversation continues indistinctly]
[Eric] Gentlemen.
The judge delivered a ruling.
He won't allow any questions about
the Chaos Computer Club during the case.
[grunts happily]
I know we had a hard time, but, hey.
Membership application?
[chuckling]
[Eric] Gotta love Germany.
Thirty minutes.
[both sigh in relief]
[Warren] Mr Müller,
I'd like to talk to you about the offer
that you made to Google.
- Is that the offer?
- Yes, I'd say it was.
I'd like you to look
at the highlighted part.
According to what it says here,
you agreed that Art+Com would accept
3 to 5 million dollars for the patent.
Is that right?
Yeah.
But there were conditions to the offer.
We wanted to collaborate.
We wanted a package deal.
A package that would have
benefited everyone.
Mr Müller, I'd like you to try
and focus on my question, sir.
You wrote Google
and told them you'd sell them Terravision
for 3 to 5 million dollars.
Is that right?
That's what this paragraph
you highlighted says.
It wasn't only concerning the patent,
it was about collaborating.
Mr Müller, I'm talking
about what you wrote to Google, sir.
If your lawyers wanna ask
what was in your head,
well, we've heard a lot about that.
I'm trying to figure out
what you told Google.
There were lots of things it was about.
Anyone here can read what's on there
and make up their own mind about it.
You've highlighted the section
where finances were talked about,
but there's another section
you haven't brought up.
That section mentions collaboration
as a prerequisite for the deal.
And that collaboration never happened
because Google refused it.
Mr Müller, I'd like you to answer
only the questions that I ask.
Could you do that, please?
- I am answering your questions.
- I don't think you are.
That's what I'm doing.
Let's switch gears
a little bit here, Mr Müller,
and talk about the e-mail
that you sent to Mr Andersson
after his visit to Berlin.
Could we blow this up?
Make it easier for everybody to read?
[programme beeping]
Thank you.
I'd like you to look
at the highlighted part at the top.
"You've figured out
most of the same things on your own."
Did you write that to Mr Andersson?
Yes, I believe that was me.
[Warren] And by the same things
that Mr Andersson figured out on his own,
you meant similarities
between Terravision and Google Earth?
When Brian came to Berlin to visit,
he said the two programmes
would have similarities,
but theirs were different to Terravision.
- I had made the decision
- [door opens]
[footsteps approaching]
[soft murmuring]
I had made the decision to believe him.
[Warren] But what you
never wrote to Mr Andersson
is that you believed
Google was infringing your patent?
Mr Müller.
Did you ever write
that Google infringed your patent?
We thought,
if there was patent infringement,
they would address the situation.
Because if they knew there was patent
infringement and hadn't said anything,
it would be them in trouble.
That's what we thought. Besides, I didn't
want to dig any deeper into the subject
because collaboration and future projects
could have been jeopardized
if at that time we had spoken
about patent infringement.
It simply wasn't the way
we wanted to do things.
[whispering indistinctly]
Maybe we were a bit naive.
But we blindly believed
what Brian said to us back then.
[Warren] Your Honour, the defence calls
its next witness, Mr Brian Andersson.
- Mr Andersson.
- Hmm.
Do you remember this picture?
Oh. [chuckles] Yeah.
Uh, that's me before my beard was grey.
And my team at Google Earth,
an outstanding team.
And what was going on in that picture?
Well, that evening,
I wanted to change parts of the software,
but everyone said I can't, it's too late,
we have a deadline tomorrow.
So, I started buying whisky and pretzels
and things for my people
to actually do the work anyway.
And we programmed it in one night
in the dining room of my house.
Why were you
in the dining room of your house?
Well, because my garage
was filled with boxes,
so we couldn't really do
the garage start-up style.
[all chuckling]
Mr Andersson, let's discuss a point
that has been at issue
a lot in this trial,
when you went to Berlin and met
with Juri Müller and Carsten Schlüter,
the plaintiffs claim that you decided
to do projects together.
Well, it's hard to remember. Could've been
that we discussed something like that.
But decided? No, definitely not.
[Warren] And did you ever say:
"Art+Com is so cool that I think
we have to have shares in Art+Com"?
Uh, well, I don't know if I said that.
It's a very long time ago.
Um, but to be honest,
it doesn't really sound like me, so
And how are you familiar with Juri Müller?
[Brian] We met somewhere.
Um, don't really remember exactly where.
Sorry to say, I don't know if it was
at the showroom at Silicon Graphics
or somewhere else.
I'd speak to thousands of people a year,
I'd travel hundreds
and thousands of miles, so it's all
kind of the same after a while, really.
And, finally,
I have one personal question.
Why do you think
Google Earth is so popular?
What is the reason?
Because it's from Google.
I mean, Google announcing it caused
the whole world to notice Google Earth.
I mean, it was the Google name
that made it. Nothing else.
[Warren] Pass the witness.
[Ferrell] I think it's now time
for our morning break.
We'll recess for 15 minutes
and come back, let's say, at 11:30.
Thank you.
- You're all good? That was okay?
- Great job. See you in a minute.
Maybe we are so unimportant
that you don't remember
anything you told us. Maybe
Maybe we are so unimportant
that you can't remember
you wanted to work with us.
And I don't give a shit
if I'm so unimportant
that you don't even remember me, but
at least you could remember Juri,
because he gave you something
nobody else in the world
was able to do at the time.
And you know it.
Brian, let's go. What are you doing, man?
Mrs Hauswirth, your witness.
Mr Andersson,
this is an internal Google e-mail
you wrote about Terravision
after your visit in Berlin. Do you see it?
I do.
And that e-mail starts with the sentence,
"Art+Com is cool."
- Do you see that?
- I do.
And it also talks about "favoured option."
Do you see that?
Would you please read
the highlighted parts to us?
"Payment, plus big block of design,
plus consulting services
would be my favoured option."
Okay.
So, it was your intention
to work with Art+Com?
Obviously.
Nevertheless, you just told the jury
that you can hardly remember Juri Müller.
It was a long time ago,
but I remember liking him a lot.
Um, I mean, personally.
Eh, I'm a pretty good judge,
I think, of engineering talents,
and he's a talented, nice guy.
And, uh [chuckling] What he made is, uh
They used our computers.
And it's like you work in a music factory
and you make trumpets,
and someone comes and says
they wanna play the trumpet for you.
And you wanna hear it because I might
have hammered on that trumpet
and I wanna hear good music.
So, Terravision was good music to you?
To be honest, it was fantastic then,
and it's fantastic now.
Mr Andersson, did you tell Mr Müller
that Google Earth never would have
been possible without Terravision?
That Terravision was the inspiration
for you to build Google Earth?
Objection. Your Honour,
the question is irrelevant to the case.
- [Ferrell] Overruled.
- [sighs]
There's no relevance in inspiration.
It's overruled.
You can cover it in redirect.
Did you tell Mr Müller
that Google Earth never would have
been possible without Terravision?
Yes, I said that.
- [audience murmuring]
- In that club in Berlin. And I meant it.
Without Terravision, Google Earth
would have never been possible.
[Lea] No further questions.
[hopeful music playing]
[chuckles softly]
[exhales]
[stifled chuckling]
[Carsten] "Without Terravision,
Google Earth would
never have been possible."
This one sentence that tipped the scale
between victory and defeat.
This one sentence,
worth billions of dollars,
thanks to which Google offered us
three times the amount of the damages
if we signed a nondisclosure agreement,
so that the world would never know.
This sentence, that allowed us to say,
"Fuck you, Google,"
and encouraged hundreds of small companies
to claim their right
because we'd set a precedent.
This one sentence,
which allowed us to return to Berlin,
to round up our old companions
and work on a new kind of Internet,
on the version of the Internet
we'd dreamed of 25 years before
[all shouting, cheering]
[Carsten] This one decisive sentence
was sadly never uttered.
[audio rewinds]
Brian never stated in front of the court
that Google Earth would have never
been possible without Terravision.
That we were his inspiration.
That Google Earth would have
never existed without Terravision.
Instead of that, he said
Did you tell Mr Müller
that Google Earth never would have
been possible without Terravision?
Like I said before,
I speak to so many people.
I travel so much.
And it's always been my purpose,
in creating Google Earth,
is bring people together.
There are seven billion people,
and as far as I'm concerned,
the only thing that we really have
in common is that we live on this planet.
It doesn't matter
where you're from, what culture.
I mean, we're all brothers and sisters
in that we live on the Earth,
and it's our home.
And I thought that if we could see that,
people would understand
that the people in that country,
that we're about to bomb,
they have kids too,
and their kids play soccer
just like our kids play soccer.
So, maybe I could help the world
if we could embrace that
and see that for ourselves.
People that travel,
they have a broader worldview.
And I thought that with virtual travel,
people would just be kinder and nicer
and really, really embrace each other.
And that was the only motivation
I needed to created Google Earth.
Nothing else.
[Lea] They are ready.
Has the jury reached a verdict
in this case?
We have, Your Honour.
[Ferrell] Would you please
hand the verdict to the court deputy?
All rise.
[Ferrell] I will now read the verdict.
The first question is:
"Do you find that Art+Com has proven
that Google Earth infringes the patent?"
Answer:
No.
- [Carsten sighs]
- [Ferrell] Next question:
"Do you find that Google Earth
has proven clearly and convincingly
that the patent is invalid?"
Answer: Yes.
Third question:
"Do you find that Google Earth uses
a fundamentally different method
than Terravision?"
Answer: Yes.
- Congratulations.
- Congratulations.
Hey.
Hey!
Are you, uh, back on Earth?
Yeah.
No skipping. It means no reloading.
- [door opens]
- [guard] Stop!
[Juri] Now imagine if you could do that
with the entire world.
- But really close in.
- [both panting, laughing]
What have you called this idea?
Does it have a name?
- Terra
- [Carsten] Vision.
Our office.
- You're the boss. All right, Kyoto.
- [all chanting] Kyoto! Kyoto! Kyoto!
[clamouring, laughing]
A globe!
That's our interface.
[Lea] They did teach us
something in law school.
And when I say "teach,"
I mean it was always hammered.
"Emotional involvement
should never happen."
"You will win, you will lose."
"But you should not set your heart
on any single case. Never."
But fuck, man! I'd have really liked
to have won this one.
Yeah, and us.
You told me that you didn't drink.
[sighs] And I don't normally.
But today I am.
[Lea sighs]
Do you know what the real irony is?
The trial ultimately would have cost
each party around $20 million each.
That's four times what you asked
Google for in the first place.
My flight's leaving in two hours.
It's my last chance.
[boot zips]
I believe I made you a promise.
[rock music playing over speakers]
- [beeps]
- [shouts] Haha!
- Oh, right, you let me win, didn't you?
- No.
- Of course you did. You did it on purpose.
- No.
[Lea] No?
Of course, he let you win that one.
Huh?
I know what we'd have done
with the money if we had won.
If we had won, first, we'd have bought
this place and started the playlist over.
- [chuckles]
- [game beeps]
We don't need to own it to do that.
What are you doing?
Their speakers, they're from Sonos.
Their sound systems work with the Wi-Fi.
Access the network traffic here in the bar
and run a handshaking protocol.
Which track?
[techno music playing over speakers]
[Carsten laughing] I love this one!
[man] Hey! Barry!
- What is this shit, man?
- Turn it up!
I'm locked out!
- [man] Turn it down, Barry!
- I can't!
Yeah! Louder!
[Barry] I can't!
Yeah!
[Barry] Hey, weirdos!
Hey. Guys, is this your music?
[man 1] Turn that shit off.
No, no, it's computer music.
- [man 2] Get out of here!
- [man 3] Get the fuck out!
[man 4] Get out of here,
you stupid motherfuckers.
- Bye!
- [man 5] Get the fuck out of here!
[all laughing]
[Lea] I gotta go.
Eric is waiting to catch the next flight.
New file.
Ah, the future's here.
The algorithm for autonomous driving was
a direct development from Google Earth.
It all comes back to you, in the end.
And to think that
no one will ever know. Yeah.
No.
I will know.
- [Carsten] Thank you.
- [Juri] Thank you.
It was a pleasure.
[vehicle beeping]
I'm hungry.
Let's see if we can find a diner.
Yeah. Okay.
Don't you want to move back to Berlin?
- We've got garden centres too, you know.
- I've actually been thinking about that.
- Really?
- Yeah.
[Carsten]
In the history of the digital revolution,
there have been a handful
of ground-breaking inventions.
This invention I mean, seriously,
imagine for a minute you could fly
from outer space
all the way here to this kebab stand.
The other inventors
have a name and a story.
They became rich, famous,
and they ruled over a new world.
I have a new idea.
For a secure messaging service,
with an encrypted HTTPS access.
Somewhat based on
our original idea for Terravision.
Yeah? Would that be another revolution?
I just want to know what I'm getting into.
- I'm not going through all this again.
- [Juri laughing]
That could show every person the world.
From up there.
[Carsten] Terravision didn't make us rich,
nor did it make us famous.
And we definitely aren't leaders
of the new world.
But it changed the way
people see the world.
And that's our story.
[dramatic music playing]
["Alles Was Ich Mache" playing]
[slow electronic music plays]
Subtitle translation by
Michele Jochem Yunus