Oracle will place the Java EE project in the hands of the Eclipse Foundation community

We recently announced that Oracle is beginning to explore the possibility of translating Java EE technologies into OpenSource to make the development of these standards more flexible and open. Since mid-August, we have had many discussions with other vendors, community members, and OpenSource funds to move the process forward. Here is an update on the progress made.

First, we approached IBM and Red Hat, the other major contributors to the Java EE platform, to request support for this new direction. Oracle, IBM and Red Hat collaborate on an ongoing basis to improve the approach that we can collectively support. We have made good progress on this front and look forward to continuing to work together to make this transition successful for all parties. Thanks, IBM and Red Hat!

Secondly, we clarified our offer. In accordance with the usual reservations about plans that may be changed in the future, we intend to:

Intention was expressed to relicense Oracle-owned Java EE technologies and developments related to the GlassFish project, including reference implementations, compatibility assessment kits (TCK), and all documentation. An independent project is planned to be distributed under a new brand, i.e. instead of Java EE, a different name will be chosen, but the javax packages and components defined in the specification will retain their names. Additionally, it will demonstrate the ability to build compatible third-party Java EE implementations based on provided sources that comply with the requirements of Java EE 8 TCK.

Thirdly, we met with several funds to discuss our proposal. We appreciate the time they put into us and the feedback and suggestions they offered. After careful analysis, we chose the Eclipse Foundation to transfer all property rights. The Eclipse Foundation has extensive experience and participation in Java EE and related technologies. This will help us quickly switch to Java EE, create community-friendly processes for the development of the platform, and use additional projects such as MicroProfile. We look forward to this collaboration.

Note that in addition to the above, Oracle will continue to support existing Java EE licenses, including licenses moving in Java EE 8. Oracle also intends to continue to support existing versions of WebLogic Server and support Java EE 8 in future versions of WebLogic Server. We believe that this plan will allow us to continue to support existing Java EE standards, thereby ensuring evolution in a more open environment. We still have a lot of work to do, but we are sure that we are on the right track. We hope to receive additional updates soon!

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