Microsoft wins Indonesian piracy case

An Indonesian court ordered a Jakarta, Indonesia-based computer dealer to pay Microsoft $4.4 million in compensation for copyright infringement and to make a public apology. According to a Microsoft statement, Pro-com was found guilty by the West Jakarta Court of loading unauthorized copies of Microsoft's Windows and Office software onto computers and selling the PCs without the appropriate documentation, license agreements, original disks or manuals. Microsoft started civil action against Pro-com in February this year after it confirmed that unauthorized software was being sold by the dealer. "This is a major victory against piracy in Indonesia," Microsoft corporate attorney Huey Tan said in the statement. According to anti-piracy watchdog the Business Software Alliance, the piracy rate in Indonesia is one of the highest in the world at 89 percent, compared with the global average of 37 percent. CNET Singapore's Nawaz Marican reported from Singapore.