Microsoft loses Russian piracy case
‘A Russian court has thrown out a case against a village headmaster from the Ural mountains region who allegedly used pirated Windows software. [..]
But Mr Ponosov said he did not know that the software was pirated and his campaign attracted high-profile support, including from Russian officials and former Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev. [..]
The case was closed “due to the minimal damage inflicted” on Microsoft, Elvira Mosheva, a judge at the court in the Perm region of the Urals.
Asked about the case at a press conference earlier this month, Russian President Vladimir Putin said: “Catching someone just because he bought a computer and threatening him with prison – that’s crap.”‘