May 14, 2007 at 01:21Ponosov: guilty
Ponosov’s Case Summary
According to the Reuters news agency, the headmaster of the Russian school said he was fined by the court in the amount of half his monthly salary for using pirated copies of Microsoft software at his school, and this is on charges that President V. Putin called “ completely absurd. ”
Prosecutors said that Alexander Ponosov violated Microsoft’s property rights by allowing students to use 12 computers with unlicensed copies of Microsoft Windows and office software. Ponosov, director of a provincial school in the Perm Region, replied that he did not know about the presence of fake licenses on computers when they were supplied by a subcontractor.
Russia is forced to step up the fight against widespread cheap pirated software, films and music, as it prepares to join the World Trade Organization (WTO). In Moscow markets, illegal copies of the Microsoft Windows XP operating system can be purchased for $ 6.
Russian state television made Alexander Ponosov a hero in the battle a la "David and Goliath" against officially used systems and international corporations. “Today, the court passed a guilty verdict. They ordered me to pay a fine of 5,000 rubles (about 194 US dollars), ”Ponosov told a telephone conversation with a Reuters representative. “I do not consider myself guilty and intend to file a complaint,” he said, adding that he did not pay the fine. According to him, he receives 10 thousand rubles a month.
Putin described the case as “completely absurd,” and former President Mikhail Gorbachev even asked Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates to stand up for the teacher.
In February, a local court dismissed the allegation, considering Microsoft’s losses to be negligible, but Ponosov complained that his innocence was not recognized. Prosecutors also filed a complaint, and the case was returned to court.
As reported by RIA Novosti, the court said that Ponosov cost Microsoft $ 10,342. Microsoft said that the trial was initiated by Russian authorities.
“We are not interested in punishing schools or teachers, we are more interested in helping students develop the technical skills that they may need in the 21st century,” the company said. - “The case with Mr. Ponosov was initiated by Russian representatives of the authorities in accordance with Russian law. Microsoft has not initiated and does not have any plans for action against Mr. Ponosov. "
Ponosov said that he was made a kind of example for everyone. “Someone defends corporate interests, others are interested in not considering me guilty, because they think that if they consider me innocent, others will have every right to continue looking for gaps in the protection of intellectual property rights,” Ponosov said.
via winline.ru
According to the Reuters news agency, the headmaster of the Russian school said he was fined by the court in the amount of half his monthly salary for using pirated copies of Microsoft software at his school, and this is on charges that President V. Putin called “ completely absurd. ”
Prosecutors said that Alexander Ponosov violated Microsoft’s property rights by allowing students to use 12 computers with unlicensed copies of Microsoft Windows and office software. Ponosov, director of a provincial school in the Perm Region, replied that he did not know about the presence of fake licenses on computers when they were supplied by a subcontractor.
Russia is forced to step up the fight against widespread cheap pirated software, films and music, as it prepares to join the World Trade Organization (WTO). In Moscow markets, illegal copies of the Microsoft Windows XP operating system can be purchased for $ 6.
Russian state television made Alexander Ponosov a hero in the battle a la "David and Goliath" against officially used systems and international corporations. “Today, the court passed a guilty verdict. They ordered me to pay a fine of 5,000 rubles (about 194 US dollars), ”Ponosov told a telephone conversation with a Reuters representative. “I do not consider myself guilty and intend to file a complaint,” he said, adding that he did not pay the fine. According to him, he receives 10 thousand rubles a month.
Putin described the case as “completely absurd,” and former President Mikhail Gorbachev even asked Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates to stand up for the teacher.
In February, a local court dismissed the allegation, considering Microsoft’s losses to be negligible, but Ponosov complained that his innocence was not recognized. Prosecutors also filed a complaint, and the case was returned to court.
As reported by RIA Novosti, the court said that Ponosov cost Microsoft $ 10,342. Microsoft said that the trial was initiated by Russian authorities.
“We are not interested in punishing schools or teachers, we are more interested in helping students develop the technical skills that they may need in the 21st century,” the company said. - “The case with Mr. Ponosov was initiated by Russian representatives of the authorities in accordance with Russian law. Microsoft has not initiated and does not have any plans for action against Mr. Ponosov. "
Ponosov said that he was made a kind of example for everyone. “Someone defends corporate interests, others are interested in not considering me guilty, because they think that if they consider me innocent, others will have every right to continue looking for gaps in the protection of intellectual property rights,” Ponosov said.
via winline.ru