US software giant Microsoft has suffered a blow to its efforts to fight software piracy on the mainland after a court in Beijing threw out a case in which a mainland company was accused of using pirated software.
The Beijing Number One Intermediate Court ruled against Microsoft, saying it sued the wrong company, Yadu Technology Group, Xinhua news agency reported yesterday.
The court asked the US firm to pay handling costs of 500 yuan (about HK$466.95).
Microsoft said it was very disappointed by the verdict.
The case was widely followed by industry executives and consumers on the mainland as this was the first time Microsoft sued a mainland end-user for alleged software piracy.
Rampant software piracy is one of the main complaints foreign investors have about the mainland's investment climate.
