High Court fines firm Rs. two lakh for pirating Microsoft's Windows 7

The Delhi High Court has stopped a Mumbai-based firm from selling computers loaded with Microsoft software programmes like Windows 7 etc and has imposed a fine of Rs 2 lakh on it for breaching the intellectual property rights of the software giant.

Accepting Microsoft Corporation's plea, Justice Manmohan Singh granted permanent injunction to M/s Gizgahertz and its proprietor Nimesh from using Microsoft hard-disk in its computers and selling them to the customers.

"The defendant (company) is restrained from copying/reproducing, hard-disk loading on computers, selling/ offering for sale/ distributing/ issuing to the public pirated/counterfeit/unlicensed versions of Windows Vista, Microsoft Office 2007 or any other software of the plaintiffs in any manner, so as to infringe the plaintiff's copyright," Justice Singh said.

The court's order came on an injunction suit filed by Microsoft seeking a restraint order to the Mumbai firm from selling computers loaded with unlicensed versions of softwares such as Windows 7, Windows Vista and MS Office.

In its plea, Microsoft claimed infringement of its copyrights and other intellectual property rights by the company for selling branded computers with the Microsoft software without taking authorisation from it.

In its civil suit, Microsoft had contended that in July 2010, it had come to know that the Mumbai firm was infringing its copyrights and other intellectual property rights by loading its hard disk with software programmes on to branded computers and they were sold to the customers without taking any authorisation from it to do so.