Copyright case heard

Shanghai No 1 Intermediate People's Court recently began hearing criminal charges against a gang accused of global trading in pirated software - at over $10 million, the biggest case of copyright violation in Shanghai's history, the Shanghai Daily reported.

The two prime defendants were identified as Ma Jingyi, 50, of Sichuan province, and Lu Yi, 50, a Shanghai native who also holds Hong Kong residency.

Prosecutors allege that from July 2003 to February 2007, Ma instructed his employees to sell 677,000 pieces of pirated software and 15 mother discs to overseas clients. The sales netted $10.48 million, according to authorities.

All the defendants admitted to the charge of copyright infringement, but some questioned the sales volume and the amount of proceeds.

Prosecutors said Ma once belonged to a gang selling pirated software in the United States. But he returned to China on holiday just as American police began pursuing him. Ma formed three firms in Shanghai in July 2003 and hired Yu Yifan, Li Xi, Wang Xiaodong and Xia Lei to sell pirated software to overseas clients via the Internet, prosecutors said.

Each piece of pirated software was sold for $15, less than 40 percent of the price of a real copy. The employees, who all knew they were selling pirates, were paid based on the sales volume, Ma said.

Yu, department manager for Ma's company, was in charge of managing employees, keeping sales records and distributing commissions.

Lu and three other defendants allegedly produced pirated discs and wholesaled them to Ma.

Copyright violators in China face a maximum of seven years' jail.

(Source: China Daily)

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