Microsoft Gulf and UAE Ministry of Economy collaborate on major UAE anti-software piracy raids in Dubai and Abu Dhabi

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Microsoft and the UAE Ministry of Economy (MoE) coordinated with concerned authorities to act on reports of the sales of pirated materials in computer shops.

The resulting raids led to the arrest of four Abu Dhabi salesmen and one Dubai reseller, who were all charged with violation of Federal Law No. 7 for 2002 concerning Copyrights and Neighboring Rights.

'The Ministry of Economy is leading the way in addressing IPR violations, particularly software piracy. Given the rapid rise of the UAE's IT sector and its huge influence on economic progress, extra effort must be exerted to prevent criminal activities from compromising this growth industry's sustained development. We commit to further strengthening our collaboration with the BSA and its members in combating this social and economic threat,'

said Mohammed Bin Abdulaziz Alshihhi, MoE Undersecretary.

'These were very successful raids which affirmed the presence of various threats to the UAE's growing software markets. We thank the UAE Ministry of Economy for supporting the BSA and its members in their efforts; this latest initiative reflects the UAE Government's strong stance against intellectual property rights violations, particularly against the software trade which is an integral part of the fast-growing Middle Eastern IT sector,'

said Jawad Al Redha, BSA Co-Chairman in the Middle East.

Microsoft revealed that 46 of the confiscated CDs contained Microsoft operating systems ranging from Windows 95 to the latest Windows Vista, while 22 were loaded with several versions of pirated Microsoft Office programs.

The raided materials reflect how, as the Middle East continues to rapidly boost its PC sales and penetration rates, it is also becoming a huge opportunity for profiteers and counterfeiters.

'In collaboration with concerned governmental institutions such as the Ministry, we hope to prevent software piracy from ruining the significant gains of the UAE in this field,' added Al Redha.

The recent BSA member-initiated effort is part of a broader ongoing campaign to remove unlicensed software programs in the UAE.

The BSA and the UAE Government are confident that the frequent raids and ensuing action against offenders will effectively deter other domestic software resellers from engaging in similar illegal activities.