Microsoft appears to have sued the wrong company for software piracy, the Beijing Number One Intermediate Court ruled on Friday. The court remained unconvinced that the foreign mega-corporation had identified the correct defendant. Not that being a foreign corporation could possibly have influenced the decision.

Microsoft made the mistake of suing the Beijing's Yadu Group, accusing it of making widespread use of bootlegged Microsoft products, when in fact it should have set the crosshairs on Yadu Group subsidiary, Yadu Company, the court decided.

Microsoft said it was "very disappointed" by the news. And well it should be. With so many potential copyright infringement defendants in China, it's hard to imagine that pointing a finger in the Beijing business yellow pages while blindfolded wouldn't result in the naming of a culpable defendant. How they could have missed the mark is quite beyond our comprehension. ®

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