Washington, D.C. – June 27, 2005 – The Software & Information Industry Association (SIIA), the principal trade association of the software industry, today congratulated the U.S. Department of Justice, United States Attorney General Kenneth Wainstein and the many other law enforcement officials who helped secure a guilty plea from Dashiell Ponce de Leon.

Ponce de Leon pled guilty today to Criminal Copyright Infringement, relating to his sales of over $1 million worth of pirated software over the internet. He faces a likely sentence of 46 to 57 months in prison, and under the terms of the plea, must forfeit all computer equipment related to the infringement.

“We’re thrilled with this result,” said Keith Kupferschmid, SIIA’s VP, Intellectual Property Policy & Enforcement. “As this case demonstrates, the Justice Department understands that intellectual property theft results in billions of dollars of losses, weakening the U.S. economy and costing thousands of jobs. We support their vigilant stance on the issue and will continue to assist in their investigations.”

Kupferschmid added, “In the long-run, software piracy stifles innovation which leads to fewer choices for the consumer, higher software costs and slower technological advances.”