A story in yesterday’s New York Times...described instances in which authorities had used piracy charges concerning Microsoft software to confiscate computers and harass non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and others engaged in public advocacy...[We] want to be clear that we unequivocally abhor any attempt to leverage intellectual property rights to stifle political advocacy or pursue improper personal gain...Our first step is clear-cut. We must accept responsibility and assume accountability for our anti-piracy work, including the good and the bad...We will retain an international law firm...to conduct an independent investigation...To prevent non-government organizations from falling victim to nefarious actions taken in the guise of anti-piracy enforcement, Microsoft will create a new unilateral software license for NGOs that will ensure they have free, legal copies of our products...[We're] creating in Russia a new NGO Legal Assistance Program focused specifically on helping NGOs document to the authorities that...they have legal software.