After 15 months in proceedings, the US District Court ruled in afvor of Blizzard in its lawsuit against the developer of popular World of Warcraft bot program, MMOGlider.
US District Court Judge David Campbell ruled that MMOGlider broke the terms of World of Warcraft EULA (End User License Agreement) that players must agree to in order to play the game.
MMoGlider software was created by of MDY founder Michael Donnelly. The bot program automates most of WoW's repetitive tasks, such as killing monsters and scavenging loot. It is estimated that MMOGlider sold 100,000 copies for $25 each.
Blizzard has been awarded $6 million in damages, but they might appeal the ruling and ask for doubling or tripling that amount. The case is due to go to court again in January 2009 to decide whether MDY broke the US Digital Millennium Copyright Act and whether Mr Donnelly will have to pay the damages from his own pocket.
