Scores of Irish internet cafe owners could face prosecution and hefty fines as part of a crack- down on software piracy undertaken by an industry lobby group.

The Business Software Alliance (BSA) - which represents some of the world's biggest software firms - said yesterday it had obtained a €90,000 judgment against one internet cafe and was suing another cafe for €60,000.

The BSA said it believes the illegal use of software is particularly prevalent among internet cafes since it had received two further reports of piracy in cafes in Cork and Kildare.

Mr Julian McMenamin, chairman of the BSA, said the lobby group would shortly launch a campaign within the sector highlighting the issue of the illegal software use. "Prosecution is our last resort but yes, as with any other area of business, if they use illegal software we will seek enforcement," he said.

The BSA obtained the €90,000 judgment against a Cork-based internet cafe called Internet Exchange, owned by Colefield Developments Ltd, after performing civil searches. Unlicensed Microsoft and Symantec software was discovered, it says.

The cafe's co-founder, Mr John Martin, told The Irish Times yesterday that he could not control the type of software that cafe users downloaded from the internet. "Unless you stop all downloads by customers, you cannot stop illegal copying," he said. "This campaign could close a lot of internet cafes."

Under the Copyright and Related Rights Act 2000, the owners of computer equipment that facilitate a copyright infringement may be prosecuted, according to Mr Philip Nolan, a solicitor for Dublin-based Mason, Hayes and Curran.

He said cafe owners should design acceptable usage policies that strictly prohibit illegal downloading of software and copyright infringements. This policy could be installed on PCs prior to a customer logging on. Mr Nolan also advised cafe owners to check the fine print of their licences to ensure they have enough licences to match the installed software.