In the District Court of the United States, for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, the United States of America, petitioner, vs. Motion Picture Patents Company, et al., defendants (1914)

Record Details:

Title:
In the District Court of the United States, for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, the United States of America, petitioner, vs. Motion Picture Patents Company, et al., defendants
Date:
1914
Publisher:
New York, Appeal Printing Co.
Volume:
In the District Court of the United States, for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, the United States of America, petitioner, vs. Motion Picture Patents Company, et al., defendants : record volume 5
Leaf #:
00028
Language:
English
Collection:
Early Cinema and Government & Law
Format:
Periodicals
Contributor:
The Museum of Modern Art Library, New York
Sponsor:
Media History Digital Library
Coordinator:
Media History Digital Library
Description:
These seven volumes contain the testimonies and supporting documents from the U.S. District Court's antitrust lawsuit against the Motion Picture Patents Company (MPPC). Formed in 1908, the MPPC (sometimes referred to asœ"the Edison Trust" or just "the Trust") sought to control the American film industry through pooling patents and demanding that producers and exhibitors acquire licenses to those patents. Independent producers and exhibitors, who refused to license the patents, argued that the MPPC was an unlawful monopoly. In 1912 and 1913, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania heard testimonies from both MPPC members, such as Siegmund Lubin, and "Independents" who later became Hollywood moguls, such as William Fox. Ultimately, in 1915, the case reached the U.S. Supreme Court, which found the MPPC in violation of the Sherman Antitrust Act and spelled the end for the already weakening MPPC. -- Eric Hoyt, 2012
Date Added:
September 21, 2023
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2478 Petitioner's Exhibit Xo. 252. PITTSBURG, PA., has been chosen on account of its central location. A cordial invitation is extended to the leading Film Rental Bureaus to be present on this occasion in order to discuss matters of vital importance for the regulation and improvement of existing business conditions. Kindly notify srnj of the following by mail, telephone or telegraph of your acceptance. A committee will meet you or your representative on Saturday morning at the Ft. Pitt Hotel, Pittsburg. American Biograph Co. Edison Mfg. Co. Essanay Film Co. Kleine Optical Co. Kalem Co. S. Lubin. Geo. Melies Pathe Freres Society Italian "Cines" Selig-Polyscope Co. Vitagraph Co. of America Williams, Browne & Earle Committee: Very truly yours, J. STUART BLACKTON, Of Vitagraph Co. of America J. W. ULLMAN, Of Society Italian "Cines" By Mr. Grosvenor: (}. Was not the convention or meeting held at Pittsburgh, the place named on the advertisement, and on the dates named in the advertisement? A. Yes, sir. Q. I show you an article headed or entitled "The Pittsburg Conference," printed in the Moving Picture World of November 23d, 1907, Volume I, page 608, and ask you to read Unit article, and see if it refreshes your recollection as to what was done at that meeting? A. Yes, sir, I remember that very distinctly.