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 (1913)

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:
1913
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 1
Leaf #:
000339
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:
May 23, 2024
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William II. Swanson, Direct Examination. 317 bringing about that state of affairs, and Mr. Dyer then stated to go ahead and see Kleine and see if any possibility of peace could be brought about. I did that. Q. What did Kleine say? A. I went over to Mr. Kleine's office a few minutes after that conversation with Mr. Dyer and told him that I had been sent there by Mr. Dyer, and there was so much personal feeling in the matter, I presumed it would be obnoxious to both of them to have a discussion of the matter, and I said I would be glad to take it up between them, and he said that he would be glad to drop all trouble and work in harmony with the Edison licensees if it was possible to do so. I asked him what the terms of these possibilities were, and he said that they would be willing to come in and agree to the price arranged for selling and renting and all other matters in connection with the business, but that they had refused to pay any royalty of one-half a cent to the Edison Company, and on the other hand without doubt, that his associates in the Biograph Company would require a division of that royalty before they would consider any peace negotiations. I took that information back to Mr. Dyer, and he said, of course, that terminated the matter. That the Edison Company would not agree to any division of royalties, "as the old man," as he put it, "needed the money." Q. After this talk with Dyer and prior to the January, 1909, meeting in New York, did you see Selig at any time, and did he say anything about this? A. I saw Mr. Selig every day or two. He and I were very friendly. We took our dinners together very frequently. Q. You were one of the large purchasers of film from the different manufacturers at that time, weren't you? A. Yes, sir. Q. You owned the largest exchanges in the country? A. Had been, yes, sir. Q. State what, if anything, Selig stated indicating the formation of a combination or consolidation of interests? A. It would be quite a hard matter to give detailed conversations with Mr. Selig relative to that, with any continuity, for the reason that I visited Mr. Selig's office on an average of three or four times a week, and each time we entered into discussions, relative to the business itself. But, touching on the matter of the Patents Company, Mr. Selig never mentioned the name of the Patents Company, but he told me several months in advance of any knowledge on my part of its exist