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)

Page scan 000362 from 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 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 4
Leaf #:
000362
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 12, 2024
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2212 Albert J. Gilligham, Direct Examination By Mr. Caldwell: Q. Now, what competition has the General Film Company in your territory? First of all, will you tell me what territory is served by your branch of the General Film Company? A. We furnish from Monroe, Michigan, to Sault Sainte Marie, and we handle Toledo, Ohio, and a few other small towns that are close by there. The reason why we do not go beyond Sault Sainte Marie, Michigan, is that it is a loss of time if we would have to serve over into that territory. All that territory above Sault Sainte Marie tliat uses licensed service, is furnished by our Chicago branches, because of superior train facilities for reaching it. Q. In other words, you furnish all Michigan, except the upper peninsula? A. Yes, sir. Q. That is served from Chicago? A. Yes, sir. Q. And to what extent do you go down into Ohio? A. We furnish twenty accounts in the City of Toledo, and we have got ten to twelve other accounts in that section. Q. Who are your competitors in that territory? A. My competitors in that territory are the Mutual Film Company of Detroit, the Mutual Film Corporation, I believe, is the proper title — the Universal Film Company, of Detroit, the Mutual Film Company of Grand Rapids, the Universal Film Company of Grand Rapids, the Mutual Film Company in Toledo, Ohio, Universal Film Company, in Toledo, Ohio, the Famous Players Feature Film Company, the Wolverine Feature Film Company, the World's — there is the Mandelbaum Company, has got an office in Detroit, and I am trying to think of their title — the World's Feature Film Company, located in the Equitable Building, and also three or four other state right offices, which are located in Detroit and Toledo. Q. Do you know how many motion picture theatres there are in Michigan? A. In the territory that is furnished by my exchange, there are 550 theatres. Q. Of that number, how many are there supplied by the General Film Company? A. The General Film Company furnish 210 accounts. Q. Do you know how many the Mutual furnish? A. Yes, sir. Q. How many? A. The Mutual Film Company furnish 140.