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 4
Leaf #:
000624
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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2474 Chester W. Sawix, Redirect Examination. price diminishes on the part of the exchange to the exhibitor, does it not? A. It does, yes, sir. Q. And do yon find that the fact that the motion picture has been exhibited for a long time makes it less desirable to the exhibitor and to audiences? A. Yes, it does. Q. And do you find that after a motion picture has been exhibited for a considerable time, that the majority of audiences have already seen it and consequently its desirability to an exhibitor has passed away? A. In a large city that would be so. In a small place they use mostly older pictures. Q. But at the same time, the audiences finally see the picture? A. Oh, yes. Q. And then its usefulness has passed away? A. Yes, sir. Q. And if there are a number of such pictures in circulation in a given neighborhood this usefulness passes away all the sooner because of that fact? A. Yes, sir. Q. How long have you been in the moving picture business? A. Since the latter part of 1907 or the early part of 1908. Q. And during that time have you been familiar with the conditions of the motion picture business? A. I think I have. Q. And has the same practice of fixing the price to the exhibitor upon the age of the motion picture been in existence? A. We tried to make it that way in the days gone by, but the competition was such it made it pretty hard. Q. Do you know whether or not the independents fix the prices on the same basis? A. I presume so, but I don't know positively how they figure their service.