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 #:
000189
Language:
English
Collection:
Government & Law and Early Cinema
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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Oka L. Braley, Direct Examination. 2639 Q. Have you had any difficulty in keeping your programs clear since you have been taking service from the General Film Company, or has the situation been such that there was no trouble on that score, because your immediate competitors were running unlicensed service? A. Since I have been taking service from the General Film Company, I have had no trouble in keeping my programs clear. Q. How is that accomplished? A. From the fact that the booking of the licensed theatres is under one head. Q. From the fact that the licensed theatres which compete with you receive their service from the same source, and the booking clerk arranges it for you? A. Yes, sir. Q. Do you select your own programs, or do you permit the exchange to fix it for you? A. They fix the programs. We make requests in advance, lots of times. Q. Do you ever make requests in advance for service, special service? A. Yes, sir. Q. Of the reels which you desire to have in your programs? A. Yes, sir. Q. And do you get them? A. Yes, sir; almost invariably. Q. What was your experience before the General Film Company entered this field, with respect to keeping your programs clear, and getting the sort of show that you wanted? A. It was impossible. Q. What was your experience? Could you give us some details of it? A. At the time when the Kent Film Exchange and the National Vaudette were both furnishing me with service, the Kent Film Exchange was also furnishing the Empress Theatre with service. The Empress Theatre was almost directly across the street from me, from my Royal Theatre, and the Royal Theatre and the Empress Theatre were running the same programs every day, to the detriment of both, but both wanted the service, and we both hung on. Q. And there was constant conflict? A. Yes, sir; yes, sir. Q. And did this extend over some period? A. It was a matter of about three or four months, I think. Q. Are you related to anyone who is operating a theatre in Toledo? A. Yes, sir. Q. Who is it? A. My father operates the Crown Theatre. Q. And the Crown Theatre, I think you said, was an unlicensed theatre? A. Yes, sir; unlicensed. Q. And exhibits an unlicensed program? A. Yes, sir.