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 #:
000275
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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Thomas A. Brown, Cross Examination. 2«2r> Cross examination by Mr. GroSVENOR: Q. Mr. Brown, the pictures that yon display in yonr theatre are shipped to Iowa City from Omaha? A. Yes, sir; a part of them. And part of them are sent from Atlantic, Iowa, from another exhibitor to me. Q. And then yon send back to Omaha part of the pictures? A. Always. I nearly always return all my film in one shipment. Q. IIow many licensed theatres are there in Iowa City? A. Two. Q. Are yours the only ones? A. Yes, sir. They are only producing, as I understand, 48 reels, and I am using 42. It would be impossible for another theatre to use licensed service, without repeating, and using the same class and the same pictures I am now showing. Q. How large is Iowa City? A. Ten thousand. Q. There is no competition between the licensed manufacturers as to the price of the pictures? Mr. Kingsley: I object to that as calling for a conclusion of the witness, and something manifestly beyond his knowledge. A. No competition in regard to price? By Mr. Grosyexor : Q. In other words, you pay for the pictures according to the age, don't you? A. Why, in regards to regular service, we do; but in regards to anything special, we pay sometimes an additional rental; for instance, we paid an additional rental, for the Omaha Cyclone. We would pay a special price for a picture like "The Wreck," produced by the Vita graph Company. Q. That was an exclusive feature, wasn't it? A. Not exclusive, no, sir. Any exhibitor using licensed service could have it by booking it, and paying extra money for it. Q. Isn't it the general rule that the prices for all the films of the licensed manufacturers are the same? Mr. Kingsley: I object to that as calling for a conclusion, beyond the competency and the knowledge of the witness.