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 #:
000301
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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Floyd Bkowx, Direct Examination. 2751 Q. And for whom did you go to work when you went to Indianapolis? A. For the H. Lieber Company. Q. What was their business? A. Film business. Q. Did they run a rental exchange? A. Yes, sir. Q. What was the name of it? A. The H. Lieber Company. Q. After beginning work with the H. Lieber Company how long did you stay with that exchange? A. Until August 21st, 1911, when the General Film Company purchased the office. Q. And did you then go to work for the General Film Company? A. Yes. Q. In what capacity did you go to work for the General Film Company? A. Why, I was what you might term an assistant to the assistant manager. Q. And on January first, 1912, you became the assistant manager? A. Yes, sir. Q. The position that you have since retained? A. Yes, sir. Q. Are you familiar with the details of the business of the Indianapolis branch of the General Film Company? A. Yes, sir. Q. Were you familiar with the details of the business of H. Lieber & Company before the General Film Company opened a branch office in Indianapolis? A. Yes, sir. Q. In what States, or portions of States does the Indianapolis branch of the General Film Company supply motion pictures to exhibitors? A. Why, in the greater part of Indiana, and in a very small portion of Illinois and Kentucky. Q. Does that comprise all the territory in which you furnish service to exhibitors? A. Yes, sir. Q. Are you familiar with the competition which the Indianapolis branch of the General Film Company encounters on the part of the unlicensed exchanges in the various cities in the territory you have described? A. Yes, sir. Q. Have you prepared a list or a statement showing the towns that are served by the Indianapolis branch of the General Film Company, the number of motion picture theatres in each, and the character of the service, as to whether it is the licensed or the unlicensed, or features? A. Yes, sir. Q. How did you make up this list? A. Why it was made up from our card index and of course the changes have been