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)

Page scan 000415 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:
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 #:
000415
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 12, 2024
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Charles O. Baumann, Direct Examination. 2865 Most of all the European makers. I don't recall the names * of the brands. Q. Can you name some of them? A. Ambrosio, Itala, Hepworth, Cines, Pasquala, and a number of others. I don't recall the brands. Q. How many releases did you obtain from the independent producers of motion pictures in this country during February, March and April, 1909? A. One or two. Q. How many releases of foreign film did you obtain during February, March and April, 1909? A. Six or seven. Q. Did the business of the Empire Film Exchange after January, 1909, increase or diminish during the year 1909? A. Increased. Q. How long did the Empire Film Company remain in business? A. Until 1912. It is still in business. Q. How long did the Empire Film Exchange remain in business under your control or the control of yourself or your associates? A. 1912. Q. Who was associated with you in the ownership of the Empire Film Company in 1909? A. Kessel Brothers. Q. Were you an officer of the Empire Film Company in 1909? A. Yes. 3 Q. What was your position? A. Vice-President. Q. Who was the President? A. A. Kessel, Jr. Q. To whom was the Empire Film Company sold in 1912? A. The Mutual Film Corporation. Q. During the period intervening from February 1st, 1909, to the time when you sold the Empire Film Exchange in 1912, had you been conducting a profitable or an unprofitable business? A. Profitable. Q. During that period had you increased the number of releases which you were able to supply to your customers? A. Yes. 4 Q. During that period, did you deal exclusively in unlicensed motion pictures and imported motion pictures also unlicensed? A. Yes. Q. During that period, to what number did the releases of foreign and domestic unlicensed motion pictures increase? A. Up to thirty reels a week. Q. At the time you sold the Empire Film Exchange to the Mutual Film Corporation, what was the number of releases per week that you were able to supply to your customers? A. Thirty.