The Motion Picture Association (MPA)
is an American
trade association
A trade association, also known as an industry trade group, business association, sector association or industry body, is an organization founded and funded by businesses that operate in a specific Industry (economics), industry. An industry tra ...
representing the
five major film studios of the United States, as well as the video streaming service
Netflix
Netflix, Inc. is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and production company based in Los Gatos, California. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California, it offers a fil ...
. Founded in 1922 as the Motion Picture Producers and Distributors of America (MPPDA) and known as the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) from 1945 until September 2019,
its original goal was to ensure the viability of the
American film industry
The cinema of the United States, consisting mainly of major film studios (also known as Hollywood) along with some independent film, has had a large effect on the global film industry since the early 20th century. The dominant style of Ame ...
. In addition, the MPA established guidelines for film content which resulted in the creation of the
Motion Picture Production Code
The Motion Picture Production Code was a set of industry guidelines for the self-censorship of content that was applied to most motion pictures released by major studios in the United States from 1934 to 1968. It is also popularly known as the ...
in 1930. This code, also known as the Hays Code, was replaced by a voluntary
film rating system in 1968, which is managed by the Classification and Rating Administration (CARA).
The MPA has advocated for the motion picture and television industry, with the goals of promoting effective copyright protection, reducing
piracy
Piracy is an act of robbery or criminal violence by ship or boat-borne attackers upon another ship or a coastal area, typically with the goal of stealing cargo and other valuable goods. Those who conduct acts of piracy are called pirates, v ...
, and expanding market access. It has worked to curb
copyright infringement
Copyright infringement (at times referred to as piracy) is the use of works protected by copyright without permission for a usage where such permission is required, thereby infringing certain exclusive rights granted to the copyright holder, s ...
, including attempts to limit the sharing of
copyright
A copyright is a type of intellectual property that gives its owner the exclusive right to copy, distribute, adapt, display, and perform a creative work, usually for a limited time. The creative work may be in a literary, artistic, education ...
ed works via
peer-to-peer file sharing
Peer-to-peer file sharing is the distribution and sharing of digital media using peer-to-peer (P2P) networking technology. P2P file sharing allows users to access media files such as books, music, movies, and games using a P2P software program tha ...
networks and by streaming from pirate sites. Former United States Ambassador to France
Charles Rivkin
Charles Hammerman Rivkin (born April 6, 1962) is an American media executive and former United States diplomat who is chairman and chief executive officer (CEO) of the Motion Picture Association (MPA).
Rivkin served as Assistant Secretary of St ...
is the chairman and CEO.
About
The Motion Picture Association represents the interests of the six international producers and distributors of filmed entertainment. To do so, they promote and protect the intellectual property rights of these companies and conduct public awareness programs to highlight to movie fans around the world the importance of content protection.
The organizations act on behalf of the members of the Motion Picture Association. They have worldwide operations which are directed from their head offices in Los Angeles and Washington, D.C. with regional operations in Europe, Asia Pacific, Latin America, and Canada.
History
Foundation and early history: 1922–29
The MPA was founded as the Motion Picture Producers and Distributors of America (MPPDA) in 1922 as a
trade association
A trade association, also known as an industry trade group, business association, sector association or industry body, is an organization founded and funded by businesses that operate in a specific Industry (economics), industry. An industry tra ...
of member motion picture companies. At its founding, MPPDA member companies produced approximately 70 to 80 percent of the films made in the United States.
Former
Postmaster General
A Postmaster General, in Anglosphere countries, is the chief executive officer of the postal service of that country, a ministerial office responsible for overseeing all other postmasters. The practice of having a government official responsib ...
Will H. Hays
William Harrison Hays Sr. (; November 5, 1879 – March 7, 1954) was an American Republican politician.
As chairman of the Republican National Committee from 1918–1921, Hays managed the successful 1920 presidential campaign of Warren G. Ha ...
was named the association's first president.
The main focus of the MPPDA in its early years was on producing a strong public relations campaign to ensure that
Hollywood remained financially stable and able to attract investment from
Wall Street
Wall Street is an eight-block-long street in the Financial District of Lower Manhattan in New York City. It runs between Broadway in the west to South Street and the East River in the east. The term "Wall Street" has become a metonym for t ...
, while simultaneously ensuring that American films had a "clean moral tone".
The MPPDA also instituted a code of conduct for Hollywood's actors in an attempt to govern their behavior offscreen. Finally, the code sought to protect American film interests abroad by encouraging film studios to avoid racist portrayals of foreigners.
From the early days of the association, Hays spoke out against public
censorship
Censorship is the suppression of speech, public communication, or other information. This may be done on the basis that such material is considered objectionable, harmful, sensitive, or "inconvenient". Censorship can be conducted by governments ...
,
and the MPPDA worked to raise support from the general public for the film industry's efforts against such censorship.
Large portions of the public opposed censorship, but also decried the lack of morals in movies.
[ The organisation also had formed a ]trust
Trust often refers to:
* Trust (social science), confidence in or dependence on a person or quality
It may also refer to:
Business and law
* Trust law, a body of law under which one person holds property for the benefit of another
* Trust (bus ...
to block out Independents and enforce the monopolistic
A monopoly (from Greek el, μόνος, mónos, single, alone, label=none and el, πωλεῖν, pōleîn, to sell, label=none), as described by Irving Fisher, is a market with the "absence of competition", creating a situation where a spec ...
studio system
A studio system is a method of filmmaking wherein the production and distribution of films is dominated by a small number of large movie studios. It is most often used in reference to Hollywood motion picture studios during the Golden Age of Hol ...
.
At the time of the MPPDA's founding, there was no national censorship, but some state and municipal laws required movies to be censored, a process usually overseen by a local censorship board.[ As such, in certain locations in the U.S., films were often edited to comply with local laws regarding the onscreen portrayal of violence and sexuality, among other topics. This resulted in negative publicity for the studios and decreasing numbers of theater goers, who were uninterested in films that were sometimes so severely edited that they were incoherent.] In 1929, more than 50 percent of American moviegoers lived in a location overseen by such a board.[
In 1924, Hays instituted "The Formula", a loose set of guidelines for filmmakers, in an effort to get the movie industry to self-regulate the issues that the censorship boards had been created to address. "The Formula" requested that studios send synopses of films being considered to the MPPDA for review. This effort largely failed, however, as studios were under no obligation to send their scripts to Hays's office, nor to follow his recommendations.]
In 1927, Hays oversaw the creation of a code of "Don'ts and Be Carefuls" for the industry. This list outlined the issues that movies could encounter in different localities. Hays also created a Studio Relations Department (SRD) with staff available to the studios for script reviews and advice regarding potential problems. Again, despite Hays' efforts, studios largely ignored the "Don'ts and Be Carefuls," and by the end of 1929, the MPPDA received only about 20 percent of Hollywood scripts prior to production, and the number of regional and local censorship boards continued to increase.[
]
Production Code: 1930–34
In 1930, the MPPDA introduced the Production Code
The Motion Picture Production Code was a set of industry guidelines for the self-censorship of content that was applied to most motion pictures released by major studios in the United States from 1934 to 1968. It is also popularly known as the ...
, sometimes called the "Hays Code". The Code consisted of moral guidelines regarding what was acceptable to include in films. Unlike the "Dont's and Be Carefuls", which the studios had ignored, the Production Code was endorsed by studio executives. The Code incorporated many of the "Don'ts and Be Carefuls" as specific examples of what could not be portrayed. Among other rules, the code prohibited inclusion of "scenes of passion" unless they were essential to a film's plot; "pointed profanity" in either word or action; "sex perversion"; justification or explicit coverage of adultery; sympathetic treatment of crime or criminals; dancing with "indecent" moves; and white slavery. Because studio executives had been involved in the decision to adopt the code, MPPDA-member studios were more willing to submit scripts for consideration. However, the growing economic impacts of the Great Depression
The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagio ...
of the early 1930s increased pressure on studios to make films that would draw the largest possible audiences, even if it meant taking their chances with local censorship boards by disobeying the Code.
In 1933 and 1934, the Catholic Legion of Decency
The National Legion of Decency, also known as the Catholic Legion of Decency, was a Catholic group founded in 1934 by Archbishop of Cincinnati, John T. McNicholas, as an organization dedicated to identifying objectionable content in motion pictu ...
, along with a number of Protestant and women's groups, launched plans to boycott films that they deemed immoral. In order to avert boycotts which might further harm the profitability of the film industry, the MPPDA created a new department, the Production Code Administration (PCA), with Joseph Breen
Joseph Ignatius Breen (October 14, 1888 – December 5, 1965) was an American film censor with the Motion Picture Producers and Distributors of America who applied the Hays Code to film production.Staff report (December 8, 1965). Joseph I. ...
as its head. Unlike previous attempts at self-censorship, PCA decisions were binding—no film could be exhibited in an American theater without a stamp of approval from the PCA, and any producer attempting to do so faced a fine of $25,000. After ten years of unsuccessful voluntary codes and expanding local censorship boards, the studio approved and agreed to enforce the codes, and the nationwide "Production Code" was enforced starting on July 1, 1934.[
]
War years: 1934–45
In the years that immediately followed the adoption of the Code, Breen often sent films back to Hollywood for additional edits, and in some cases, simply refused to issue PCA approval for a film to be shown. At the same time, Hays promoted the industry's new focus on wholesome films and continued promoting American films abroad.
For nearly three years, studios complied with the Code. By 1938, however, as the threat of war in Europe loomed, movie producers began to worry about the possibility of decreased profits abroad. This led to a decreased investment in following the strictures of the code, and occasional refusals to comply with PCA demands. That same year, responding to trends in European films in the run-up to the war, Hays spoke out against using movies as a vehicle for propaganda
Propaganda is communication that is primarily used to influence or persuade an audience to further an agenda, which may not be objective and may be selectively presenting facts to encourage a particular synthesis or perception, or using loaded ...
. In 1945, after 24 years as president, Hays stepped down from his position at the MPPDA, although he continued to act as an advisor for the Association for the next five years.
Johnston era: 1945–63
In 1945 the MPPDA hired Eric Johnston
Eric Allen Johnston (December 21, 1896 – August 22, 1963) was a business owner, president of the United States Chamber of Commerce, a Republican Party activist, president of the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA), and a U.S. governme ...
, four-time president of the United States Chamber of Commerce
The United States Chamber of Commerce (USCC) is the largest lobbying group in the United States, representing over three million businesses and organizations. The group was founded in April 1912 out of local chambers of commerce at the urging ...
, to replace Hays. During his first year as president, Johnston rebranded the Motion Picture Producers and Distributors of America as the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA).
He also created the Motion Picture Export Association (MPEA) to promote American films abroad by opposing production company monopolies in other countries. In 1947 the MPEA voted to discontinue film shipments to Britain after the British government imposed an import tax on American films. Johnston negotiated with the British government to end the tax in 1948, and film shipments resumed.
In 1956, Johnston oversaw the first major revision of the Production Code since it was created in 1930. This revision allowed the treatment of some subjects which had previously been forbidden, including abortion and the use of narcotics, so long as they were "within the limits of good taste". At the same time, the revisions added a number of new restrictions to the code, including outlawing the depiction of blasphemy and mercy killings in films.
Johnston was well-liked by studio executives, and his political connections helped him function as an effective liaison between Hollywood and Washington. In 1963, while still serving as president of the MPAA, Johnston died of a stroke. For three years, the MPAA operated without a president while studio executives searched for a replacement.
Valenti era: 1966–2004
The MPAA appointed Jack Valenti
Jack Joseph Valenti (September 5, 1921 – April 26, 2007) was an American political advisor and lobbyist who served as a Special Assistant to U.S. President Lyndon B. Johnson. He was also the longtime president of the Motion Picture Association ...
, former aide to President Lyndon Johnson
Lyndon Baines Johnson (; August 27, 1908January 22, 1973), often referred to by his initials LBJ, was an American politician who served as the 36th president of the United States from 1963 to 1969. He had previously served as the 37th vice ...
, as president of the MPAA in 1966. In 1968, Valenti replaced the Production Code with a system of voluntary film ratings, in order to limit censorship of Hollywood films and provide parents with information about the appropriateness of films for children. In addition to concerns about protecting children, Valenti stated in his autobiography that he sought to ensure that American filmmakers could produce the films they wanted, without the censorship that existed under the Production Code that had been in effect since 1934.[
In 1975, Valenti established the Film Security Office, an anti-piracy division at the MPAA, which sought to recover unauthorized recordings of films to prevent duplication.] Valenti continued to fight piracy into the 1980s, asking Congress to install chips in VCRs that would prevent illegal reproduction of video cassettes, and in the 1990s supported law enforcement efforts to stop bootleg
Bootleg or bootlegging most often refers to:
* Bootleg recording, an audio or video recording released unofficially
* Rum-running, the illegal business of transporting and trading in alcoholic beverages, hence:
** Moonshine, or illicitly made ...
distribution of video tapes. Valenti also oversaw a major change in the ratings system that he had helped create—the removal of the "X" rating, which had come to be closely associated with pornography. It was replaced with a new rating, "NC-17", in 1990.
In 1994, the Motion Picture Export Association of America changed its name to the Motion Picture Association to more accurately reflect the global nature of audiovisual entertainment in today's international marketplace.
In 2001, Valenti established the Digital Strategy Department at the MPAA to specifically address issues surrounding digital film
:
Digital cinematography is the process of capturing (recording) a motion picture using digital image sensors rather than through film stock. As digital technology has improved in recent years, this practice has become dominant. Since the mid- ...
distribution and piracy.
Modern era: 2004–present
After serving as president of the MPAA for 38 years, Valenti announced that he would step down in 2004. In September of that year, he was replaced by former Secretary of Agriculture
The United States secretary of agriculture is the head of the United States Department of Agriculture. The position carries similar responsibilities to those of agriculture ministers in other governments.
The department includes several organi ...
Dan Glickman
Daniel Robert Glickman (born November 24, 1944) is an American politician, lawyer, lobbyist, and nonprofit leader. He served as the United States Secretary of Agriculture from 1995 until 2001, prior to which he represented as a Democrat in Congr ...
. During his tenure, Glickman focused on tax issues, content protection efforts, and increasing U.S. studios' access to international markets. He led lobbying efforts that resulted in $400 million in federal tax incentives for the film industry, and also supported a law which created federal oversight of anti-piracy efforts. Glickman stepped down in 2010.
After a search which lasted over a year, the MPAA hired former U.S. Senator Chris Dodd
Christopher John Dodd (born May 27, 1944) is an American lobbyist, lawyer, and Democratic Party politician who served as a United States senator from Connecticut from 1981 to 2011. Dodd is the longest-serving senator in Connecticut's history. H ...
to replace Glickman in March 2011. In his role as president, Dodd focused on content protection, trade, and improving Hollywood's image. He traveled to China in 2011 in an effort to encourage the Chinese government to both crack down on piracy and further open its film market. A settlement of a long-argued World Trade Organization
The World Trade Organization (WTO) is an intergovernmental organization that regulates and facilitates international trade. With effective cooperation
in the United Nations System, governments use the organization to establish, revise, and e ...
complaint, coupled with Dodd's efforts, contributed to the United States' agreement with China in 2012 to open China's film market to more Hollywood films and to increase U.S. studios' share of box-office revenues in China. In addition to this agreement with China, the U.S. signed more than 20 memos of understanding with foreign governments regarding the enforcement of intellectual property rights during Dodd's tenure at the MPAA.
In 2011, the MPAA supported the passage of the Stop Online Piracy Act
The Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) was a controversial proposed United States congressional bill to expand the ability of U.S. law enforcement to combat online copyright infringement and online trafficking in counterfeit goods. Introduced on O ...
(SOPA) and PROTECT IP Act (PIPA). After the two bills were shelved in early 2012, Dodd indicated that Hollywood might cut off campaign contributions to politicians who failed to support anti-piracy efforts in the future.
In 2012, the MPAA launched the Diversity and Multicultural Outreach program, as part of an effort to increase diversity in the television and film industry both through employment and representation on screen. Since its inception, the Diversity and Multicultural and Outreach group has conducted outreach and partnered with more than 20 multicultural groups and national civil rights organizations in sponsoring film screenings, festivals, and other diversity-themed events.
Throughout his tenure at the MPAA, Dodd also highlighted the need for film studios to embrace technology as a means of distributing content.
In June 2017, the MPAA supported the launch of the Alliance for Creativity and Entertainment
Alliance for Creativity and Entertainment (ACE) is a coalition of over 30 major global entertainment companies and film studios aimed at protecting profits from copyrighted material. It was launched on June 13, 2017.
The stated mission of ACE ...
(ACE), a coalition of entertainment companies, including the six major studios, Netflix
Netflix, Inc. is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and production company based in Los Gatos, California. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California, it offers a fil ...
and Amazon
Amazon most often refers to:
* Amazons, a tribe of female warriors in Greek mythology
* Amazon rainforest, a rainforest covering most of the Amazon basin
* Amazon River, in South America
* Amazon (company), an American multinational technology c ...
, that would draw on the MPAA's resources in an effort to reduce online piracy through research and legal efforts.
Former U.S. diplomat and Charles Rivkin
Charles Hammerman Rivkin (born April 6, 1962) is an American media executive and former United States diplomat who is chairman and chief executive officer (CEO) of the Motion Picture Association (MPA).
Rivkin served as Assistant Secretary of St ...
succeeded Chris Dodd as CEO on September 5, 2017, and as chairman effective December 6, 2017. On January 25, 2019, film streaming service Netflix
Netflix, Inc. is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and production company based in Los Gatos, California. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California, it offers a fil ...
announced that it had joined the MPAA in an effort to identify itself among the major studios.
In September 2019, the association updated its branding to reflect the global nature of the film, television, and streaming industry, officially changing its name to the Motion Picture Association (MPA), a name which it has used internationally since 1994. An updated logo also went into effect at this time.
Film rating system
In 1968, the MPAA established the Code and Rating Administration, or CARA (later renamed the Classification and Rating Administration), which began issuing ratings for films exhibited and distributed commercially in the United States to help parents determine what films are appropriate for their children.
Since the rating system was first introduced in November 1968, it has gone through several changes, including the addition of a PG-13 rating. The ratings system is completely voluntary, and ratings have no legal standing. Instead, theater owners enforce the MPAA film ratings after they have been assigned, with many theaters refusing to exhibit non-rated films. An unrated film is often denoted by "NR", such as in newspapers, although this is not a formal MPAA rating.
In 2006, the film ''This Film Is Not Yet Rated
''This Film Is Not Yet Rated'' is a 2006 American documentary film about the Motion Picture Association of America's rating system and its effect on American culture, directed by Kirby Dick and produced by Eddie Schmidt. It premiered at the 200 ...
'' alleged that the MPAA gave preferential treatment to member studios during the process of assigning ratings, as well as criticizing the rating process for its lack of transparency. In response, the MPAA posted its ratings rules, policies, and procedures, as well as its appeals process, online. According to the MPA, the ratings are made by an independent group of parents.
According to a 2015 study commissioned by CARA, ninety-three percent of parents in the U.S. find the rating system to be a helpful tool.
The ratings currently used by the MPAA's voluntary system are:
Members
The original MPAA members were the "Big Eight" film studios: Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film and television production company, production and Distribution (marketing), distribution company and the main namesake division of Paramount Global (formerly ViacomCBS). It is the fifth-oldes ...
, Fox Film
The Fox Film Corporation (also known as Fox Studios) was an American Independent film production studio formed by William Fox (1879–1952) in 1915, by combining his earlier Greater New York Film Rental Company and Box Office Attractions Film C ...
, Loews, Universal Pictures
Universal Pictures (legally Universal City Studios LLC, also known as Universal Studios, or simply Universal; common metonym: Uni, and formerly named Universal Film Manufacturing Company and Universal-International Pictures Inc.) is an Ameri ...
, and United Artists
United Artists Corporation (UA), currently doing business as United Artists Digital Studios, is an American digital production company. Founded in 1919 by D. W. Griffith, Charlie Chaplin, Mary Pickford, and Douglas Fairbanks, the studi ...
, followed by Warner Bros.
Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (commonly known as Warner Bros. or abbreviated as WB) is an American film and entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California, and a subsidiary of Warner Bros. D ...
in 1923, Columbia Pictures
Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. is an American film production studio that is a member of the Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group, a division of Sony Pictures Entertainment, which is one of the Big Five studios and a subsidiary of the mu ...
in 1924, along with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc., also known as Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures and abbreviated as MGM, is an American film, television production, distribution and media company owned by amazon (company), Amazon through MGM Holdings, founded o ...
(formed by the merger of Loews, Metro Pictures
Metro Pictures Corporation was a Film, motion picture production company founded in early 1915 in Jacksonville, Florida. It was a forerunner of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. The company produced its films in New York, Los Angeles, and sometimes at leas ...
, Goldwyn Pictures
Goldwyn Pictures Corporation was an American motion picture production company that operated from 1916 to 1924 when it was merged with two other production companies to form the major studio, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. It was founded on November 19, 1 ...
, and Louis B. Mayer Productions
Louis B. Mayer Pictures (or Louis B. Mayer Productions) was an American film production company of the silent era which operated from 1918 until 1924.
History
Founded by the New England-based theater owner Louis B. Mayer, it functioned as a hi ...
), and RKO Pictures
RKO Radio Pictures Inc., commonly known as RKO Pictures or simply RKO, was an American film production and distribution company, one of the "Big Five" film studios of Hollywood's Golden Age. The business was formed after the Keith-Albee-Orphe ...
in 1928. Then came the 1935 merger of Fox Film and 20th Century Pictures into 20th Century Fox
20th Century Studios, Inc. (previously known as 20th Century Fox) is an American film production company headquartered at the Fox Studio Lot in the Century City area of Los Angeles. As of 2019, it serves as a film production arm of Walt Dis ...
.
United Artists briefly resigned from the organization in 1956 over a ratings dispute, although they rejoined later in the decade. By 1966, Allied Artists Pictures had joined the original members. In the following decade, new members joining the MPAA included Avco Embassy
Embassy Pictures Corporation (also and later known as Avco Embassy Pictures as well as Embassy Films Associates) was an American independent film production and distribution studio responsible for such films as ''The Graduate'', '' The Produc ...
in 1975 and Walt Disney Studios in 1979. The next year, Filmways
Filmways, Inc. (also known as Filmways Pictures and Filmways Television) was a television and film production company founded by American film executive Martin Ransohoff and Edwin Kasper in 1952. It is probably best remembered as the production c ...
became a MPAA member, but was later replaced in 1986 along with Avco Embassy when the De Laurentiis Entertainment Group
De Laurentiis Entertainment Group (DEG) was an entertainment production company and distribution studio founded by Italian producer Dino De Laurentiis. The company is notable for producing '' Manhunter'', '' Blue Velvet'', the horror films ''Ne ...
and Orion Pictures joined the MPAA roster.
As of 1995, the MPAA members were MGM—which included United Artists after their 1981 merger, Paramount Pictures, Sony Pictures
Sony Pictures Entertainment Inc. (commonly known as Sony Pictures or SPE, and formerly known as Columbia Pictures Entertainment, Inc.) is an American diversified multinational mass media and entertainment studio Conglomerate (company), conglom ...
—which included Columbia and TriStar Pictures
TriStar Pictures, Inc. (spelled as Tri-Star until 1991) is an American film studio and production company that is a member of the Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group, part of the multinational conglomerate Sony. It is a corporate sibling of Sony ...
after their acquisition in 1989, 20th Century Fox, Universal Studios, Walt Disney Studios, and Warner Bros. Turner Entertainment
Turner Entertainment Company is an American multimedia company founded by Ted Turner in 1986. Purchased by Time Warner in 1996 as part of its acquisition of Turner Broadcasting System (TBS), the company was largely responsible for overseeing th ...
joined the MPAA in 1995, but was purchased in 1996 by Time Warner. The number of members dropped to six in 2005 when MGM was purchased by Sony. The MPAA's member companies remained intact until the 2019 Acquisition of 21st Century Fox by Disney
The acquisition of 21st Century Fox by Disney was announced on December 14, 2017, and was completed on March 20, 2019. Among other key assets, the acquisition of 21st Century Fox by the Walt Disney Company included the 20th Century Fox film and ...
, including 20th Century Fox.
Netflix
Netflix, Inc. is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and production company based in Los Gatos, California. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California, it offers a fil ...
was approved as a new member in January 2019, making it the first non-studio and the first streaming service to be part of the organization. The addition of Netflix also helped to maintain the number of members after the acquisition of 20th Century Fox by Disney. The MPA aims to recruit additional members.
Content protection efforts
The MPA's concerted efforts at fighting copyright infringement
Copyright infringement (at times referred to as piracy) is the use of works protected by copyright without permission for a usage where such permission is required, thereby infringing certain exclusive rights granted to the copyright holder, s ...
began in 1975 with the establishment of the Film Security Office, which sought to recover unauthorized recordings of films in order to prevent duplication. The MPA has continued to pursue a number of initiatives to combat illegal distribution of films and TV shows, especially in response to new technologies. In the 1980s, it spoke out against VCRs
A videocassette recorder (VCR) or video recorder is an electromechanical device that records analog audio and analog video from broadcast television or other source on a removable, magnetic tape videocassette, and can play back the recordin ...
and the threat that the MPA believed they represented to the movie industry, with MPAA president Jack Valenti
Jack Joseph Valenti (September 5, 1921 – April 26, 2007) was an American political advisor and lobbyist who served as a Special Assistant to U.S. President Lyndon B. Johnson. He was also the longtime president of the Motion Picture Association ...
drawing a parallel between the threat of the VCR and that of the Boston Strangler
The Boston Strangler is the name given to the murderer of 13 women in the Boston, Massachusetts, area during the early 1960s. The crimes were attributed to Albert DeSalvo based on his confession, details revealed in court during a separate case, ...
. In 1986, the MPAA asked Congress to pass a law that would require VCRs to come equipped with a chip to prevent them from making copies. Legal efforts at stopping homemade copies of broadcast television largely ended, however, when the United States Supreme Court
The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that involve a point o ...
ruled that such copying constituted fair use
Fair use is a doctrine in United States law that permits limited use of copyrighted material without having to first acquire permission from the copyright holder. Fair use is one of the limitations to copyright intended to balance the interests ...
.
The MPA continued to support law enforcement efforts to stop bootleg
Bootleg or bootlegging most often refers to:
* Bootleg recording, an audio or video recording released unofficially
* Rum-running, the illegal business of transporting and trading in alcoholic beverages, hence:
** Moonshine, or illicitly made ...
production and distribution of videotapes and laserdisc
The LaserDisc (LD) is a home video format and the first commercial optical disc storage medium, initially licensed, sold and marketed as DiscoVision, MCA DiscoVision (also known simply as "DiscoVision") in the United States in 1978. Its diam ...
s into the 1990s, and in 2000 took successful legal action against individuals posting DVD
The DVD (common abbreviation for Digital Video Disc or Digital Versatile Disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any kind ...
decryption software on the Internet in Universal City Studios, Inc. v. Reimerdes
''Universal City Studios, Inc. v. Corley'' (originally known as ''Universal City Studios, Inc. v. Reimerdes'')'','' 273 F.3d 429 (2nd Cir., 2001), was a court ruling at the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit.''Universal City S ...
. Following the release of RealDVD
RealNetworks, Inc. is a provider of artificial intelligence and computer vision based products. RealNetworks was a pioneer in Internet streaming software and services. They are based in Seattle, Washington, United States. The company also p ...
—an application that enabled users to make copies of DVDs—RealNetworks
RealNetworks, Inc. is a provider of artificial intelligence and computer vision based products. RealNetworks was a pioneer in Internet streaming software and services. They are based in Seattle, Washington, United States. The company also p ...
sued the DVD Copy Control Association The DVD Copy Control Association (DVD CCA) is an organization primarily responsible for the copy protection of DVDs. The Content Scramble System (CSS) was devised for this purpose to make copyright infringement difficult, but also presents obstacles ...
and the major studios in 2008 over the legality of the software, accusing them of violating the Sherman Antitrust Act
The Sherman Antitrust Act of 1890 (, ) is a United States antitrust law which prescribes the rule of free competition among those engaged in commerce. It was passed by Congress and is named for Senator John Sherman, its principal author.
Th ...
. The judgment found there were no grounds for the antitrust claim and dismissed the suit. The court later found that the RealNetworks product violated the Digital Millennium Copyright Act
The Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) is a 1998 United States copyright law that implements two 1996 treaties of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO). It criminalizes production and dissemination of technology, devices, or s ...
(DMCA).
The MPA has continued to support law enforcement efforts to prevent illegal distribution of copyrighted materials online. The MPA and its British counterpart, the Federation Against Copyright Theft
The Federation Against Copyright Theft (FACT) is an organisation established in 1983 to protect and represent the interests of its members' intellectual property (IP). FACT also investigates fraud and cybercrime, and provides global due diligenc ...
(FACT), also funded the training of Lucky and Flo Lucky and Flo are a pair of black Labrador Retrievers trained by Dr. Neil Powell, notable for being the first animals trained to detect optical discs by scent. They are sponsored by the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) and Federation A ...
, a pair of Labrador Retrievers, to detect polycarbonates used in the manufacturing of DVDs.
The MPA strives to protect the creative rights of the large corporate film makers. Its counterpart has come up with infamous slogans such as "'' Who Makes Movies?''" and "''You can click, but you can't hide
"You can click, but you can't hide" is an advertising campaign run jointly by several international associations, most notably the MPAA (now the MPA) and the GVU, as part of the larger "Respect Copyrights" campaign against peer-to-peer file sharin ...
.''"
Online file sharing
In the early 2000s, the MPAA began focusing its efforts to curb copyright infringement specifically on peer-to-peer
Peer-to-peer (P2P) computing or networking is a distributed application architecture that partitions tasks or workloads between peers. Peers are equally privileged, equipotent participants in the network. They are said to form a peer-to-peer n ...
file sharing
File sharing is the practice of distributing or providing access to digital media, such as computer programs, multimedia (audio, images and video), documents or electronic books. Common methods of storage, transmission and dispersion include r ...
, initially using a combination of educational campaigns and cease and desist
A cease and desist letter is a document sent to an individual or business to stop alleged illegal activity. The phrase "cease and desist" is a legal doublet, made up of two near-synonyms. The letter may warn that, if the recipient does not dis ...
letters to discourage such activity. In the first six months of 2002, the MPAA sent more than 18,000 such letters to internet service provider
An Internet service provider (ISP) is an organization that provides services for accessing, using, or participating in the Internet. ISPs can be organized in various forms, such as commercial, community-owned, non-profit, or otherwise private ...
s to forward to users engaged in copyright infringement.
In late 2004, the MPAA changed course and filed lawsuits in a concerted effort to address copyright infringement on a number of large online file-sharing services, including BitTorrent and eDonkey. The following year, the MPAA expanded its legal actions to include lawsuits against individuals who downloaded and distributed copyrighted material via peer-to-peer networks.
The MPAA also played a role in encouraging the Swedish government
The Government of the Kingdom of Sweden ( sv, Konungariket Sveriges regering) is the national cabinet of Sweden, and the country's executive authority.
The Government consists of the Prime Ministerappointed and dismissed by the Speaker of the R ...
to conduct a raid of the Pirate Bay file-sharing website in May 2006. Swedish officials have acknowledged that part of the motivation for the raid was the threat of sanctions from the World Trade Organization
The World Trade Organization (WTO) is an intergovernmental organization that regulates and facilitates international trade. With effective cooperation
in the United Nations System, governments use the organization to establish, revise, and e ...
, along with a letter from the MPAA.
In 2013, the Center for Copyright Information
The Center for Copyright Information (CCI) is an American organization focused on advocacy and initiatives in support of copyright law. The CCI aims to educate the public about copyright law; coordinates with copyright owners and Internet service ...
unveiled the Copyright Alert System Copyright Alert System (CAS) was a voluntary industry effort to educate and penalize internet users who engage in the unauthorized and unlawful distribution of copyrighted works via peer-to-peer file sharing services. The program was operated by t ...
, a system established through an agreement between the MPAA, the Recording Industry Association of America
The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/o ...
, and five of the USA's largest internet service providers
An Internet service provider (ISP) is an organization that provides services for accessing, using, or participating in the Internet. ISPs can be organized in various forms, such as commercial, community-owned, non-profit, or otherwise privatel ...
. The system used a third-party service to identify content being distributed illegally. Users were then informed that their accounts were being used for possible copyright infringement and were provided with information about ways to get authorized content online. Users who received multiple notices of infringement faced "mitigations measures," such as temporary slowing of their Internet service, but the system did not include termination of subscriber accounts. Subscribers facing such action had a right to appeal to the American Arbitration Association
The American Arbitration Association (AAA) is a not-for-profit organization in the field of alternative dispute resolution, providing services to individuals and organizations who wish to resolve conflicts out of court, and one of several arbitr ...
. In January 2017, the Copyright Alert System was discontinued. While no official reason was given, the MPAA's general counsel stated that the system had not been equipped to stop repeat infringers.
On December 24, 2014, the Sony Pictures hack revealed that following a lawsuit in which the MPAA won a multimillion judgment against Hotfile
Hotfile was a one-click file hosting website founded by Hotfile Corp in 2006 in Panama City, Panama. On December 4, 2013, Hotfile ceased all operations, the same day as signing a $4 million settlement with the Motion Picture Association of Ame ...
, a file hosting website, the MPAA colluded with Hotfile to misrepresent the settlement so that the case would serve as a deterrent. The settlement was previously believed to be $80 million and was widely reported; however, Hotfile only paid the studios $4 million and agreed to have the $80 million figure recorded as the judgment and the website shut down.
In a case resolved in 2015, the MPAA and others supported the United States International Trade Commission
The United States International Trade Commission (USITC or I.T.C.) is an agency of the United States federal government that advises the legislative and executive branches on matters of trade. It is an independent, bipartisan entity that analyze ...
(ITC)'s decision to consider electronic transmissions to the U.S. as "articles" so that it could prevent the importation of digital files of counterfeit goods. While the case being considered by the ITC involved dental appliances, the ITC could have also used such authority to bar the importation of pirated movies and TV shows from rogue foreign websites that traffic in infringing content. The Federal Circuit Court of Appeals took up the matter, and ultimately ruled against the ITC.
In 2016, the MPAA reported Putlocker
Putlocker is one of various online file hosting index websites used for streaming entertainment media, particularly films and television series, for free. The initial website originated in the United Kingdom as early as 2011, and grew to receive ...
as one of the "top 5 rogue cyberlocker services" to the Office of the United States Trade Representative
The Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) is an agency of the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government responsible for developing and promoting Trade policy of the United States, American trade ...
as a major piracy threat; the website was then blocked in the United Kingdom.
In 2019, the MPA released an overview of the piracy markets in contravention of the US Government. Added to the list were Chinese hosting service Baidu
Baidu, Inc. ( ; , meaning "hundred times") is a Chinese multinational technology company specializing in Internet-related services and products and artificial intelligence (AI), headquartered in Beijing's Haidian District. It is one of the la ...
, and Russian gambling firm 1xBet.
Criticism and controversies
Publicity campaigns
The MPAA has also produced publicity campaigns to discourage piracy. The '' Who Makes Movies?'' advertising campaign in 2003 highlighted workers in the film industry describing how piracy affected them. The video spots ran as trailers before films, and as television advertisements. In 2004, the MPAA began using the slogan "You can click, but you can't hide
"You can click, but you can't hide" is an advertising campaign run jointly by several international associations, most notably the MPAA (now the MPA) and the GVU, as part of the larger "Respect Copyrights" campaign against peer-to-peer file sharin ...
". This slogan appeared in messages that replaced file-sharing websites after they had been shut down through MPAA legal action. It also appeared in posters and videos distributed to video stores by the MPAA. Also in 2004, the MPAA partnered with the Federation Against Copyright Theft and the Intellectual Property Office of Singapore
The Intellectual Property Office of Singapore (IPOS) is a statutory board under the Ministry of Law of the Government of Singapore. IPOS advises on and administers intellectual property (IP) laws, promotes IP awareness, and provides the infra ...
to release a trailer that was shown before films in theaters equating piracy with car theft. The trailer was later placed at the beginning of the video on many DVDs in many cases as an unskippable clip (not being able to skip or fast-forward), which triggered criticism and a number of parodies.
In 2005, the MPAA commissioned a study to examine the effects of file sharing on film industry profitability. The study concluded that the industry lost $6.1 billion per year to piracy, and that up to 44 percent of domestic losses were due to file sharing by college students. In 2008, the MPAA revised the percentage of loss due to college students down to 15 percent, citing human error in the initial calculations of this figure. Beyond the percentage of the loss that was attributable to college students, however, no other errors were found in the study.
In 2015, theaters began airing the MPAA's "I Make Movies" series, an ad campaign intended to combat piracy by highlighting the stories of behind-the-scenes employees in the film and television industry. The series pointed audiences to the MPAA's "WhereToWatch" website (later dubbed "The Credits") which provides attention to the behind-the-scenes creativity involved in filmmaking
Filmmaking (film production) is the process by which a motion picture is produced. Filmmaking involves a number of complex and discrete stages, starting with an initial story, idea, or commission. It then continues through screenwriting, casti ...
.
Accusations of copyright infringement
The MPAA itself has been accused of copyright infringement on multiple occasions. In 2007, the creator of a blogging platform called Forest Blog accused the MPAA of violating the license for the platform, which required that users link back to the Forest Blog website. The MPAA had used the platform for its own blog, but without linking back to the Forest Blog website. The MPAA subsequently took the blog offline, and explained that the software had been used on a test basis and the blog had never been publicized.
Also in 2007, the MPAA released a software toolkit for universities to help identify cases of file sharing on campus. The software used parts of the Ubuntu
Ubuntu ( ) is a Linux distribution based on Debian and composed mostly of free and open-source software. Ubuntu is officially released in three editions: ''Desktop'', ''Server'', and ''Core'' for Internet of things devices and robots. All the ...
Linux
Linux ( or ) is a family of open-source Unix-like operating systems based on the Linux kernel, an operating system kernel first released on September 17, 1991, by Linus Torvalds. Linux is typically packaged as a Linux distribution, which ...
distribution, released under the General Public License, which stipulates that the source code of any projects using the distribution be made available to third parties. The source code for the MPAA's toolkit, however, was not made available. When the MPAA was made aware of the violation, the software toolkit was removed from their website.
In 2006, the MPAA admitted having made illegal copies of ''This Film Is Not Yet Rated
''This Film Is Not Yet Rated'' is a 2006 American documentary film about the Motion Picture Association of America's rating system and its effect on American culture, directed by Kirby Dick and produced by Eddie Schmidt. It premiered at the 200 ...
'' (a documentary exploring the MPAA itself and the history of its rating system)[MPAA finds itself accused of piracy]
by John Horn; at the ''Los Angeles Times
The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the Un ...
'' (via archive.org
The Internet Archive is an American digital library with the stated mission of "universal access to all knowledge". It provides free public access to collections of digitized materials, including websites, software applications/games, music, ...
); published January 24, 2006; retrieved June 11, 2014 — an act which ''Ars Technica
''Ars Technica'' is a website covering news and opinions in technology, science, politics, and society, created by Ken Fisher and Jon Stokes in 1998. It publishes news, reviews, and guides on issues such as computer hardware and software, sci ...
'' explicitly described as hypocrisy
Hypocrisy is the practice of engaging in the same behavior or activity for which one criticizes another or the practice of claiming to have moral standards or beliefs to which one's own behavior does not conform. In moral psychology, it is the ...
[MPAA admits to unauthorized movie copying]
, by Eric Bangeman, at ''Ars Technica
''Ars Technica'' is a website covering news and opinions in technology, science, politics, and society, created by Ken Fisher and Jon Stokes in 1998. It publishes news, reviews, and guides on issues such as computer hardware and software, sci ...
''; published January 24, 2006; retrieved June 11, 2014 and which Roger Ebert
Roger Joseph Ebert (; June 18, 1942 – April 4, 2013) was an American film critic, film historian, journalist, screenwriter, and author. He was a film critic for the ''Chicago Sun-Times'' from 1967 until his death in 2013. In 1975, Ebert beca ...
called "rich irony".[Sundance #7: Film ratings exposed!]
, by Roger Ebert
Roger Joseph Ebert (; June 18, 1942 – April 4, 2013) was an American film critic, film historian, journalist, screenwriter, and author. He was a film critic for the ''Chicago Sun-Times'' from 1967 until his death in 2013. In 1975, Ebert beca ...
; at RogerEbert.com; published January 26, 2006; retrieved June 11, 2014 The MPAA subsequently claimed that it had the legal right to copy the film despite this being counter to the filmmaker's explicit request, because the documentary's exploration of the MPAA's ratings board was potentially a violation of the board members' privacy.[
]
International activities
Around the world, the MPA helps with local law enforcement to combat piracy
Piracy is an act of robbery or criminal violence by ship or boat-borne attackers upon another ship or a coastal area, typically with the goal of stealing cargo and other valuable goods. Those who conduct acts of piracy are called pirates, v ...
.
The MPA offices in the world are:
* Motion Picture Association – Canada
* MPA EMEA (Europe, Middle East and Africa), which has anti-piracy programs in 17 European countries
* MPA Asia and Pacific, which has anti-piracy programs in 14 Asian countries
* MPA Latin America, which has anti-piracy programs in two Latin-American countries
See also
* Australian Classification Board
The Australian Classification Board (ACB or CB) is an Australian government statutory body responsible for the classification and censorship of films, video games and publications for exhibition, sale or hire in Australia. The ACB was establis ...
* British Board of Film Classification
The British Board of Film Classification (BBFC, previously the British Board of Film Censors) is a non-governmental organisation founded by the British film industry in 1912 and responsible for the national classification and censorship of f ...
* DeCSS
DeCSS is one of the first free computer programs capable of decrypting content on a commercially produced DVD video disc. Before the release of DeCSS, open source operating systems (such as Berkeley Software Distribution, BSD and Linux) could n ...
: decryption program for DVD video discs using Content Scramble System
The Content Scramble System (CSS) is a digital rights management (DRM) and encryption system employed on many commercially produced DVD-Video discs. CSS utilizes a proprietary 40-bit stream cipher algorithm. The system was introduced around 1996 ...
* Eirin
The , also known as , is Japan's self-regulatory film regulator. Eirin was established on the model of the now-defunct American Motion Picture Producers and Distributors Association's Production Code Administration in June 1949, succeeding t ...
* Entertainment Software Rating Board
The Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB) is a self-regulatory organization that assigns age and content ratings to consumer video games in the United States and Canada. The ESRB was established in 1994 by the Entertainment Software Asso ...
* Will H. Hays
William Harrison Hays Sr. (; November 5, 1879 – March 7, 1954) was an American Republican politician.
As chairman of the Republican National Committee from 1918–1921, Hays managed the successful 1920 presidential campaign of Warren G. Ha ...
* National Association of Theatre Owners
The National Association of Theatre Owners (NATO) is an American trade organization whose members are the owners of movie theaters. Most of the worldwide major theater chains' operators are members, as are hundreds of independent theater opera ...
* Notorious markets A notorious market is a website or physical market where, according to the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR), large-scale intellectual property infringement takes place. Officially termed Notorious Markets for Counterfeiting a ...
* Operation Red Card ''Operation Red Card'' is the name given to a two-month Asia-wide anti-piracy operation that was conducted by the Motion Picture Association (MPA) (the international arm of the Motion Picture Association of America) which resulted in the seizure of ...
* Pre-Code
Pre-Code Hollywood was the brief era in the Cinema of the United States, American film industry between the widespread adoption of sound in film in 1929LaSalle (2002), p. 1. and the enforcement of the Motion Picture Production Code censorshi ...
** Pre-Code Hollywood
Pre-Code Hollywood was the brief era in the Cinema of the United States, American film industry between the widespread adoption of sound in film in 1929LaSalle (2002), p. 1. and the enforcement of the Motion Picture Production Code censorshi ...
* United States Motion Picture Production Code of 1930
The Motion Picture Production Code was a set of industry guidelines for the self-censorship of content that was applied to most motion pictures released by major studios in the United States from 1934 to 1968. It is also popularly known as the ...
* "You Wouldn't Steal a Car
"You Wouldn't Steal a Car" is the first sentence of a public service announcement created in July 2004, which was part of the anti-copyright infringement campaign "Piracy. It's a crime." It was created by the Federation Against Copyright Theft an ...
"
* " One fuck rule"
References
External links
*
**
MPPDA Digital Archives (1922–1939)
Motion Picture Association of America. Production Code Administration records
Margaret Herrick Library, Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences
* ttp://www.filmsonsuper8.com/censorship/mpaa-film-numbers-52000.html MPPDA - MPAA - The Motion Picture Production Code film numbers to 52000Includes a downloadable Excel worksheet
The Production Code of the Motion Picture Industry
{{Authority control
1922 establishments in the United States
Arts and media trade groups
Arts organizations based in Washington, D.C.
Computer law
Entertainment rating organizations
Film censorship in the United States
Trade associations based in the United States
Organizations established in 1922
Film organizations in the United States