HOLLYWOOD'S BIGGEST CHEERLEADER

Longtime U.S. Senator Chris Dodd (D-Connecticut) took over the helm at the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) two years ago having left the Senate right after enactment of  landmark legislation that he co-authored - the Dodd/Frank Financial Reform Act.

Dodd: Sees role as industry advocate.

As Head of the MPAA, Dodd has taken on the role of cheerleader and outspoken advocate and discussed his views in a recent interview.

CMG: How is the MPAA and Hollywood dealing with on-line piracy?

CD: It is about the product. It is about our artists, our creators, and the 2.1 million people who work behind the camera in the film and television industries.  But it is also about you, the consumer. The consumer deserves a great product and they tell us this everyday by viewing our great products.

CMG: How is the MPAA getting that message across?

CD: We need to frame the debate more about the positive things we do and why piracy really hurts the consumer, in addition to whatever damage it does to our industry.  So, we need to engage in a positive message about why intellectual property, copyright, and piracy are matters that are not just the concern of the industry that produces them but the audience that depends on them.

CMG: So, what do you think is the best approach?

CD: It seems to me that what really needs to happen is what is happening.  I hope the MPAA is demonstrating a changed approach on this issue, and that is, let's ask our consumers to share with us their views and thoughts on how they view the piracy issue.  For example, Google is willing to change its algorithms so that when you search for movies, the page that pops up doesn't have five sites on it that are illegal. It would elevate and perhaps place an identifier on the legal sites for the consumer, because it is awfully hard to detect a legal from an illegal site.

CMG: Do you believe this will work?

CD: Our surveys and research are discovering that with the availability of legal sites at a price point that is affordable, an awful lot of people will go in that direction.

I looked at a new approach the other day, whereby if you or I went to an illegal site, a pop-up appears and says, "This site is illegal. If you'd like to see Lincoln, there are four different sites you can go to and watch the movie at this same price point."  The assumption is that when that pops up and you show an alternative where you can get the same movie, and a better copy of it, and a legal copy, at an affordable price you will take that simple step to do it.   Does this wipe piracy out? No, but it will certainly be a big move in the right direction.

CMG: You once stated that you didn't want to be a lobbyist. So, why did you take the MPAA position?

CD: I'm an advocate for this industry and becoming an evangelist.  The more I learn, the more I respect this industry.  For years there were only three networks and the only way to see a movie was to go to your local cinema.  There was no internet, no cable, none of the new technologies that have emerged.  All the news you read about Hollywood was the glamour side of it, the Oscar night, the movie magazines, etc. But the more I've learned about the number of jobs involved and the amount of revenues they generate, the branding of an industry from which we have benefited tremendously and the long list of movies that have done far more than entertain but have changed peoples attitudes in this country and elsewhere, I think the industry is under appreciated and I feel a passion about informing others that, with all its shortcomings and flaws, this is a very important American industry, and it deserves a better understanding of how much good it does on a variety of levels. And, to that extent, I have become an evangelist.

CMG: Many thanks, Senator.