In an article posted this week on Free Enterprise, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s Tom Donohue highlights the often-overlooked “positive side” of the intellectual property rights debate and the economic benefits of enforcing IP rules.

Donohue writes, in part:

There are millions of good actors who contribute to America’s economic strength and competitiveness when they abide by IP rules   as they invent and innovate – or when they fight to protect IP through enforcement.

The good guys can be found all across the country in startups, studios, and labs, where they are turning their ideas into real products and services.  Honest and law-abiding innovators are helping raise our quality of life, improve choices and safety for consumers, enrich our culture, drive our economy, and create opportunity for others.

Donohue goes on to note that IP-based industries such as the beloved film, TV and music trades account for $5.8 trillion in gross domestic product and nearly 56 million jobs in the U.S.  The motion picture and TV industry alone supports 2.1 million jobs across the country including 91,000 in New York, 8,600 in Louisiana, and 191,000 in California. 

But proper enforcement of IP rules, Donohue argues, is critical to giving artists and inventors the assurance they need to continue creating.  “Without a strong system of IP rights, such assurance is threatened – along with economic growth and job creation,” he writes.

We couldn’t agree more.  If we expect the nation’s talented and diverse crop of innovators to continue making movies, writing songs or inventing the next piece of technology that changes the way we live, we have to encourage policies that allow these innovators to benefit off their work so they can invest in making more of it.  

Earlier today, Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced that “The Amazing Spider-Man 2” will be filmed entirely in New York. With scenes shot both upstate and downstate, it is expected to result in 3,500 jobs and the casting of 11,000 extras and will be the largest production filmed in New York to date. Major projects like this with a large economic footprint are the result of a strong production incentive program, which makes New York an attractive place to shoot.  In the words of Governor Cuomo, “This production will also help generate new jobs and economic activity both upstate and downstate which is great news for our local communities and fans of the franchise.”

The economic boon to the state is not just limited to the set itself.  According to the Governor’s office, the production will require 6,000 hotel room nights in New York State, and will use a number of Long Island-based businesses to supply food and equipment. The estimates on spending range from approximately $279,000 in container rentals to $130,000 in crane rentals to $19,000 for auto parts and more. Put simply, “The Amazing Spider-Man 2” will mean money for local communities in New York.

Started in 2004, the production tax incentive program has meant estimated $12.1 billion worth of direct spending for New York and become a significant job generator. In 2012 alone, 134 productions have applied for New York’s production incentive. Gov. Cuomo has now proposed a 5-year extension of the program in this year’s budget.

Gov. Cuomo’s release can be read in its entirety here.

2nd China International Co-production Film Screenings  

Kicking off with a special gala evening at Twentieth Century Fox’s Zanuck Theater in Century City, leaders from the American and Chinese film industries celebrated their continued efforts to co-produce films for the American and Chinese markets.  Over the next week a series of Chinese co-production screenings will take place around the city of Los Angeles. 
 
Christopher Dodd, Chairman and CEO, Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA), and Jim Gianopulos, Chairman and CEO of 20th Century Fox Film co-hosted the first screening, with special guests, Tong Gang, Director-General of the Film Bureau of China’s State Administration of Radio, Film and Television(SARFT), and James Cameron, director of Avatar and Titanic.

“Over the past few years, the film industries in the U.S. and China have committed to laying down stepping stones to building a successful partnership between our two great film communities,” said Christopher Dodd. “Appraising the relationship today, it’s fair to say that those stepping stones have become a firm and well-trodden path... as we look ahead to developing a truly globally-integrated film market within China, increased collaboration in the form of co-productions promises a bright future."
 
Tong Gang, who also led a Chinese delegation attending the screenings, said, “Our work with the MPA and its member studios has helped cultivate an ever-growing professional talent base active in film co-production, and I commend the artists who have brought us such a great variety of movies. We hope exchange programs and events such as this will allow American audiences to see more high quality co-production films. We also hope movies such as these will inspire more studios to participate in Sino-American film co-productions and in turn, continue to help elevate quality and standards.”
 
James Cameron, in his remarks said, “I think we all understand that the Chinese film market is growing so rapidly, not only as an internal market for its own filmmakers, but as a market for Hollywood films and international films to play there. It’s an incredibly exciting time. I’ve been to China a number of times over the last couple of years and I’m literally stunned by the rapid pace of change there, and the opportunity for those of us here and the filmmakers there to work together and really forge something new.”
 
The 2nd China International Co-Production Film Screenings is a week-long program developed by the Motion Picture Association (MPA) and SARFT, with the support of AMC cinemas, the Asia Society, China Film Co-Production Corporation, China Film Group Corporation, China Lion Film Distribution, Chinese American Film Festival, IMAX and MTIME.
 
The screenings began with the opening night film Hot Summer Days, a co-production between China, Hong Kong and Fox International Productions (US), directed by Tony Chan and Wing Shya.  Other films featured include 33 Postcards, The Founding of a Republic, Love in the Buff, Ocean Heaven, and Painted Skin: The Resurrection.
 
On 29 October, IMAX held a special screening of the Hong Kong-China costume action pic Flying Swords of Dragon Gate, directed by Tsui Hark and starring Jet Li and Zhou Xun, at their headquarters in Santa Monica, Los Angeles.

Watch this video to see how rogue websites pose as legitimate operators to trick consumers:

Watch this video to see how rogue sites take advantage of internet users during a simple online search:

Watch this video to see how rogue websites make internet users vulnerable to identity theft:

Tonight at the Hay Adams hotel overlooking the White House, the MPAA and the Centennial Celebration of the Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation held a reception honoring the 100th anniversary of President Reagan’s birth.  President Reagan is a unique figure in American history who seamlessly transitioned from a movie set into the political arena while never losing his connection to the American people. The motion picture industry undeniably shaped Ronald Reagan’s role as president and forever changed the face of modern political communication.  From his time in Hollywood to his days in the White House, President Reagan’s career spanned over fifty roles as an actor, six terms as president of the Screen Actors Guild, television host, Governor of the state of California, and President of the United States.

General Colin Powell, Jeff Bewkes, Chairman and CEO of Time Warner, Jim Gianopulos, Chairman and CEO of 20th Century Fox, Ron Meyer, President of Universal Studios, Fredrick Huntsberry, COO of Paramount Pictures, Ken Duberstein, former White House Chief of Staff, and Fred Ryan, President of the Reagan Foundation joined Senator Chris Dodd, Chairman and CEO of the MPAA to pay tribute to the 40th president's contribution to the motion picture industry. 

Here are a few photos from the event:

Today, Governor Bob McDonnell of Virginia spoke at a press conference in Richmond to highlight the economic benefits of film production in Virginia and how to preserve jobs by passing rogue sites legislation.   Stephen Spielberg’s “LINCOLN” is currently filming at Virginia’s historic State Capitol.  The film will have an estimated economic impact of $35 million in Virginia.   The economic impact of the film industry in Virginia in 2010 was $344 million with 2,700 Virginians actively working in the sector.

At the press conference, Governor McDonnell spoke about the importance of rogue sites legislation to preserving jobs.  Rogue sites legislation, the PROTECT IP Act (S.968) in the Senate and the Stop Online Piracy Act (H.R. 3261) in the House, will preserve American jobs and target foreign websites that steal and profit from counterfeit goods and stolen creative content like books, movies and music.

McDonnell said, “One of the things that’s very important at this stage though in film production is to be able to protect the intellectual property rights of our great film producers.  Unfortunately, we have the best storytellers, the best filmmakers, the best actors, and the best technology in America but yet so much of that is pirated by other countries.”   

He added, “It’s a significant loss to the American taxpayer and the American filmmaker.  And so, there’s legislation in front of Congress that has gotten bipartisan support, the IP protection act.  I’ve written a letter in support of that act.  And we’re very hopeful that the Congress will pass that to be able to protect the intellectual genius of Americans by not having it pirated by other countries who don’t have laws as tough as ours. “

Governor McDonnell is part of a bipartisan coalition of governors from across the country who support rouge sites legislation.   The following governors have given their support:  Dannell Malloy (Connecticut), Jack Markell ( Delaware), Pat Quinn (Illinois), Sam Brownback (Kansas), Bev Perdue (North Carolina), Brian Sandoval (Nevada), Dennis Daugaard (South Dakota), Gary Herbert (Utah), and Peter Shumlin  (Vermont).

As he indicated in his remarks, Governor McDonnell has previously expressed his support for the PROTECT IP Act.  On August 15, he wrote to Senators Patrick Leahy, Orrin Hatch, and Charles Grassley and Representative Bob Goodlatte in support of rogue sites legislation.  He wrote, “As you are aware, copyright infringement and the sale of counterfeit goods has reportedly cost the U.S. economy billions of dollars and hundreds of thousands of jobs, as well as billions of dollars in lost revenue to federal, state and local governments. During these difficult economic times, preventing the loss of jobs and revenue is more important than ever.”

A video of the event is available here.