Los Angeles - The Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) has responded to an allegation that the studios are "against innovation" with an open letter to the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), a digital civil liberties group that has sided with RealNetworks in a dispute with the studios over the company's DVD-copying software, CNET News.com reported.

RealNetworks sued the studios pre-emptively, asking a court to declare that its RealDVD software doesn't violate copyright laws; the MPAA then sued Real, and convinced a federal judge to put a temporary halt on the distribution of RealDVD.

The EFF chimed in to say the MPAA lawsuit against Real was an attempt at "controlling innovation."

"Forgive us if we take offense when the EFF and other activist organizations that continually take the side of those who profit from widespread copyright infringement attack our industry," wrote Jim Williams, the MPAA's chief technology officer, according to CNET.

"It's a desperate throw-back to the Napster days of old when (EFF would) pull out this tired and weathered playbook. It's not 2001 anymore. We've moved on. So should you."

The MPAA went on to point out new technologies and services it is backing, including Hulu, iTunes and Netflix.

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http://news.cnet.com/8301-1023_3-10070163-93.html

http://www.mpaa.org