Home

Screeners

Redbus to Use Cinea Anti-Piracy on BAFTA DVD Screeners

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on November 15, 2005 - 5:24am.
Reston, Va. - Cinea, a unit of Dolby Laboratories that develops film anti-piracy technology, announced on Tuesday that European film distributor Redbus, a division of Lions Gate Entertainment, will use its technology on the DVD movie "screeners" it sends to voting members of the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA). Cinea distributed special DVD players to BAFTA members, which are the only devices that can play the encrypted DVD screener copies of Redbus' "Good Night, and Good Luck" and "A Cock and Bull Story."
tags: DVD | Anti-Piracy | Cinea | Redbus | BAFTA | Screeners |

Indie Filmmakers Win Order Blocking MPAA Ban on Awards "Screeners"

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on December 5, 2003 - 6:30am.
New York -- In a major victory for independent filmmakers, a federal judge in Manhattan has placed a restraining order on the Motion Picture Association of America's (MPAA) ban on the distribution of DVD "screener" copies of movies by film studios to awards voting societies. A group of independent filmmakers including the Independent Feature Project (IFP) sued the MPAA, which decided to impose the ban as a means of preventing piracy. U.S. District Judge Michael Mukasey agreed with the indie filmmakers, who argued they would lose revenue because of the ban, which would prevent many voters for awards such as the Golden Globes from seeing their films and garnering them added publicity and ticket sales with a win. "Plaintiffs have shown they are at risk of loss of revenues as a result of the screener ban," Judge Mukasey wrote in his ruling. The MPAA said it will appeal the ruling. "We know, without dispute, that in the past screeners have been sources for pirated goods both domestically and overseas. We will appeal because the impact and growing threat of piracy is real and must be addressed wherever it appears," said MPAA CEO Jack Valenti.
tags: Indie | Awards | MPAA | Screeners | Filmmakers |

IFP, Indie Filmmakers Sue MPAA Over Ban on Awards Screeners

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on November 25, 2003 - 7:04am.
New York -- A group of independent filmmakers, including the Los Angeles and New York chapters of the Independent Feature Project (IFP), on Monday sued the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA), asking a federal judge to place an injunction against the MPAA's ban on the distribution of "screener" copies of films to members of various groups that vote on awards. The MPAA enacted a full ban on screeners as a means of stemming potential piracy, but later said it would allows VHS movies to be distributed -- only to those who vote on the Academy Awards -- which prompted complaints from the Golden Globes and others. In its lawsuit, the independent filmmakers say that the MPAA has "conspired" with the major studios to eliminate competitive rivalry among themselves and independent film producers; the group also allegedly "conspired" with the American Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to unlawfully disadvantage other competing critics' evaluation and awards events. A hearing on the injunction is set for Wednesday morning before the U.S. District Court in Manhattan.
tags: Awards | MPAA | Ban | Screeners | Indie Filmmakers | IFP |

MPAA Eases Ban on "Screeners;" Will Allow VHS, Maybe Low-Res DVDs

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on October 22, 2003 - 3:44am.
Los Angeles -- The Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) has decided to ease its controversial ban on the distribution of "screener" copies of Oscar-hopeful movies by studios to voting Academy members, The Los Angeles Times reported on Wednesday. Under a tentative deal reached with the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, studios will distribute numbered, encoded VHS videotapes to the 6,000 or so members of the Academy who vote on the Oscars. The MPAA is also reportedly considering allowing low-resolution DVDs, which yield poor-quality copies. Any Academy member who allows a screener to be pirated and distributed would face possible expulsion from the Academy. The Screen Actors Guild (SAG) opposed the decision, in part because it excludes distribution of screeners to its members, who vote on the group's own SAG Awards.
tags: MPAA | DVDs | Screeners | VHS |