4.21.2009

MORE ACCURATE (?) DATA ON USA PRODUCTION


WASHINGTON, DC – The motion picture and television production industry paid more than $40 billion in wages and $38 billion to vendors throughout the United States in 2007, according to a new report released today by the Motion Picture Association of America.
The report, the Economic Impact of the Motion Picture and Television Industry on the United States, provides a snapshot of economic impact and job creation derived from production and distribution of film and television entertainment.
“People don’t think of the business of making movies the same way they think of other American businesses such as manufacturers or large retailers. However, our industry in many ways is just like every other – we employ millions of people, we create jobs all across America, and yes, we too feel the sting of declining economic times,” said Dan Glickman, MPAA Chairman and CEO. “But just as you have to look beyond the images you see on the silver screen to fully appreciate the hundreds of working men and women that go into making a single 20-second scene from your favorite movie, if you look deeply at how movies are made you will see that there is also much to consider and, indeed, celebrate about the contributions of this uniquely American industry to our economy.”
The industry itself comprises 115,000 businesses in all 50 states.

More than 80 percent of these businesses are truly small businesses, employing fewer than 10 people.
Among the top-line findings from the report, which is based on 2007 data, the most recent year complete data is available, the motion picture and television industry was responsible for:
-- 2.5 million American jobs;

-- an average salary of $74,700 for production employees;

-- $41.1 billion in wages to workers in America;

-- $38.2 billion in payments to U.S. vendors and suppliers, small businesses and entrepreneurs;

-- $13 billion in income and sales taxes;

and

-- $13.6 billion in trade surplus.



MOST PIRATED MOVIES TOP-10!



'Wolverine' drops off list of most-pirated movies
By Eriq Gardner
No huge surprises on this week's list of the ten most-pirated films on BitTorrent (for week ending April 19).
The top position is held by "The Uninvited," a horror film that was just released on DVD. Recent releases tend to be popular with illegal file-sharers. "Fast and Furious" continues to be a target, while the leaked work print of "X-Men Origins: Wolverine" drops out of the top 10 three weeks after its first appearance online.

The data was collected by TorrentFreak, which also reports some more interesting news in the aftermath of the Pirate Bay verdict. Several large and small BitTorrent trackers have closed up shop in "what could be the greatest voluntary tracker collapse ever."
One service left a message to its former users that "We don't have time to do anything to the code, we don't have interest to do it, we don't have any more money and the biggest reason is The Pirate Bay info."
Probably a small dent in the global piracy problem, but many in Hollywood likely will be smiling at the news.
Meanwhile, there's a controversial study now out by the Norwegian School of Management that claims that people who download free music from P2P networks are more likely to spend money on music too — ten times more likely to be exact. Here's the story in the Norwegian newspaper. In the article, the newspaper quotes an EMI official who expresses doubt that one thing causes the other.RELATED: Most-Pirated Movies April 6-12.
Posted at 02:27 PM in Piracy