In the wake of a decision by a federal commission to allow wagering on motion picture box-office numbers, a broad entertainment industry coalition charged today that the gaming plans were “no more than over-under bets on a movie’s performance” and urged Congress to finalize the ban already approved by the Senate.
Despite opposition from the Directors Guild of America (DGA), the Independent Film and Television Alliance (IFTA), the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees (IATSE), the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) and its member companies, and the National Association of Theatre Owners (NATO), the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) approved a request from Media Derivatives, Inc. (MDEX) to create a designated contract market for the trading of financial derivatives based on box-office number futures.
MPAA President and Interim CEO Bob Pisano said the proposed MDEX contract, and a separate proposal by the Cantor Futures Exchange L.P., which is still pending before the CFTC “serve no public interest and, to the contrary, can significantly harm the motion picture industry and impose new, substantial costs that do not exist today. These are proposals that ought to be under the jurisdiction of the federal gambling and gaming laws, not the federal commodity trading laws. It is unfortunate that the CFTC has now given the go-ahead to a new gambling platform that could be plagued by financial irregularities and manipulation.”
Recognizing the serious problems that could be caused by these proposals, the Senate has approved a ban on trading derivatives based on box-office numbers, as part of a much larger financial reform bill. A House-Senate Conference Committee began meeting last week to finalize the bill and send it back to both Chambers for final approval.
“These proposed contracts fail to demonstrate that they serve the public purpose futures contracts should serve, they are highly susceptible to potential manipulation, and pose real possible economic damage to an industry that employs over 2.4 million men and women working in virtually every state in the country,” Pisano said on behalf of the Coalition. “We support banning them as the Senate bill does, and hope that the final bill approved by Congress and signed by President Obama retains the prohibition.”
About the Coalition:
About DGA
The Directors Guild of America was founded in 1936 to protect the economic and creative rights of directors. Over the years its membership has expanded to include the directorial team – Unit Production Managers, Assistant Directors, Associate Directors, Stage Managers and Production Associates. Today, through the collective voice of more than 14,000 members, the Guild seeks to protect the rights of directorial teams, to contend for their creative freedom and strengthen their ability to develop meaningful and lifelong careers in film, tape and digital media.
About IFTA
The Independent Film & Television Alliance (IFTA) is the global trade association of the independent motion picture and television industry. Headquartered in Los Angeles, IFTA represents and provides significant entertainment industry services to more than 150 member companies from 22 countries, consisting of independent production and distribution companies, sales agents, television companies, studio-affiliated companies, and financial institutions engaged in content finance.
About IATSE
The International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employes, Moving Picture Technicians, Artists and Allied Crafts of the United States, Its Territories and Canada, AFL-CIO, CLC is one of the largest entertainment labor unions in the world and represents over 110,000 technicians, artisans and craftspeople employed in stagecraft, motion picture and television production, the trade show industry, and affiliated crafts throughout the United States, Its Territories and Canada. For background information on the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees.
About MPAA
The Motion Picture Association of America, Inc. (MPAA) serves as the voice and advocate of the American motion picture, home video and television industries from its offices in Los Angeles and Washington, D.C. Its members include: Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures; Paramount Pictures Corporation; Sony Pictures Entertainment Inc.; Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation; Universal City Studios LLLP; and Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc.
About NATO
The National Association of Theatre Owners is the largest exhibition trade organization in the world, representing more than 30,000 movie screens in all 50 states, and additional cinemas in 50 countries worldwide. Our membership includes the largest cinema chains in the world and hundreds of independent theatre owners. NATO is headquartered in Washington, D.C., with a second office in North Hollywood, California.
