Today, the Production Music Association (PMA), on behalf of its 392 member libraries , sent a letter to Senators Patrick Leahy and Chuck Grassley endorsing the bipartisan Preventing Real Online Threats to Economic Creativity and Theft of Intellectual Property Act, the PROTECT IP Act. The letter stressed the importance of intellectual property protection to the economy and urged for enactment of the bill this year.
“The music industry is detrimentally impacted by online piracy,” said Debra Krizman, PMA’s Executive Director. “When criminals steal our music online, they are undermining the value of creativity and cultural expression, the protection of which is rooted in the U.S. Constitution. Additionally they are stealing jobs and hindering our much-needed economic growth.”
The letter emphasized the explosive growth of rogue sites, noting that a study of 100 rogue sites found the traffic generated by the sites reached 53 billion hits per year. Total global sales of counterfeit goods via the Internet reached $135 billion in 2010, costing the G-20 economies 2.5 million jobs.
“The PROTECT IP Act sets us in the right direction to providing us with much-needed tools to combat rogue sites,” added Krizman. “We look forward to working with Senator Leahy, Senator Grassley, the bill’s co-sponsors, along with their House counterparts, to enact carefully balanced rogue sites legislation this year.”
About THE PMA
The Production Music Association is a non-profit, volunteer organization currently comprising 392 member companies, including major-label publishers and national independents, and is providing crucial leadership to protect the value of its members’ work. The PMA provides education, support, and advocacy on behalf of the production music community. For more information visit www.pmamusic.com.
Debra Young Krizman Executive Director PMA Contact Debra via email
“Ǝvolution” Comes Full Circle At The Chelsea Film Festival
The Chelsea Film Festival, running from October 16th through October 20th, 2024, at Regal Cinemas here in Union Square, is set to host the East Coast premiere of Ǝvolution, a thought-provoking experimental micro-short film that proves big ideas can come in small packages and in perfect circles.
In just 1 minute 16 seconds, this cinematic gem by Award-Winning Director Romina Schwedler, with original music by Argentine Composer Ignacio Montoya Carlotto, explores a cycle as old as time: life leads to progress, progress leads to destruction, and destruction, well, leads back to life. But is this vicious circle unbreakable? Ǝvolution suggests the answer is yes, unless we decide to open our eyes.
Inspired by the overwhelming number of recent events that threaten human existence, Ǝvolution, possibly the shortest film in this 12th edition of the festival, plays out entirely through the symbolism of circles, cleverly illustrating —in the blink of an eye— the repeating patterns of history, and confronting viewers with the uncomfortable truth that our so-called “progress” may, in fact, be guiding us to our own ruin.Premiering at the Regal 14 Union Square, New York City, on October 18, 2024, at 11 a.m., Romina Schwedler's micro-short, featuring Leah Young with cinematography by Alan J. Carmona, will be sure to spark conversations longer than the film itself! Forcing viewers to reconsider the true meaning of evolution, not just as a biological process, but as a reflection of our collective journey as humans.
With a string of festival appearances across the globe, including CineGlobe at CERN (Switzerland/France), Oscar®... Read More