GLICKMAN: PIRACY IS THEFT MPAA CHIEF, SPEAKING TO COLLEGE STUDENTS, DEFENDS INDUSTRY LAWSUITS.

Byline: Lisa Friedman Washington Bureau

WASHINGTON - Motion picture industry chief Dan Glickman predicted an ``ominous'' future for Hollywood despite a report Wednesday showing a record $64 billion in revenue during 2003.

Speaking before a group of George Washington University students, Glickman defended lawsuits that the Motion Picture Association of America filed recently against people it believes have illegally copied and shared movies online.

Piracy, he said, threatens to decimate Hollywood.

``The future is ominous,'' Glickman said. ``We want to deal with this before it becomes catastrophic.''

The entertainment lobby filed more than 200 lawsuits last month, and more are expected.

Also on Wednesday, the U.S. Census Bureau announced that movie and home video revenues hit an all-time high last year, increasing 6 percent over 2002.

Combined motion picture and sound recording revenues reached $78 billion, a 5 percent increase over 2002.

The figures were based on an annual company survey and included box- office totals, post-production services, film and video distribution as well as food and beverage sales at theaters.

In March, the Motion Picture Association of America announced $9.5 billion in domestic box-office totals, the second-largest in the history of the movies.

The Census Bureau figures on Wednesday showed even higher returns of $12 billion, with feature film exhibitions making up $8 billion of box office estimates.

Jack Kyser, the Los Angeles County Economic Development Corp.'s chief economist, called the numbers good news for the Southland. He said the entertainment industry has grown over the past year from a $31 billion to a $36 billion industry in Los Angeles County alone.

``This is significant, and this is why efforts to try to retain production are important. It's the dollar numbers, it's the tax revenue generated, and, of course, it's the jobs,'' he said.

Fred von Lohmann, senior staff attorney with the Electronic Frontier Foundation in San Francisco, which advocates on behalf of file-sharers, ridiculed what he called Hollywood's double-speak.

``It's amazing to me how one moment they can be talking about their record results and the next moment they can be poor-mouthing about how they're going to go bankrupt,'' von Lohmann said.

``There is no question that they are enjoying their most profitable years in history. For them to argue that file-sharing is hurting their business is simply at odds with the facts,'' he said.

The MPAA estimates piracy costs the industry $3.5 billion annually in lost sales. That figure, however, comes strictly from traditional bootlegs of DVDs and videos, Glickman acknowledged.

He said the industry currently does not have any estimate of how much peer-to-peer networks - which are the focus of the industry lawsuits - actually impact sales.

But Glickman also noted that even bootlegged movies sold on street corners in the U.S. and overseas sometimes start with optical disc piracy. The problems of Internet piracy and bootlegging, he said, are intertwined.

``I think we have to take strong action now, before online piracy hurts the economic basis of the movie business,'' he said.

Glickman also faced questions from students who noted that piracy hasn't hurt box office profits or the wallets of Hollywood stars and executives.

``The people in Hollywood are making so much money as it is, how is my $20 going to make a difference?'' one student asked.

Glickman acknowledged the MPAA faces a public relations battle in convincing people, particularly students, that file-sharing also robs lower-wage workers like makeup artists, grips and caterers.

But the bottom line, he said, is that piracy is simple theft.

``General Motors is filled with rich executives,'' Glickman said. ``Does that mean you don't pay for the cars?''

Lisa Friedman, [phone]

lisa.friedman(at)langnews.com