Tag Archives: Motion Picture Association of America

MEDIA: Wanda’s Worried Wang Sends Hollywood Message to Trump

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Bottom line: Wanda’s cautionary words to Donald Trump are unlikely to have much impact on the incoming US president, who is likely to take a more skeptical view of Chinese M&A in Hollywood.

Wanda appeals to Trump via MPAA

Wanda Group founder and chief Wang Jianlin is used to getting what he wants, especially when it comes to overseas buying as he tries to build up a global entertainment empire. But one of China’s richest men is clearly rattled by the ambivalent or even hostile attitude towards his country by US president-elect Donald Trump.

Worried about the changing winds in Washington, Wang has turned to Hollywood’s mouthpiece, the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA), to tell Trump that Hollywood could face huge consequences if he tries to shut down China’s recent buying binge. Wang has been Hollywood’s most enthusiastic shopper these days, purchasing cinema operator AMC Entertainment (NYSE: AMC) and studio Legendary Entertainment over the last few years. He also announced a recent deal to buy Dick Clark Productions, and recently signed a major co-production deal with Sony Pictures. Read Full Post…

Baidu Cranks Up Anti-Piracy Campaign

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Baidu cleans up Yingyin

Just days after announcing a new acquisition designed partly to rid its various sites of piracy, leading search engine Baidu (Nasdaq: BIDU) has removed all pirated material from one of its popular video sharing sites. The timing of this move looks quite interesting for a number of reasons, including the fact that Chinese media are saying Baidu has just been fined by Beijing for piracy violations. The move also comes just 6 weeks after Baidu was sued for piracy by China’s leading video sites, which took the action in an unusual alliance with Hollywood’s most powerful trade association. But perhaps most interesting is the fact that the US could soon release its latest list of the world’s most “notorious” piracy sites, and Baidu has no desire to see its name appear on the list. Read Full Post…

Hollywood, Rivals Ambush Baidu With Piracy Lawsuit

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Baidu snared in video piracy lawsuit

In what looks like a highly coordinated ambush, a group of China’s top online video sites have teamed up with Hollywood to sue Internet search leader Baidu (Nasdaq: BIDU) for video piracy. This is the first time I can recall seeing big western names team up with Chinese companies to launch such a major lawsuit, creating not only legal headaches but also a huge wave of negative publicity for Baidu. The action also comes as Baidu makes a series of major moves in the online video space in a bid to challenge industry leader Youku Tudou (NYSE: YOKU), which is also one of the co-plaintiffs in this new lawsuit. Read Full Post…

Alibaba in Anti-Piracy PR Blitz 阿里巴巴进行反盗版公关

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E-commerce leader Alibaba has been on a quiet PR offensive for much of the last year, seeking to convince the US that its Taobao marketplaces aren’t havens for pirates whose sales of knock-off products cost legitimate brands billions of dollars in lost sales each year. That drive has reached a crescendo with the company’s highly trumpeted announcement of a new deal with Hollywood to fight the sale of pirated movies online. The deal will see Taobao and the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) work together to identify merchants that sell pirated movies over Taobao’s various e-commerce platforms and remove the pirated merchandise. (English article)

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