Film societies to benefit from MPLC licence
The British Federation of Film Societies (BFFS) and the Motion Picture Licensing Company (MPLC) are offering community cinemas in the UK the newly created MPLC Umbrella Licence. A licensee is allowed unlimited use of a home library of DVDs, Blu-ray or downloads from any legal retail or rental source, for one low annual fee.
The MPLC is a non-theatrical licensing specialist, providing blanket licenses for screenings across 20 countries worldwide. MPLC Los Angeles President PJ Kuyper said, “We are determined to invest in UK film societies and rural cinema programmes. As soon as we realised that this sector was so poorly serviced, we wanted to help.”
Federation Against Copyright Theft (FACT) Director of Operations James Angell said, “Film piracy continues to damage the film industry in the UK and worldwide. Provision of an appropriate and workable licensing scheme is a vital piece of the overall anti-piracy effort.”
BFFS Chair Donna Anton said, “Eureka! The bespoke BFFS-MPLC licensing service gives triumphant new meaning to win-win: community cinemas across the UK may not only start screening films using personal copies and downloads of DVDs, they now have an expanded list of popular titles to choose from – all for a reasonable fee.
“Technology marches on, yet BFFS’s mission – since 1946 – as the national advocate for the film society sector remains as relevant and important as ever. We thank the MPLC for delivering on the needs of our sector.”
The MPLC and BFFS are continuing discussions with studio partners to improve access to films, choice of providers and levels of customer service. So far, Walt Disney Pictures and 20th Century Fox have joined the scheme.
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