Motion Picture Assn. topper Dan Glickman discussed the importance of industry cooperation and developments in antipiracy technology in his keynote address Thursday at the Cable & Satellite Broadcasting Assn. of Asia (Casbaa) convention.

Glickman, who was in India prior to arriving in Hong Kong, discussed the growth in cinema admissions this year and Asia's huge potential in the market, citing India's 2 billion admissions in 2006, or 50% of the world's total, as example. He also discussed the growth of homevid markets and increasing popularity of portable devices in changing the way distribution works, taking the entertainment industry into a new age of experimentation.

Piracy, however, remains the major challenge for the global industry, as the Internet remains a hotbed of rights violation activity. Glickman believes technology is an ally in the battle, with future innovations providing a solution for digital rights protection in the future.

"Our job is to keep this industry in producing entertainment alive, thriving, properly secured and protected; and technologically ready for this modern brave world," Glickman said.

Working with industry partners and different governments is crucial in fighting piracy in the multinational world, Glickman pointed out. He also highlighted the importance for the entertainment industry of working with other intellectual property sectors, such as the software biz, to combat the ongoing piracy threat.

Glickman talked about the importance of treaties and dialogue with various governments, with China a country that he believes "requires work." The strict Chinese policy on foreign imports as well as its censorship practices are giving pirates a tremendous advantage, as they distribute easily available and uncensored entertainment products in the country, he pointed out.

Glickman remains optimistic, however, as he feels that the "enormous amount of experimentation" makes this one of the most exciting times in the history of the entertainment biz.

© Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

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