MPAA President to be Thrown Out

Written by Ben Jones on April 02, 2009 

MPAA chairman Dan Glickman is currently searching for another job. The Clinton-era cabinet minister has been head of the MPAA for the last four and a half years, but will be replaced in 18 months time because of his lacking performance. By contrast, Glickman’s predecessor, Jack Valenti held the office for 38 years.

Glickman, head honcho at the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA), is in an unenviable position. As head of the MPAA he helped lead the organization into a crusade against millions of people around the world, pushing strategies which can, and often were described as draconian.

Glickman’s departure comes as many see current MPAA tactics starting to backfire. In the important teen and twenties demographics the MPAA’s messages are not getting through, and in many cases are driving resentment against them. The negative PR generated by The Pirate Bay case, initiated after intense pressure was put on the Swedish government by the MPAA (via the White House) has also worked against them, as have various pushes globally to get ISPs to agree to a 3-strikes (or ‘graduated response’) policy. Others claim that Glickman’s leadership has been lackluster, his public speaking gigs ‘bad’ and ‘boring’, and hint that the short contract extension is because of this.

MPAA’s Dan Glickman speaking (yawn)

glickman

Of course, there is also precedent for the head of the MPAA being let go after embarrassing or damaging public relations activities. Glickman’s predecessor, Valenti, retired not long after a showdown between the MPAA and studios over an MPAA screener ban in late 2003. In that case the MPAA backed down after a court injunction went against them, and before a massively damaging antitrust lawsuit could be brought.

In the last few years, the MPAA has become the source of much derision. In choosing a successor for Glickman, the selectors will have to look hard to find someone able to bring the industry into the 21st century (or even the latter half of the 20th) and recapture the trust and credibility of the general populace. Meanwhile, to Glickman, we utter the words made famous by MPAA member NBC, “You’re Fired!”

Previously: Anti-Piracy Law Causes Drop in Swedish Internet Traffic

Next: MediaDefender Buys MediaSentry

51 Responses

1 Apr 02, 2009 at 23:28 by Quartz

Excellent News.

This will save the MPAA a million at least.

2 Apr 02, 2009 at 23:29 by ooo

nice

3 Apr 02, 2009 at 23:37 by fr3ak

As if one person will be able to counteract the years of inability to change their business model… It will be an epic fail for whoever comes in as well.

4 Apr 02, 2009 at 23:44 by God

Thank Fuck For That!

5 Apr 03, 2009 at 00:00 by Torrentia

Lets hope for the best. Maybe they will finally embrace piracy.

6 Apr 03, 2009 at 00:05 by www.10ch.org

“the selectors will have to look hard to find someone able to bring the industry into the 21st century (or even the latter half of the 20th) and recapture the trust and credibility of the general populace.”

I doubt it. They will never change!

“The MPAA is a terrible organization that ought to be disestablished” – Spread the word.

7 Apr 03, 2009 at 00:18 by Welshie

Now all we need is a win for TPB and all my x-mas wishes would have come true…

8 Apr 03, 2009 at 00:20 by Zundfolge

As a former Kansan (Glickman was originally a congressman from Kansas) I can tell you that Dan Glickman is barely a functioning retard.

His presence or absence ANYWHERE is not going to matter in any way, shape or form.

He’s one of those government schlubs that just shows up, keeps a chair warm and cashes his check every two weeks.

9 Apr 03, 2009 at 00:26 by Zush

He’s also an old man who lived in a world where Internet did not exist until a decade ago, i.e. he knows NOTHING about the way things are nowadays and how everything is changing.

10 Apr 03, 2009 at 00:28 by tw@tster

I’m sure there will be many a sympathetic post here – the guy has lost his job, in the middle of a global recession.

I have but 2 words – ha ha!

11 Apr 03, 2009 at 00:29 by Korgil

Often when a business is outdated they’ll “shuffle out” the old decision makers in a desperate attempt to keep the business going….

seriously though in this case they really shouldnt bother, the masses have made the decision that they will not back any campaiagn you try to war against those that choose to file share any more than we’d give up our cd’s and start using cassette tapes again……the times have moved on and its time you did the same MPAA and save yourselves more embarrassment

12 Apr 03, 2009 at 01:13 by Bazin

Good, or possibly bad news. I’m not entirely sure i would like a better performing president to head the MPAA. This entire company needs to die, their policy is distorting and destroying intellectual property law. Not to mention how kids now need to be afraid of using their cell phones in theaters.

13 Apr 03, 2009 at 01:17 by Lachlan Hunt

Good bye Glickman. You will not be missed.

Although I suppose it’s a little too much to believe that he could be replaced by someone a little more sympathetic to what we as consumers want from the industry, and have an understanding of how to compete with piracy (by selling high quality, DRM free content that is available world wide without regional restrictions at a fair price for everyone), rather than attacking it (and their customers) with overly broad copyright laws.

14 Apr 03, 2009 at 01:29 by riaatard

One word…”YAY!”

15 Apr 03, 2009 at 01:36 by anonymous

notice how sloppy & fat he and his friend are in the picture? Pure greed incarnate I tell you!

16 Apr 03, 2009 at 02:02 by Anonymous

DUH STAY OUT OF RIVERDALE! *THROWS GLICKMAN ON THE ROAD*

17 Apr 03, 2009 at 02:53 by Anonymous

@Bazin
“Good, or possibly bad news. I’m not entirely sure i would like a better performing president to head the MPAA. ”

Dan Glickman is just the MPAA’s scapegoat for why they’ve been helpless to stop more and more people from filesharing despite throwing away millions of dollars on anti-P2P bullshit. They needed somebody to place the blame on, and Glickman was it.

Not that Glickman doesn’t deserve it, because that world class asshole absolutely does and then some.

But the point is this. There’s never going to be a better performing MPAA president because the task they’re expected to pull off is an impossible one. Who ever they pick next is just going to wind up getting fired after another 18 months for the same “under performance” as our ol’ pal Dan was.

18 Apr 03, 2009 at 03:24 by Ghostofchris

Time for nursing home!

19 Apr 03, 2009 at 03:24 by Wishful Thinking

i think as downloaders abroad we should use the word share instead of piracy. piracy has been given a bad name and should not be associated with us. use share and care.

20 Apr 03, 2009 at 03:43 by Orbit

I think he looks like Ebenezer Scrooge

21 Apr 03, 2009 at 04:09 by SeawayOutset

I hope they give him a big bonus check … =D

22 Apr 03, 2009 at 04:19 by anonymous

The MPAA should monetize bittorrent downloads through splitting the profit generated from ads on Miniova and Pirate Bay, that’s how they could get paid and people still get stuff for free, get money from every download, YouTube gets profit from ads on their site and plenty of channels that show full TV shows are still making money and people get to watch stuff for free. Bittorrent could be a real money maker if they were smart like that.

23 Apr 03, 2009 at 04:28 by d35i

WoW…good news !

24 Apr 03, 2009 at 05:06 by D

I agree with the suggestion of “share”. We need a different key word. Why should we be disallowed from sharing information? Who has the right to censor us? Who has the right to own our culture and our identity and repress us? Let’s further politicize the issue for starters. We’ll give those bastards at the RIAA and MPAA a glorious migraine. What’s the word everybody? We need more keywords than just share.

25 Apr 03, 2009 at 05:20 by me.

later loser..

26 Apr 03, 2009 at 05:40 by RobbingHood

Could anyone point exactly to what the MPAA does for consumer.

All I see is commission based harassment.

27 Apr 03, 2009 at 05:41 by Tiny

We need to replace him with an inside man.

28 Apr 03, 2009 at 06:17 by iShare

@29

I had similar thoughts, but have people get spots in all the anti-piracy groups and have enough power to have all of them shut-down, at the same time! :D

29 Apr 03, 2009 at 06:21 by Qix

It’s not like theya re going to pick a different kind of man to run the MPAA. The way they go about things may change, but they will still have teh same goal of controlling and owning all of American culture. I mean, it costs $20,000 to be able to use “Happy Birthday” (see wikipedia of happy birthday).

Things may not be as draconian, but the overall aim will be still the same regardless, because the “theys” that choose are just as bad as Glickman.

30 Apr 03, 2009 at 06:22 by kwh

Torrent freak or TPB should give him a job offer! that would be sooo cool. or in the least, invite everyone to send him flowers!

31 Apr 03, 2009 at 06:27 by Anonymous

In all honesty, his precedessor didn’t have to deal with today’s internet. And if his successor lasts any longer, it’ll only be because he evolves into some kind of Netzilla that breathes fire through the monitors of anyone thinking about downloading stuff.

32 Apr 03, 2009 at 06:38 by Anonymous

Peter sunde for MPAA CEO

33 Apr 03, 2009 at 07:00 by Homeless Glickman

@ 34
“Peter sunde for MPAA CEO”

Hahaha… Epic Managing!

34 Apr 03, 2009 at 08:32 by DTL

“Glickman’s departure comes as many see current MPAA tactics starting to backfire”

starting? lol

if u call starting like 2-3 years ago

35 Apr 03, 2009 at 09:24 by Ernesto

I guess Ernesto does not master the French language

Here’s something in English for ya lamer

http://www.tgdaily.com/content/view/41927/118/

36 Apr 03, 2009 at 09:33 by http://www.lookkey.com

His useless tactics of war against the entire p2p world has been proved as totally useless, and the world will see them even more than useless as soon as ThePirateBay will win their lawsuit a.k.a. Spectrial.

37 Apr 03, 2009 at 09:34 by www.lookkey.com

He deserved that.

His useless tactics of war against the entire p2p world has been proved as totally useless, and the world will see them even more than useless as soon as ThePirateBay will win their lawsuit a.k.a. Spectrial.

38 Apr 03, 2009 at 10:13 by bill

nar, still evil still idiot just don’t employ this beast.
just send him and his snake oil lies back to were he came from a ass hole.

EPIC FAIL

39 Apr 03, 2009 at 10:17 by bill

the only thing this guy deserves is to have a date with

old sparky the electric chair.

crimes against humanity.

To Hades with this beast.

40 Apr 03, 2009 at 10:41 by mister_playboy

Don’t let the door hit ya on the way out!

41 Apr 03, 2009 at 12:26 by Anonymous

Oh, die, stupid old fat bastard.

42 Apr 03, 2009 at 13:43 by joshua

good riddance to bad rubbish.

rot in hell with that fag jack.

43 Apr 03, 2009 at 14:45 by RoestVrijStaal

I’m wondering who is going to be his successor and what his view to p2p is.
Hopefully the successor sees that p2p can’t be stopped and could help to make profit without a count.
Otherwise, I think that the successor will be even quick fired as he is hired…

44 Apr 03, 2009 at 18:58 by me.

Who is that knob in the background.. I have seen him before in videos and such…

45 Apr 03, 2009 at 19:03 by Gary Shapiro

I disagree. When the MPAA first picked Dan I was overjoyed. The Congress and the President were Rs and they chose a D. Now that all are Ds, I don’t understand why the MPAA leaders would make a change.

While Valenti was colorful, he verged on hyperbole. Dan is less colorful but this is appreciated across the spectrum in Congress. Dan is modest and his only flaw is following a legend.

Dan is also an incredibly nice and ethical guy – which counts for a lot in my book.

46 Apr 03, 2009 at 23:08 by Kmaid

Someone with a wikipedia account should update his occupation ;)!

47 Apr 03, 2009 at 23:56 by Rekrul

What do you want to bet that whomever they hire to be his replacement will be at least 50 years old and whose computer “experience” will be limited to checking his email?

48 Apr 04, 2009 at 10:34 by Anonymous

Hopefully, they’ll get someone younger who actually has some understanding of modern technology. Experience or education in an information technology field would be ideal.

Glickman isn’t a bad guy, he just tried to lash out at something that he did not understand. From his point of view, file-sharing is the same as stealing. I actually remember when the MPAA was viewed in a positive light (a very long time ago).

What the MPAA needs to do, is find a new business model based on the internet, as movie theaters are fast becoming a thing of the past. They should also stop hunting cammers, as the DVD rips are actually what cost them profits.

Concerning p2p, I don’t really see how to use it as an especially profitable business model. The majority of BitTorrent users download to try before they buy or simply to avoid paying. p2p will only ever work for free files or advertising based business models. The MPAA could afford the bandwidth for direct downloads anyway.

49 Apr 04, 2009 at 21:52 by Ripfart

Does anyone know that a bomb was found this morning outside Glickman’s house? Police told the public not to panic because they had found a way of pushing it back in.

50 Apr 10, 2009 at 04:16 by Dan Glickman Will Be My Bitch!

\o/

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_scP_nlAzD8

It’s been a while since I posted under this name but I figure once more for old times sake. :P

@Gary Shapiro – “Dan is also an incredibly nice and ethical guy…”

LOL. Even for a Glickman apologist, you’re just incredibly naive. Sit back and enjoy a post of mine from a year ago.

quote-

12 May 07, 2008 at 03:02 by Dan Glickman Will Be My Bitch!

Well, well, well. Gee, why am I not surprised to see Glickman’s name associated with cronyism? This dirtbag with all the ethics of pond scum has spent a career ass-deep in influence peddling and coddling corporate criminals, including his time in the Clinton cabinet.

Here is a pathetic little man under whose leadership has not only steered the helm of the MPAA into active participation in outright criminal acts such as hiring hackers to break into torrent and p2p sites, proving beyond all doubt who the real outlaws are, but has publicly stated on more than one occasion his outright and literal hatred of filesharers. Jack Valenti had his faults and was certainly no friend of filesharers, but at least he never stooped to outright criminal actions when he ran the MPAA. Whatever respect and credibility the MPAA ever had under Valenti’s leadership, has been tossed aside like yesterday’s newspaper by Dan Glickman’s stewardship of the organization as he follows, and acts on, his obsessive hatred of filesharers that borders on clinical psychosis. Glickman is determined to crush filesharing by any means necessary, even when those means are illegal.

You can expect Mr. Glickman to continue his whining as MPAA continues to lose on all fronts in its war against its own customers.

Hey, Glickman! Tell us more bullshit about how the industry is losing so much money due to filesharing. There are currently, at the time of this posting, over 10 different cams of Iron Man floating around. You can’t go on the net without seeing multiple versions readily available. And yet Iron Man took in over $200 million USD worldwide in just it’s first two days. So tell me another fairy tale about Hollywood struggling to get by because pirates are bankrupting the studios.

If Dan Glickman was Pinocchio, even the biggest stretch limo in Hollywood couldn’t accommodate his nose, world-class liar that he is.

Hoist the sails and fly the Jolly Roger proudly, mateys. Yarr, there’s plundering to be done.

And an MPAA chairman to keel-haul.

Ramming speed!

/quote

Ah, good times. :D

51 Apr 10, 2009 at 08:56 by Bloodyscot

The MPAA and RIAA need to stop this war of lawsuits only the lawers are winning.
Fix the laws and work on new business models is the way to go.
Copyright laws and the public domain are broken.
Every 20 years or so lawmakers just add more time to copyrights and get alot of money for their campaigns.
Try and find a movie or record that the copyright has run out, even
most if not all 78s(invented 1924 I think) are still under copyright, never mind 45s and 33s. I don’t think anyone alive today will live long enough to see CD copyrights run out.
Taking movies started in 1927 so they are sill under copyright.

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