'Slumdog' Success Fuels Anti-Piracy Push
The U.S.-India Business Council released a statement Friday saying it is hopeful that the India release of the hit film "Slumdog Millionaire" will prompt authorities to recognize the importance of protecting intellectual property and to increase enforcement efforts against film and video pirates. The movie about an orphan growing up in the slums of India received 10 Academy Award nominations this week, including best picture and best director. A recent study commissioned by USIBC as part of its Bollywood-Hollywood Initiative found that India's entertainment and media industry loses some 820,000 jobs and about $4 billion to piracy each year.
"Piracy translates directly into lost opportunities and lost jobs - and squandered creativity," USIBC President Ron Somers said in a press release. "Imagine how many 'Slumdogs' could be conceived, produced and premiered if only there were greater efforts to crackdown on film piracy." Indian media and entertainment is an $11 billion industry growing at over 18 percent annually, USIBC said. "Slumdog Millionaire is just the latest example of the growing connection between Bollywood and Hollywood," said Greg Kalbaugh, the group's director. "The entertainment industries of the U.S. and India are increasingly intertwined, but widespread piracy threatens industry in both countries."
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