IPI Releases Report on the Cost of Piracy

WASHINGTON, D.C., October 2: According to the Institute for
Policy Innovation (IPI), movie piracy costs the U.S. economy about $20.5
billion per year in lost wages, tax revenues and earnings.

The report, entitled The True Cost of Motion Picture
Piracy to the U.S. Economy, found that
motion picture piracy has resulted in 141,030 new jobs lost, $5.5 billion in
lost annual earnings among U.S. workers, and $837 million in lost annual tax
revenue, per year.

“While the movie industry is clearly harmed by movie piracy,
the greater story is the harm to U.S. citizens,” said Bartlett Cleland, the
director of the IPI Center for Technology Freedom.

The author of the report, Stephen E. Siwek, principal with
Economists, Inc., added, “As policymakers seek to maintain the health and
vitality of the U.S. economy and preserve our global competitiveness, the
importance of recognizing the real costs of piracy and counterfeiting cannot be
overstated.”