Movie piracy in dragon country hits Uncle Sam

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: Movie piracy in China is costing the major film studios nearly $300 million a year, with more than nine out of every 10 DVDs sold in that country being a fake or stolen product, Motion Picture Association Chairman and CEO Dan Glickman said recently.

Glickman was among those who testified at a US Senate subcommittee hearing called by Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Okla., to discuss ways to ensure protection of American intellectual property rights in China.

‘‘If you did not see a counterfeit DVD, you were not in China,’’ Glickman said during the hearing, held at The Museum of Television and Radio. ‘‘Unfortunately, I fear our collective perception of China has become so ingrained with the notion that China is overflowing with pirate DVDs we frequently fail to appreciate the magnitude of the problem.’’ The theft of intellectual property in China has been a hot political topic this month and was among the issues discussed during President George W Bush’s visit to China, which ended Sunday, as well as during California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger’s recent weeklong trip to the country.

‘‘The bottom line is, American leaders in Washington need to get serious about how to handle this problem,’’ Coburn said during the hearing. ‘‘American jobs are at stake.’’

In addition to Glickman, who represented the major studios, Coburn gathered together witnesses from the recording, software and technology industries who all urged that the US put pressure on China to crack down on the practice in a country where there are few repercussions to deter the pirates.

‘‘When it comes to ripping off our American sound recordings, China is one of the worst,’’ testified songwriter Gary Burr, speaking on behalf of the Recording Industry Association of America. ‘‘The problem remains as bad as ever. Realistic, meaningful penalties are never imposed.’’

Glickman testified that the piracy problem is so rampant that the illegal films are readily available for purchase on virtually all street corners and packed on the shelves of audio-visual stores in just about every neighborhood.