Friday, July 22, 2005 Contact: Sean Oblack (202) 225-4176 Schiff Praises New Anti-Piracy Position  WASHINGTON, DC – Congressman Adam Schiff (D-CA) praised today’s appointment of Chris Israel to lead White House anti-piracy efforts:   “As a longtime advocate for a senior level administration official devoted to the protection of intellectual property I applaud today’s announcement.” said Schiff.  “I look forward to working with Mr. Israel to protect the property of the hardworking, talented, and creative people in our community and country.” Congressman Schiff proposed the creation of an “Intellectual Property Czar” in the Fortifying America’s Intellectual Property Rights (FAIR) Act (H.R. 5117), introduced in September 2004.  The FY 2005 Omnibus Appropriations bill (H.R. 4818) included the creation of such an office to strengthen America’s intellectual property rights throughout the world.  Congressman Schiff’s district in California is home to entertainment industry leaders including:  DreamWorks, Warner Brothers, ABC, NBC and Disney.  He is a Co-Chair of the Congressional International Anti-Piracy Caucus, a bipartisan group of 65 House and Senate lawmakers working with America’s international trade partners to secure the enactment of strong copyright laws and the vigilant enforcement of those laws.  Congressman Schiff is also a member of both the House International Relations and Judiciary Committees and the Intellectual Property Subcommittee.   The United States is the world’s largest creator and exporter of copyrighted materials, accounting for over five percent of the U.S. gross domestic product (GDP) and adding $531 billion to the U.S. economy.  The U.S. economy is under attack due to widespread piracy – the unauthorized reproduction and sale of U.S.-made movies, music, software and other creative works. The motion picture industry estimates losses due to global piracy amount to $3.5 billion annually, not including illegal downloading.  In Russia, nine out of ten DVDs sold are counterfeit copies.  Globally, two in five music recordings are pirate copies, with annual world-wide pirate sales of music estimated between $4-5 billion.  The software industry estimates losses of over $13 billion due to worldwide piracy in 2002. Congressman Schiff represents California’s 29th Congressional District, which includes the communities of Alhambra, Altadena, Burbank, Pasadena, San Gabriel, Glendale, Monterey Park, San Gabriel, South Pasadena and Temple City.                                                   -30-