PRESS CONFERENCE

Evening Star, Issue 19061, 2 October 1925, Page 9

PRESS CONFERENCE

BROADCASTING COMPETITION VIEWS OF DELEGATES. Press Association —By Telegraph—Copyright. Australian and N.Z. Press Association. MELBOURNE, Octoberl. , Sir Percival Phillips .(England ) predicted that the newspapers would have to face serious competition from Government and private broadcasting stations. He urged them to realise the fact, and be prepared as far as possible to deal with the new situation and protect their common interests. Mr J. H. Woods (Canada) said that his paper had lost subscribers through broadcasting, and some broadcasters stole his news. He advocated that the newspaper proprietors should run broadcasting in conjunction with their own business as the railways ran buses. Air A. C. C. Holtz (Melbourne) said that broadcasting did not harm the Australian papers. Motions were passed stating it would he an infringement of the liberty of the Press to compel political articles to bo signed by the writers. EMPIRE TRADE. MELBOURNE, October 1. (Received October 2, at 1.18 a.m.) The encouragement of interempiro trade formed the dominant note at the Press Conference to-day. The need of an Imperial trade policy was urged. One British delegate said he believed that Australia should develop her primary industries only and buy manufactured goods from Britain, whose trade was suffering. Other British delegates ridiculed • the idea, and stressed the importance of the dominions being self-contained in the case of war. _ Major J. J. Astor suggested that the British manufacturers should give more attention to the dominion markets and mass production, or they would lose their place in the future. Ho urged the Empire Press to take all possible measures to promote the trade of the Empire. The Government should give more thought to the changed conditions arising out of tho war. Australia and New Zealand, he said, were virtually the sole outlet of tlio Britishers whose sole capital was their industry._ A motion was passed urging the British Press to give accurate infonjiation regarding settlement in the.dominions. Lord Apsley (who came to Australia as ft migrant) praised the chances of success in Australia. He said he had got as good a reception as a migrant in the back door as in the front door. Sir Hugh M’lntosh stressed the American films depictions of Englishmen as monoclcd idiots as bad advertisements. He suggested that all Empire picture shows should be compelled to exhibit a set percentage of English films. It was resolved that the Empire Press should use all possible methods to promote interimperial trade, and to impress its importance upon the public. COPYRIGHT. A motion was passed that the Empire Press Council should consider what action was desirable to give more copyright protection to newspapers. Sir Edward Iliffe said that the weekly and monthly papers suffered most from the infringement of copyright. Large sums of money were spent on special articles and photographs, whose value lasted longer than ordinary news. Action could he taken in England for an infringement of copyright, hut damages must first he proved, which was a very difficult task, un the United States it was necessary only to prove that copyright had been infringed. Sir George Fenwick said that the New Zealand papers largely used British periodicals. Ho would he prepared to pay, but he thought the annual amount should he fixed. Other delegates pointed out that it was inadvisable to prevent smaller papers from lifting matter. It was decided to hold tho next conference in London in the summer of 1930.