MPA Chairman and CEO Rivkin Announces Hire of Fourth Highest Ranking FBI Official as New Global Chief of Content Protection

Larissa Knapp Brings Almost Three Decades of Law Enforcement Experience to EVP and Chief Content Protection Officer Role, Ready to Take ACE to the Next Level

WASHINGTON, June 25, 2024 /PRNewswire/ — The Motion Picture Association (MPA) today announced that Larissa Knapp, the fourth-highest ranking official at the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), will lead its content protection mission, strengthening the fight against online piracy worldwide.

Knapp joins the MPA after 27 years with the FBI, most recently leading the Bureau’s National Security Branch where she managed a budget of $300 million and a branch of over 2,000 personnel. Previously, she led the FBI’s Security, Training and Human Resources Divisions and Data Analytics, supporting over 36,000 FBI employees worldwide. Knapp started her FBI career as an agent handling intellectual property and cybercrimes.

In her new role as Executive Vice President and Chief Content Protection Officer, Knapp will drive the continued expansion of the Association’s content protection operations – specifically the MPA’s Alliance for Creativity and Entertainment (ACE), the world’s leading online antipiracy organization. Knapp will lead ACE’s efforts to tackle the most damaging piracy services and operators around the world. Her leadership will focus on deepening and broadening ACE’s partnerships with law enforcement agencies around the world, expanding its membership base, and growing ACE’s operational footprint in key markets to support the protection of creators and consumers.

“Larissa’s extraordinary background leading investigations teams across the world and successfully pursuing criminal cases will undoubtedly take ACE’s content protection efforts to a new peak of excellence,” said Charles Rivkin, Chairman and CEO of the Motion Picture Association. “With Larissa’s experience in high-risk, complex organizational environments coupled with her visionary leadership, I’m confident that our content protection enforcement business will only grow in stature and impact, as we safeguard the rights and productions of all those who conceive, develop, and deliver creative masterpieces for screens big and small.”

Based in Washington, Knapp will report to Karyn Temple, Senior Executive Vice President and Global General Counsel for the MPA.

“I am honored to be part of such an iconic global organization that prioritizes the integrity of the creative economy, driven by ACE members’ groundbreaking films, TV series, and streaming content. These works represent some of the most influential and accessible forms of artistic expression, connecting creators with audiences on a profound level,” Knapp said. “My career in law enforcement has afforded me the opportunity to lead strategic initiatives protecting legal rights and addressing crime on a large scale, and I look forward to leveraging that experience in the fight against copyright infringement on behalf of our members and content creators around the world.”

Knapp holds a Bachelor’s Degree in economics from Union College in New York and a Juris Doctor from Hamline University in Minnesota. 

About The Motion Picture Association

The Motion Picture Association (MPA) serves as the leading voice and advocate of the motion picture, home video, and television industries. It works in every corner of the globe to advance the creative industry, protect its members’ content across all screens, defend the creative and artistic freedoms of storytellers, and support innovative distribution models that bring an expansion of viewing choices to audiences around the world. Its member studios are: Netflix, Paramount Global, Sony Pictures, Universal Studios, The Walt Disney Studios, and Warner Bros. Discovery. Charles Rivkin is Chairman and CEO.

About The Alliance for Creativity and Entertainment

The Alliance for Creativity and Entertainment (ACE) is the world’s leading coalition dedicated to protecting the legal creative market and reducing digital piracy. Driven by a comprehensive approach to addressing piracy through criminal referrals, civil litigation, and cease-and-desist operations, ACE has achieved many successful global enforcement actions against illegal streaming services and unauthorized content sources and their operators. Drawing upon the collective expertise and resources of more than 50 media and entertainment companies around the world—including sports channels and associations—and reinforced by the Motion Picture Association’s content protection operations, ACE protects the creativity and innovation that drives the global growth of core copyright and entertainment industries. The current governing board members for ACE are Amazon, Apple TV+, Netflix, Paramount Global, Sony Pictures, Universal Studios, The Walt Disney Studios, and Warner Bros. Discovery. Charles Rivkin is Chairman and CEO of the Motion Picture Association and Chairman of ACE. For more information, visit www.alliance4creativity.com.