NEW YORK (Reuters) – A federal judge on Wednesday refused a request by independent filmmakers to immediately lift a ban on sending out review copies of movies that are in the running for prizes, but set a full hearing next week.

U.S. District Judge Michael Mukasey said he planned to issue a decision after the hearing next Wednesday in Manhattan federal court. The independent filmmakers want the ban lifted so that film-award voters and critics can watch videos of competing movies at home rather than at studio screenings.

The small filmmaking companies sued the Motion Picture Association of America earlier this week, arguing that the trade group is conspiring with major movie studios to inhibit competition and hurt the smaller producers. They argue that the ban limits the awards they can receive, making it more difficult to get financing.

The MPAA announced the ban on Sept. 30 amid concern that videotapes and DVDs of films vying for Oscars, which are known in the industry as “screeners,” would be illegally copied and sold on black markets in the United States and overseas, or offered for free on the Internet.

The policy has ignited a bitter dispute with the independents, who say it threatens their livelihood.

The group said a recent deal to lift the ban for Oscar voters at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences did not resolve the issue.

Lawyers for the independent filmmakers urged that the ban be lifted completely because judges for several awards shows would be nominating movies and performers over the next few months. They said that ballots for Golden Globe nominations are due on Dec. 15.

However, Mukasey criticized the group for waiting so long to file their lawsuit.

“You delayed, you sat on your rights. I don’t think they (MPAA) should be penalized,” Mukasey said.

During the hearing, Gregory Curtner, lawyer for the filmmakers, said he believed the MPAA’s voiced concern about piracy is a “red herring,” and the ban was really aimed at putting the independents at a disadvantage.

But Richard Cooper, a lawyer for the MPAA, said the trade group has no enforcement role and that it had announced the action being taken by studios.

“This is not a rule that it (MPAA) administers,” he said.

The judge asked if the group was then a “mere mouthpiece.”

“Essentially,” Cooper said. “This is not something the MPAA as an institution decides … there is no enforcement mechanism.”