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Strike Talks Yield Fuzzy Math
The talks might be a little more cordial—it is the holiday season, after all—but there's still no new contract under the tree for Hollywood writers.
Reps for the Writers Guild of America and the Alliance of Motion Picture & Television Producers are back at the bargaining tables seeking to resolve a bitter strike that has virtually shut down Tinseltown.
While sources say the most recent discussions, held Tuesday in an undisclosed location, were relatively amicable, CBS boss Les Moonves stated he was "not terribly optimistic" that the dispute would be resolved soon.
Now entering its second month, the strike's key issue is the amount of residuals writers should get from new-media endeavors, including Internet streaming and mobisodes.
This week, the two sides began discussing a counteroffer from the WGA to a proposal put forth last week by producers.
In its proposal, dubbed the New Economic Partnership, AMPTP suggested a fixed residual for writers of $250 per year for any hourlong show made available online, jurisdiction over certain new-media content, as well as residuals for content delivered over alternative digital channels.
Given that WGA members currently receive virtually nothing from new-media revenue streams, producers estimated their plan would result in an increase of $130 million in total royalties over a three-year contract period. That's along with $1.3 billion worth of payments the guild already receives.
While the WGA took issue with that $130 million figure, suggesting the producers were engaged in some creative accounting, the union said struck a conciliatory tone.
"While it is unclear where that $130 million would be created, we greet [AMPTP's proposal] with real interest," the union said in a statement. "If the AMPTP is serious about this figure, the WGA is confident we are close to a deal and hopeful that the companies will respond positively to our sincere movement to partner with them."
By its own calculations, the union said the producers' proposal structure would result in an increase of just $32 million.
Instead, the writers proposed a three-year plan worth $151 million, which begins with $33 million in residuals the first year then escalates to $50 million the second and $68 million in the third—presumably coinciding with an uptick in media usage. All told, the guild said, the amount represents a 3.9 percent increase in residuals.
Producers weren't exactly thrilled with the WGA's proposal but issued a response notable for what it didn't do—reject the counteroffer outright.
"We will spend the evening studying what the WGA had to say, and we look forward to returning to the bargaining table tomorrow," the producers said.
Sessions were scheduled to resume Wednesday.
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