Progress Reported in Writers’ Strike

LOS ANGELES, December 6: The Writers Guild of America
reported “substantive discussions of the issues important to writers” with the
Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers yesterday, “the first time
this has occurred in this negotiation,” a statement from the organization said.

The Writers Guild noted that it is still waiting for the
AMPTP to respond to its latest proposal, including the critical issue of
residuals for Internet streaming of content. The writers are seeking a fixed
residual based on a minimum of 100,000 streams per quarter. After the first
year, the writers are seeking a 2.5 percent of the distributor’s gross revenues
for online streaming. “We believe these formulas will protect the writer even
if all television reuse migrates to new media,” said Patric Verrone, the
president of WGAW, and Michael Winship, the president of WGAE, in a letter to
members.

The AMPTP, in a statement posted on its website, noted: “We
remain committed to making a fair and reasonable deal. We believe that there is
common ground to be found between the two sides that will put all of us in the
entertainment industry in a better position to survive and prosper in what is a
rapidly changing modern, global marketplace. Our New Economic Partnership
proposes a long-term sustainable future for our industry where we all stand to
benefit, including providing more than $130 million in additional compensation
for the writers above and beyond the more than $1.3 billion the writers already
receive each year.”

—By Mansha Daswani