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Will Streaming Media Lead To A Massive Writer's Strike? (latimes.com)
"A decade ago, Hollywood writers brought the entertainment industry to a standstill when they walked off the job for three months in a dispute over pay for movies and TV shows distributed online," writes the Los Angeles Times. But they're reporting that it may happen again, with the Writers Guild of America now seeking a strike authorization vote from its members.
Streaming services like Netflix and Amazon have transformed Hollywood and contributed to an unprecedented number of quality series being produced -- a phenomenon often described as the new Golden Age of TV. But times haven't been golden for many writers for whom more is now less. Shorter seasons are the new norm, with many series consisting of 10 or fewer episodes on cable and streaming -- less than half the length of traditional seasons on network shows. That has put writers in a financial crunch since many have exclusivity clauses that prevent them from working on multiple shows per season...
"It's getting more and more difficult to make a living as a writer," said John Bowman, a TV writer-producer, and former head of the WGA negotiating committee. Studios are equally dug in as more customers cut the cable cord in favor of streaming options. They're also grappling with a dramatic fall-off in once-lucrative DVD sales and a flattening of attendance at the multiplex. They are releasing fewer titles a year, meaning fewer opportunities for screenwriters... Complicating matters is a lack of transparency. Streaming services operate on subscription models and don't release viewer data, making it difficult to devise a formula for residuals (fees for reruns).
Amazon is a member of the studio alliance, while Netflix "is expected to sign on to an eventual contract." (Though streaming also seems to be hurting the popularity of reruns, which is also reducing the residuals writers receive.) But underscoring the impact of online media, Slashdot reader JustAnotherOldGuy asks, "with all the alternative content available, does anyone care...? Would the writer's strike have any serious impact on your life?"
"It's getting more and more difficult to make a living as a writer," said John Bowman, a TV writer-producer, and former head of the WGA negotiating committee. Studios are equally dug in as more customers cut the cable cord in favor of streaming options. They're also grappling with a dramatic fall-off in once-lucrative DVD sales and a flattening of attendance at the multiplex. They are releasing fewer titles a year, meaning fewer opportunities for screenwriters... Complicating matters is a lack of transparency. Streaming services operate on subscription models and don't release viewer data, making it difficult to devise a formula for residuals (fees for reruns).
Amazon is a member of the studio alliance, while Netflix "is expected to sign on to an eventual contract." (Though streaming also seems to be hurting the popularity of reruns, which is also reducing the residuals writers receive.) But underscoring the impact of online media, Slashdot reader JustAnotherOldGuy asks, "with all the alternative content available, does anyone care...? Would the writer's strike have any serious impact on your life?"
You mean to tell me they were not already on strike? Nothing but remakes, over, and over and over again.
-The wise argue that there are few absolutes, the fool argues that there are no probabilities.
They are negotiating. Its called a strike.
Excuse the Unicode crap in my posts. That's an apostrophe, and slashdot is busted.
2007 writers strike started the unplug movement.
If they try it again in 2017, it will definitely end the unplug movement -- by causing everyone to unplug and switch to streaming-only.
Service Network Minimum Cable Minimum
30 Minute Story $8,062 $5,432
30 Minute Teleplay $17,343 $8,821
30 Minute Story + Teleplay $24,183 $13,557
60 Minute Story $14,192 $9,871
60 Minute Teleplay $23,399 $17,096
60 Minute Story + Teleplay $35,568 $24,768
Staff Writer - 6 Week Guarantee $4,318/week same as network
Staff Writer - 14 Week Guarantee $4,014/week same as network
Staff Writer - 20 Week Guarantee $3,703/week same as network
Any Level Above Staff Writer - up to 9 Weeks $8,055/week same as network
Any Level Above Staff Writer - 10 to 19 Week Guarantee $6,712/week same as network
Any Level Above Staff Writer - 20 Weeks or More Guarantee $6,036/week same as network
I haven't turned on a "television" in over 7 years, and haven't missed it.
Now, I do confess to watching Netflix content with my wife.
Was visiting a family member at the hospital recently, and the individual turned this "television" on to see what it was all about. "Channel" after "channel" of strange annoying things called "commercials". We didn't like it and turned it off. Grabbed the laptop and fired up Netflix. Much better.
Feel bad for these people but nobody ever promised them anything. Hollywood has always been extremely fickle about what it would support and when, and those tastes change all the time. Things go in and out of favor and writers have to cope with that, including periods of starving. OH WELL.
Now, how the audience consumes content and who, exactly, is making it, is changing. We no longer need TV networks to fund content so they can sell ads against it -and THAT is the only reason TV networks bother with shows anyway, to sell ads.
Without TV networks, the content that is funded and produced IS going to be different. The customer is different. If you paint houses and your customers decided they want blue houses and no longer want yellow houses, you as a painter don't get to stomp your feet and demand that people want yellow houses. You paint blue houses or you starve. Pick.
Anyway, the writers are running a huge risk: as the whole distribution model has changed, we may eventually see the writing model change too. Do we really need union writers or could they find freelancers to do it? Of course they could. And with the script to screen path being more streamlined than ever, the union writers are in a precarious position. The client sitting at home won't care who wrote it as long as it is good.
Sig for hire.
The last time hollywood writers went on strike we got a whole lot of unscripted reality TV such as The Apprentice which in turn made Trump a media 'star'. Can't wait to see the unintended consequences of a second strike.
Regards Sinesurfer A Nerd is someone who lives for technology, A Geek is someone who lives for technology and loves it
I can't stand people like you.
You think not owning a TV makes you an enlightened superhero above everyone else .You're not.
You pick crap to watch then blame the idiot box for your choices. You can be watching documentaries and current events. It's not anyone else's fault you are or were stuck on bad sitcoms and reality TV drivel.
These days you have the Internet and can spend the time watching video that teaches you about the world around you or teaches you a skill. You can do university and trade school learning that use to require a lot of money for the price of your Internet subscription and a working machine. What's the bet you blame the Internet for being full of lolcats instead.
Adding to guises post...
People are asking why the writers are "striking first" They arent. The WGA has been negotiating the deal with the producers since early March.
ALSO, It's not that the contracts are 'bad'. A decade ago, when most of the last deal was hashed out, there was no original streaming content. The studios were circling the wagons against streaming, and netflix was still doing DVDs. A big negotiating point in tat strike was in fact DVD residuals Streaming was not ignored, it;s just that no one really knew how big it would get and what the side effects of it's proliferation might be. Studios wanted to pay zero residuals on "new media" and naturally the writers werent thrilled with this. So, after protracted negotiations, they struck for 14 weeks and eventually got some concessions. Ironically, the lack of new entertainment on TV was a HUGE boon for Netflix, who got a massive surge of subscribers which wall street didn't really8 notice til the strike was long over. but i digress.
Now that streaming is huge, the writers are pretty glad they held out, but there are fresh issues- the new guys, Amazon, Netflix, etc. don't obey the traditional season paradigm. In the old days, when a writer was hired for ' a season' they got 30 (or whatever) shows out of the deal. Now, with their giant budgets and more elaborate shows, series like "walking Dead might have 16 (but often fewer) episodes per season. Because writers are often exclusive to the show, and they are paid 'per episode', many of them are making half as much. So its back to the table to negotiiate this and similar issues.
The AMPTP is the body that reps the studios, networks and independent producers. They negotiate not only with writers, but with the DGA, SAG-AFTRA, IATSE, the AFM, etc. Suffice to say that they are some hard nosed old bastards. They have a rep for not budging and often, a strike is the only way to make something happen.
By the way, when the writers went on strike in 2007, it was a huge dead weight on production in CA. On a film, lines in scripts get rewritten a little every day During the strike, many directors on already-running films did n ot want to cross picket lines by doing these small rewrites themselves. With writers on strije, there was no one to do it. So a lot of productions stalled, and some stopped altogether. This affects hundreds of thousands of industry workers all over the world.
I was in the middle of a divorce and had just come off a lucrative 18 month job, a little movie about spartans in red capes. My ex's evil lawyer convinced a judge to award payments based on my employed income. I was out of work for about 6 months due to the strike- with the extra monthly whammy to the ex, plus my lawyers (I fired the one who allowed the preceding to happen) I got murdered during the last strike. If this one happens, it wont be as bad, but I don't thing its going to come to a strike.
just my 2 cents.
PS the ex and I get along fine these days, and the kid who was born during the strike is now 10! Yikes!
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