[mcdreamylover]

From Reality shows on tap if writers strike - Yahoo! News :

Reality shows on tap if writers strike By LYNN ELBER and GARY GENTILE, Associated Press Writers Mon Oct 29, 4:53 PM ET LOS ANGELES - TV viewers hooked on cliffhanger episodes of hit shows such as "Heroes" and "Grey's Anatomy" could be left dangling if writers walk off the job. ADVERTISEMENT With Hollywood writers poised to log off their laptops as soon as Thursday, TV networks were bracing for the need to fill the airwaves with reality shows, game shows and even reruns if a threatened strike devours their script inventory. Viewers could start seeing an onslaught of unscripted entertainment by early next year, when popular series such as "Desperate Housewives" and "Heroes" run out of new episodes. "I was in a network meeting today, and they were referring to the fact the timing is really good for reality producers," said producer Mark Cronin. He and partner Cris Abrego have been consistently busy with shows such as "Flavor of Love," "I Love New York" and "The Surreal Life." But "it's going from 50 mph to 70 mph," Cronin said, adding that networks must "protect themselves and fill their airspace." Members of the Writers Guild of America and the group representing film and TV producers were set to meet Tuesday with a federal mediator after scant progress in contentious talks that have dragged on since July. With the current contract set to expire at midnight Wednesday, negotiators remain far apart on the central issue of raising payment for profits on DVDs and shows offered digitally on the Internet, cell phones and other devices. More than 5,000 members of the Writers Guild of America recently voted, with 90 percent authorizing negotiators to call the first strike since 1988 if necessary. "I'm willing to put my family on the line for what's right," said Mick Betancourt, a writer on the NBC show "Law and Order: Special Victims Unit." Betancourt has a 4-year-old son and a baby due in December but says he is ready to walk a picket line if asked to do so. The Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, the group that negotiates on behalf of networks and studios, has said networks will continue to air quality programming. "CBS is not going to go blank," CBS Corp. President and CEO Leslie Moonves has said. A newcomer to TV's writing ranks earns about $70,000 per season for full-time work on a show. Veteran writers who move up to a story-editor position would get at least a low six-figure salary, with a "written by" credit on an hourlong script paying an additional $30,000 plus residuals. Writers are free to negotiate for higher pay, and people who produce or co-produce — called "hyphenates" in industry parlance — earn more. If writers walk out, the effect wouldn't be felt immediately. Networks have enough episodes of shows such as "Ugly Betty" and "CSI" written and in production to last at least through the end of the year and possibly into next February, industry executives and analysts said. But after that, schedules will run into trouble. Producers already have tried to hurry shooting in preparation for a strike but not always successfully. The CBS sitcom "How I Met Your Mother" was asked by 20th Century Fox Television to shoot an extra episode during a planned production break last week. "It simply would have been impossible, so we said no. That was pretty much where it started and ended," said Jamie Rhonheimer, a writer-producer on the series. A strike could also leave the hosts of the big Hollywood awards shows speechless. The Academy Awards, set for February, January's Golden Globes and other shows rely on teams of writers to fashion quips and monologues. A prolonged writers strike could also affect next year's TV season. Pilots for next fall are being written now and the development process, which includes rewrites and casting, extends through the spring. "When we stop working, it's going to be a lot of catch-up," to get pilots back on track for the fall, said Patti Carr, a writer who has projects in development with ABC and CBS. Networks are busy mulling proposed reality projects that aren't governed by guild contracts. The shows have the advantage of a quick production timeline, said producer Abrego, with a series able to go from "concept to pitch to air" in just a couple months. Abrego expects to see networks going straight from a pitch to a series order, bypassing the time-consuming production of a pilot. Viewers like reality shows but may be so angry at interruptions to their favorite prime-time programs that they turn off their sets in disgust, some observers fear. "You don't want viewers turning away from television, because it can be hard to get them to turn back," said Charles Floyd Johnson, an executive producer on "NCIS." Advertisers, too, would suffer from a long strike and would make networks share their pain. Advertisers are "not going to get what they paid for," said analyst Shari Anne Brill of ad buyer Carat USA. "There will be severe under-delivery (of viewers) on the schedule if you get repeats and less-desirable reality shows," she said. "It puts the networks in a horrific make-good situation." Ad rates are based on predicted ratings; if a show falls short, networks have to make good the difference with additional commercial time. She noted that ad revenue already was down from predictions, even before the season began. In May, when the fall network schedules were introduced, advertisers committed to about $8 billion for prime-time commercials, compared to $9 billion just two years ago. Film production would not immediately suffer the effects of even a prolonged strike because of the long lead time required to make features. Still, studios could soon be wrestling with plots and endings for unfinished 2009 blockbusters such as "X-Men Origins: Wolverine" and the next James Bond flick. Once a film is in production, changes occur almost daily, with writers being asked to create new scenes, punch up dialogue or accommodate an actor's ad-libs or vision for a part. None of that would happen once writers hit the picket line. "What they are looking for is a script as close to a locked script as they can find," said Duane Adler, a writer who has been rushing to finish a 2009 movie for 20th Century Fox studios. It's not a good time for Adler to go on strike, but he is ready to walk out if asked. "I've got a movie coming out, I've got one I want to direct and one that is being fast-tracked," Adler said. "It's a bad time for me personally. But these things are secondary."

Oh joy! More Reality TV.

[+supernova+]

UGH I hate reality TV. The only show I kind of watch is America's Next Top Model, but I don't need to see 456 hours of it.

[mcdreamylover]

From Hollywood labor contract talks break off - Yahoo! News :

Hollywood labor contract talks break off By GARY GENTILE, AP Business Writer 25 minutes ago LOS ANGELES - Hollywood writers and producers broke off contract talks Wednesday night without a new deal, allowing the Writers Guild of America's current pact to expire at midnight. ADVERTISEMENT It wasn't immediately known whether the writers will walk off the job. A call to a union spokesman was not immediately returned. No new talks were scheduled for Thursday, the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers said in a statement. Both sides had resumed negotiations earlier in the day with the help of a federal mediator, and the writers submitted a revamped contract proposal with the hope of avoiding a strike. Details of the proposal were not released, but it appears both sides couldn't agree on whether to give writers more money from the sale of DVDs and the distribution of shows via the Internet, cell phones and other digital platforms. Producers have said they wouldn't agree to anything that would restrict their ability to experiment with new Internet and other digital delivery options for films and TV shows. Calling it "the DVD issue," AMPTP President Nick Counter said in a statement to the writers guild that it was blocking both sides from making further progress in their talks. "We want to make a deal," Counter said. "But, as I said, no further movement is possible to close the gap between us so long as your DVD proposal remains on the table." Members of the guild recently voted to authorize their first strike since 1988 if necessary. The union has set a meeting of its 12,000 members for Thursday night at the Los Angeles Convention Center. Jonathan Handel, an entertainment lawyer at the Los Angeles law firm of TroyGould, said it was in the union's interest to delay a walkout, perhaps by five days or more. "The writers guild has two weapons: One is a strike, the other is the threat of a strike. It has no reason to toss that weapon away without using it for a bit," said Handel, who served in the 1990s as an associate counsel for the guild. A strike by writers would not immediately impact film or prime-time TV production. Most studios have stockpiled dozens of movie scripts, and TV shows have enough scripts or completed shows in hand to last until early next year. After that, networks might turn to reality shows, news programs and reruns to fill the prime-time airwaves. Late-night shows wouldn't fare as well, since they are more dependent on current events to fuel monologues and other entertainment. "The Daily Show with Jon Stewart" and "The Colbert Report" will almost certainly be forced into reruns by a lack of fresh skits and monologues if writers walk off the job. "If the strike happens, we are very likely looking at repeats for both shows," said Tony Fox, a spokesman for Comedy Central, which airs the shows starring Stewart and Stephen Colbert that lampoon political doings of the day. "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno" could follow. NBC declined to comment on what would be in store for the show. But a person with the network, who was not authorized to comment and spoke on condition of anonymity, said "Tonight" and other NBC late-night shows likely would have to resort to repeats with no writing staff to generate new material. CBS declined comment on the possible fate of "The Late Show with David Letterman." During the last strike in 1988, Letterman, then host of NBC's "Late Night," and longtime "Tonight Show" host Johnny Carson initially went off the air but later returned as the walkout dragged on for more than five months. NBC also declined comment on how "Saturday Night Live" might be affected in the weeks ahead but indicated this weekend's show would air as planned. On the movie front, studios are said to have as many as 50 projects ready to go into production. Several major studio projects reportedly are camera-ready, with scripts that could be filmed without requiring a guild member on hand for rewrites. Some sectors would benefit from a walkout. Network news divisions could become beehives in a protracted strike, with networks calling on news magazines such as "Dateline NBC" to fill in programming gaps. Reality TV producers are finding an even warmer welcome at networks, while independent filmmakers foresee the possibility of new distribution doors opening. ___ AP Television Writer Lynn Elber contributed to this report.

Yeah can we pin this like Sarah asked? This may be a good time to do so until this is all resolved.

[caf123]

Originally Posted by mcdreamylover (View Post) From Hollywood labor contract talks break off - Yahoo! News : Yeah can we pin this like Sarah asked? This may be a good time to do so until this is all resolved.

Seconding - or thirding or fourthing? - the request. I was looking for strike news and almost thought there was no thread covering it.

[mcdreamylover]

Hollywood writers on verge of strike

[+supernova+]

I'll stick it.

Looks like Hollywood is going on strike.

Hollywood writers going on strike By GARY GENTILE, AP Business Writer LOS ANGELES - Television and movie screen writers said Thursday they would go on strike for the first time in nearly 20 years in a dispute over royalties. Four writers told The Associated Press that Writers Guild of America President Patric Verrone made the announcement in a closed-door session, drawing loud cheers from the crowd. "There was a unified feeling in the room. I don't think anyone wants the strike, but people are behind the negotiation committee," said Dave Garrett, screen writer for the movie "Deuce Bigalow: European Gigolo." Writers said the guild board would meet Friday to formally call a strike and decide when it would start. They said guild members would be told Friday afternoon. Nick Counter, president of the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, said in a statement the alliance was not surprised by the action. "We are ready to meet and are prepared to close this contract this weekend," he said. Officials had called a meeting of the union's 12,000 members for Thursday night. Guild members recently authorized their negotiators to call the first strike since 1988, if necessary. Writers said the line of questioning inside the meeting wasn't whether the group was going to strike, but how it would be carried out. The mood was subdued as writers filed out of the building. Janis Hirsch, a veteran TV writer, was among the 10 percent who voted against striking. "It's sad, but I've got to support my union. At this point it makes sense," she said. Many writers said that beyond royalties, respect was at stake. They said they had never commanded the same clout in the entertainment industry as actors and directors. "I don't think it's something we can negotiate for," said Paul Guay, who co-wrote the movies "Liar, Liar" and "Heartbreakers." "What we can negotiate for is money. How we assess respect and worth in this town is money." The first casualty of the strike will likely be late-night talk shows, which are dependent on current events to fuel monologues and other entertainment. The strike will not immediately affect film or prime-time TV production. Most studios have stockpiled dozens of movie scripts, and TV shows have enough scripts or completed shows in hand to last until early next year. The key financial issue in the talks involves changing the formula for paying writers a share of DVD revenue, then applying the same equation to money made from material offered over the Internet and other digital platforms. Studios, represented by the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, are dead set against increasing DVD royalties. Writers and actors have been fighting for years to reverse what they see as a huge mistake made at the dawn of home video, when no one was sure if selling movies on VHS cassettes would ever make money. The unions agreed to ignore the first 80 percent of revenue from the tapes and later DVDs, assuming most of the money represented the cost of manufacturing and distribution. Writers settled for just 1.2 percent of the remaining 20 percent, a figure that amounts to about 3 cents on a DVD that retails for $20. Writers are now asking for their share to be calculated on 40 percent of revenue and argue the same formula should be used for digital distribution because studios have almost no costs associated with that technology. Consumers are expected to spend $16.4 billion on DVDs this year, according to Adams Media Research. By contrast, studios could generate about $158 million from selling movies online and about $194 million from selling TV shows over the Web. "Every incremental window of distribution has added revenue and profitability to the business model," said Anthony DiClemente, an entertainment analyst for Lehman Brothers Equity Research. "Digital is likely to be a positive thing for the studios." Studios argue that it is too early to know how much money they can make from offering entertainment on the Internet, cell phones, iPods and other devices. Producers are uncertain whether consumers prefer a pay-per-view model over an advertising-supported system. They want the economic flexibility to experiment as consumer habits change in reaction to technology. The negotiations had revolved as much around emotions as economics, said Doug Wood, a partner with the law firm of Reed Smith who has negotiated with actors on behalf of advertising agencies. "The industry negotiates form logic, and the creative community negotiates from emotion," he said. "Trying to understand those differences on both sides of the table is a big challenge in any of these negotiations."

[Merlin_Bodhi]

Damn, was hoping they could solve it all.

[+supernova+]

I was hoping to as well...but it looks like neither side is budging. Let's hope it doesn't go on for too long. The last strike in 1988 lasted 22 weeks.

[mcdreamylover]

Thanks for topping this!

Hopefully this won't last too long. Just the thought of nothing but reality shows makes me want to puke.

[caf123]

Originally Posted by mcdreamylover (View Post) Thanks for topping this! Hopefully this won't last too long. Just the thought of nothing but reality shows makes me want to puke.

Thought I'd get my holiday shopping done early this year for once but most shows are stockpiled for a few months. I guess it won't hit the viewer until the new year? (except for late-night talks and Steward/Colbert)

[+supernova+]

Well, most shows will run out of episodes by like January, unless they are midseason replacements.


New article:


Writers Set To Strike, Threatening Hollywood

[mcdreamylover]

The link doesn't work. I keep getting Page Cannot Be Displayed.

[caf123]

New York Times November 2, 2007 Writers Set to Strike, Threatening Hollywood By MICHAEL CIEPLY and BROOKS BARNES LOS ANGELES, Nov. 1 — Hollywood’s two decades of labor peace shattered Thursday night, as movie and television writers declared they would embark on an industrywide strike for the first time since 1988, when both writers and Teamsters walked out. The writers’ union said it would inform its members no later than Friday afternoon as to when the strike would begin, according to a person who attended a union gathering Thursday night at the Los Angeles Convention Center. The strike would pit union writers, whose position has been eroded by reality television and galloping technological change, against studios and networks that are backed by big corporate owners like General Electric and News Corp., but are also unsure of the future. The walk-out threatens an instant jolt to television talk shows like “Late Night With David Letterman” and “The Daily Show With Jon Stewart,” which rely on guild writers to churn out monologues and skits. And if the strike drags on, audiences could see the eventual shutdown of soap operas, TV series and movie productions, as they exhaust their bank of ready scripts. In the near term, a writers' strike will have an immediate impact on more than 200,000 workers in the movie and TV industry here and the thousands more who produce or sell entertainment elsewhere in the United States and abroad. The dispute may also signal more labor trouble to come, as directors and actors face similar issues when their contracts expire next June. Over the long haul, multiple strikes could lead to a drastic overhaul of the economics of Hollywood. They could redefine the industry’s relationship with its highly unionized work force at a time when DVD sales are cooling and changing movie and TV markets have workers and companies alike vying for their perceived fair share of a yet-to-be-identified next digital bonanza................

It's a long article, the rest is here.

(I think I fixed the link - can quote the rest if it still doesn't work. There's lots of background then some interviews with small mom-and-pop shops around Hollywood who will also be affected. Sad.

[mcdreamylover]

The writers strike will begin Monday:

Deadline Hollywood Daily � WRITERS STRIKE AT 12:01 AM MONDAY; Forget Any Chance Of 11th Hour Settlement

[konachicka]

I read Kristin's comments on this and it really worries me. If they can't come to an agreement then come January we're not going to have anything to watch except for news and reality tv. UGH!