Writer Strike?

[ZetaVu]

Some potential hope? - http://www.freepress.net/news/28776
http://www.inthenews.co.uk/entertainment/tv/writers-hope-strike-solution-$1176247.htm

or not - http://www.tvweek.com/news/2007/12/w...hurs_dec_6.php

and some possible breakup of the studios unity on the horizon? - http://www.azcentral.com/business/ar...or1205-ON.html

[DonK]

I hate to sound like a jerk, but, the studios need to just hire scabs and be done with it. Strikes are nothing more than legal extortion, because eventually the studios would have to cave or break the union/strike if they wanted to keep people watching stuff they put out.

If I didn't show up to work because I wanted a raise, I'd simply be fired and replaced with someone else. All a union does is use unfair tactics against employers. NOBODY is winning anything by this strike. It's incredibly childish to strike because it affects more than just the writers. This isn't about "the little guy", because when writers get residuals for a work for damn-near perpetuity now (Woo woo! go obscenely long copyrights! go!), there's NO reason why they couldn't still work and negotiate at the same time. IMHO, the same residuals for dvds should apply to online downloads, that should solve the problem entirely, but guess what, the WGA wants DVD royalties DOUBLED.

I understand their "new media" quibbles, but they're also banking on everything being "connected" in the future, and the TRUE dream is now being realized: no ownership of material for private use, everything DRM'd pay-for-play. No more buying DVD's and keeping your collection and playing it as many times as you want. No more first-sale doctrine for a USED market.

The problem is... it'll NEVER happen in our lifetime. No way are people going to be that stupid as to give up physical media distribution in favor of electronic DRM'd media.

It's becoming quite apparent now to most people who go to the store and buy a dvd and then go "hey, how can i transfer this copy to my <insert multimedia playback device name here> and watch it on that but still have my original disc for use if necessary?

Smart people also see digital distribution as a way to milk someone for multiple copies of the same media, and the quality difference (but NOT price difference) in things like iPod movie downloads vs DVD are even more apparent after they start doing some homework.

Why pay 14.99 for a movie download of inferior quality when you can purchase a DVD disc that you can use readily accessible utilities to do placeshifting? (Don't even get me started about how the DMCA is supposed to "prohibit" that simply by merit of the encryption mechanism, that's just an example of my previous point that they want "pay for play" type payment schemes.)

If the WGA is so intent on protecting the "little guys", then they should be paying the salaries of EVERY person that's being fired/laid off/out of work because of the strike. Until they do, I have no sympathy whatsoever for them.

You know who else is affected by the strike? Me and you. How?
MORE INANE REALITY/GAME SHOWS!!

I mean, come the heck on, AMERICAN GLADIATORS!?!?! WHEN WILL THE MADNESS STOP!?! I thought I was rid of that kack back in the early 90s! BLEH! ACK! GAG!

Somebody save us from "Reality TV"!!

[ZetaVu]

Great solution, in order to avoid the stupidity that is reality tv (started with Springer, then blame mtv) you suggest we fire all the talented writers that gave us all the shows you treasure and replace them with hacks, probably the same guys who script reality tv.

Pay for quality, don't pay for shit, you get what you pay for.

[RiderFan]

If you are on strike, and your employer says "to hell with you" and hires replacement workers. Then you will realize that life goes on without you and you might be tempted to come back down to Earth from your lofty "I am god" mentality. Hiring replacement writers would just be a temp solution, so the quality of writing wouldn't be an issue. Similar to the NFL strike, where they got replacement players. Then when the strike was over, the NFL players came back.

Donks solution is bang on.

[ZetaVu]

I remember the replacement players, other than Tom Waddle (And I think Erik Kramer, but for another team) otherwise useless. Even the NFL did not include those games in their stats.

Players and owners used every trick to improve their leverage. The scabs were not a success, otherwise the owners would not be the players' bitches right now.

[RiderFan]

I agree, the replacement NFL players were useless, so might the replacement writers be, but thats what business owners have to do when their workforce won't work. Hire replacement workers who will get the job done.

[Zaap]

This topic has sure devolved. We're talking about industries that are bound by contracts. The businesses don't get to break those contracts willy-nilly- this is all stuff they've agreed to already, the same as anyone here who works for a living, gets paid what they agreed to do the job for, under the conditions they agreed to do it.

For the studios, unions, wage negotiations, the possibility of strikes, etc. are all part of the deal. Don't like the realities of your own labor agreements, in the industry you agreed to do business in? Then get out of the business!

[merrypig]

But that's the point though isn't it? Technology and society has (d)evolved in a way that in most cases wasn't even possible when some of these contracts were written.

Folks are trying to renegotiate those contracts to be more current and applicable to today. I don't really object to that. I don't agree with strikes in general however. They always struck me as a childish approach to negotiating. Cry louder and longer until someone gives in and fixes it for you. Even if you win, what pride could you have in yourself afterwards knowing that you only got your way through blackmail and sheer spite.

Anyway, that's just me. What we talking about again?

[RiderFan]

Originally Posted by Zaap

For the studios, unions, wage negotiations, the possibility of strikes, etc. are all part of the deal. Don't like the realities of your own labor agreements, in the industry you agreed to do business in? Then get out of the business!

I couldn't agree more. What else could the writers do if they did decide that they don't like their contract and they should get out of the business. Maybe they could become waiters...McDonalds is always hiring...

[ZetaVu]

Maybe they should organize and make startups (like cable channels, or in this case internet channels) and start writing and creating their own shows, maybe that will get financial backers, the big writer, producer, actor names, maybe their new "network" will start to draw viewers sick of the current reality show/rerun networks. Maybe they'll start winning awards and gaining Neilsens. Maybe eventually, after the studios cave (again) they will be forced to buy up the new competition, and create mega-media companies, with cool names like Fox, Viacom, or old boring names like CBS or Disney.

Maybe we should take a look at history (even when that history is only 19 years old) and learn from that, To quote an old man in a cylon hot tub, "all this has happened before, and it will happen again."

[ZetaVu]

Hunting around for any news, negotiations are down, but this was an interesting read - http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/articl.../EDR7TS75I.DTL

[MarcP]

The actors' guild award has been exempt from the strike and were given one writer to help them out. LOL!!!

[flavius]

Lots of insiders are convinced that this one will go just as long as the last strike which lasted like - six month?

[ZetaVu]

The studios are keeping track of how much money the writers are losing while on strike

http://www.reuters.com/article/enter...58501220071212

So, who's keeping track on how much money the studios are losing from lost ad revenue, abysmally low ratings, and free ads or refunded ads? And this does not include the reduces future revenue because they have nothing new to pitch in their upfronts - http://ca.today.reuters.com/news/new...RITERS-COL.XML

There was another article talking about ad revenue, cbs and abc had ot give out free ads because of the massive ratings drop, nbc went ahead and gave advertisers a refund.

And of course there is the director's union, who negotiate in May but might move up talks - http://blog.wired.com/underwire/2007...ors-guild.html (a poorly written article but I was lazy) My thoughts, if the Directors ask for the same deal as writers, and are adamant, they both win. If the directors settle for less, the writers strike could go on even longer or end immediately. I wouldn't put it past the studios to give in to the directors just to show up the WGA negotiators, which would be good for the writers, bad for their union mgmt (but who cares)

[ZetaVu]

Ok, really doesn't deal much with the strike, more about the pilot process network vs cable and what should be done. - http://www.reuters.com/article/enter...45432920071213

Also lists network shows picked up for full seasons so far on page 2 - "this fall, 23 scripted series premiered on broadcast. Only eight of them -- ABC's "Pushing Daisies," "Private Practice," "Samantha Who?" and "Dirty Sexy Money" and CBS' "The Big Bang Theory," NBC's "Chuck" and "Life" and the CW's "Gossip Girl" -- have been ordered for a full season." Also talks about the USA/FX series (Psych, 4400, Monk, Dirt, Riches, Burn Notice, etc) that are doing well and could make it to networks as strike replacements. Sadly some of the really good shows (the Shield, and I suppose Nip/Tuck) are still a little too raunchy for network.