The WGA Digs In

THE WGA DIGS IN
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: Jim Benson]
A look at what could be a major contract battle between a strident writers union, the Writers Guild of America, and a defiant entertainment industry. Many fear it could lead to a potentially devastating strike by the end of the next TV season. The disagreements focus on, among other things, compensation and benefits for reality-show writers, which the guild has been seeking to organize, and the demand that members receive a percentage of new digital downloads. Another flash point: The WGA wants a piece of the lucrative product-integration market for its members, on the theory that, since they write the advertisers’ products into shows, they should be among those who benefit. The industry, struggling in a relatively flat ad market, insists it needs that revenue to keep producing high-quality entertainment. Both sides are digging in, with the joint master bargaining agreement for the West and East Coast branches of the WGA set to expire Oct. 31, 2007. In response to the union, the networks and studios argue that they face a growing array of digital and broadband viewing alternatives. The stakes are high. A work stoppage would be the first since 1988, when a 22-week strike stopped TV production and sent broadcast-network shares plummeting nearly 10%. Disgusted viewers migrated to cable, and networks beefed up reality production, which subsequently meant fewer primetime opportunities for writers. Just the threat of a writers’ strike in 2001 is estimated to have caused more than a $2 billion hit to the Los Angeles economy in travel, lodging and real estate, according to local economists.
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