Studios cancel TV writer contracts

STUDIOS CANCEL TV WRITER CONTRACTS
[SOURCE: Los Angeles Times, AUTHOR: Meg James]
Conceding that the current television season cannot be salvaged, four major studios canceled dozens of writer contracts Monday. The move signals that development of next season's crop of new shows also could be in jeopardy because of the 2-month-old writers strike. Typically, January marks the start of pilot season when networks order new comedies and dramas. But with writers not working, networks do not have a pool of scripts from which to choose. 20th Century Fox Television, CBS Paramount Network Television, NBC Universal and Warner Bros. Television each confirmed that they terminated development and production agreements. Such arrangements typically cost the studios $500,000 to $2 million a year per writer in order to pay them and their staffs and overhead while they develop ideas for new TV shows. It's unclear how many people will be affected by the so-called force majeure actions, which allow a studio unilaterally to cancel a writer's contract in the event of a crisis such as a strike. A production deal can involve a solo writer or a team of several people. Overall, more than 65 deals with writers have been eliminated since Friday. ABC Studios late last week cut about 25 deals. On Monday, CBS Paramount cut 15, Fox jettisoned about 14, NBC Universal rid nearly 10, and Warner Bros. trimmed three. One top studio executive said if the strike continues into February there would probably be another round of force majeure eliminations.
http://www.latimes.com/business/printedition/la-fi-strike15jan15,1,67597...
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* More studios ax producers as strike persists
http://www.reuters.com/article/entertainmentNews/idUSN1444614120080115