Despite this legacy of catastrophic predictions – remember when Jack Valenti equated the arrival of the VCR to the Boston Strangler? - the studios have managed to monetize every technological advancement and not only stay afloat but thrive. Along the way, they have thrown in vague promises that key players like writers would get their fair share. If history has taught nothing else, it has shown that with each new technological advancement within the industry, writers are perpetually at risk of not receiving fair compensation for the reuse of their work. Not surprisingly, with content flooding the Internet and after decades of broken promises that writers would be given a fair share of new and developing markets, the AMPTP was preparing to return to its usual playbook.
If history has taught nothing else, it has shown that with each new technological advancement within the industry, writers are perpetually at risk of not receiving fair compensation for the reuse of their work. Not surprisingly, with content flooding the Internet and after decades of broken promises that writers would be given a fair share of new and developing markets, the AMPTP was preparing to return to its usual playbook.
“We had to do something,” said Verrone. “The whole, ‘Fool me once, shame on you’ adage? Forget fool me twice, this was fool me the fourth time. We weren’t going to be fooled in 2007.”
Despite this legacy of catastrophic predictions – remember when Jack Valenti equated the arrival of the VCR to the Boston Strangler? - the studios have managed to monetize every technological advancement and not only stay afloat but thrive. Along the way, they have thrown in vague promises that key players like writers would get their fair share. If history has taught nothing else, it has shown that with each new technological advancement within the industry, writers are perpetually at risk of not receiving fair compensation for the reuse of their work. Not surprisingly, with content flooding the Internet and after decades of broken promises that writers would be given a fair share of new and developing markets, the AMPTP was preparing to return to its usual playbook.
Tomorrow, we begin to film the Series Finale of The Shield. I think it’s the best script our writing staff has ever written. This is the show that made me. This is the show that is my baby. If the strike goes on longer than two weeks, I won’t be able to step on set for the final episode of the show. I won’t have a writer on set, as I have had on every episode since the fourth episode. I won’t be able to edit this final culminating episode. I won’t go to the wrap party that Fox TV and FX are paying for. You can’t tell me that any episode of television is more important than this one is to me, and I am ready to forego all those things in order to strengthen my union.”
Over the decades, entertainment has been a highly profitable business, weathering periodic downturns but consistently rebounding. The profits of each of the entertainment divisions for our employers is represented by a segment in the chart above. In 2000, the combined entertainment operating profits of Disney, Fox, Paramount, NBC, Universal, and Time Warner were approximately $5 billion. By 2019, adding in Netflix, they were $30 billion out of more than $50 billion in total company profits and remained almost as high through the pandemic. Even excluding news and sports networks, entertainment profits were estimated to be more than $20 billion in 2021.
In my opinion, nothing is as important as the issues surrounding digital delivery of content. Nothing. In the not so distant future, literally every piece of work ever done by the Guild will be available digitally. The systems and methods of delivery will vary and change, but the central truth is that all our work is going to be converted to ones and zeroes and sent to the consumer. We have to have a very clear, very solid method of tracking and being compensated for any and all work that is delivered in this way, whether it was originally created for TV or film or directly for digital distribution. To me, it is a strike issue.
Over the decades, entertainment has been a highly profitable business, weathering periodic downturns but consistently rebounding. The profits of each of the entertainment divisions for our employers is represented by a segment in the chart above. In 2000, the combined entertainment operating profits of Disney, Fox, Paramount, NBC, Universal, and Time Warner were approximately $5 billion. By 2019, adding in Netflix, they were $30 billion out of more than $50 billion in total company profits and remained almost as high through the pandemic. Even excluding news and sports networks, entertainment profits were estimated to be more than $20 billion in 2021.
this is a call out
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Despite this legacy of catastrophic predictions – remember when Jack Valenti equated the arrival of the VCR to the Boston Strangler? - the studios have managed to monetize every technological advancement and not only stay afloat but thrive. Along the way, they have thrown in vague promises that key players like writers would get their fair share. If history has taught nothing else, it has shown that with each new technological advancement within the industry, writers are perpetually at risk of not receiving fair compensation for the reuse of their work. Not surprisingly, with content flooding the Internet and after decades of broken promises that writers would be given a fair share of new and developing markets, the AMPTP was preparing to return to its usual playbook.
"I think ever since a few years ago, when everybody got in a room and we all made a decision to let our representation go in the name of what we wanted and then seeing that ultimately play out made me sort of want to be part of the next move we make. It made me realize I guess you sort of grow up after something like that.”
“We have to talk to other people, other unions and other people we work with on set. People have been very curious about what our issues are. Being able to know what our big talking points are going to be going forward is going to be super helpful.”
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I think ever since a few years ago, when everybody got in a room and we all made a decision to let our representation go in the name of what we wanted and then seeing that ultimately play out made me sort of want to be part of the next move we make. It made me realize I guess you sort of grow up after something like that.
THOMAS HIGGINS (SHARK TOWN, SCHOOL SPIRIT) -
I think ever since a few years ago, when everybody got in a room and we all made a decision to let our representation go in the name of what we wanted and then seeing that ultimately play out made me sort of want to be part of the next move we make. It made me realize I guess you sort of grow up after something like that