Thoughts about the latest news in the law and business of digital media traditional entertainment. IP and technology. From Jonathan Handel. Of Counsel at TroyGould in Los Angeles.
[Note - this article was first published about 10 days ago.]As the deadline for the writers' strike bears down. Hollywood waits with anticipation and fear. The effect of a strike if not averted or delayed would be programs off the air movies delayed and people out of work throughout the industry and the local economy. It doesn't have to be that way. There's room for a deal on all the major issues:
DVD Residuals. DVD residuals are the writer's cut when a movie or TV show gets released on DVD. The current formula – which the WGA calls "" – is crazy. It dates to 1985 and is adapted from an old. What's more it's based on the assumption that "videograms" – videotapes at the time – are expensive to manufacture. That's no longer true; DVD's in quantity are $0.25–$0.35 shrink-wrapped with inserts and ready to sell.
Of course there are other expenses – shipping recoupment of production and advertising costs etc. – but still the studio profit is large. Meanwhile the writer gets under. That's ridiculous. The per unit. Not a huge increase but the actors and directors will get parallel increases too. The parties should on $0.075 (seven and one-half-cents) or $0.0625 (six and one-quarter cents) and call it a day.
Residuals for Internet Downloads. The to downloads as well. This too is ridiculous. The DVD formula makes no sense any more for home video let alone for downloads where the manufacturing cost is zero. The studios' position amounts to paying the writers on downloads whereas the. They should compromise on 1.2% which is the figure used for videogames and pay TV (HBO and Showtime).
Residuals for Internet and Cell Phone Streaming. The studios' position is unclear. They say they want to apply the DVD formula but to deem any streaming (and even download) usages as "promotional" – even if the studio receives revenue – which means no residuals would be payable at all. Piggy piggy piggy. Give the writers the 1.2% unless the studio receives no revenue on the usage.
Jurisdiction Over New Media. When writers create content directly for new media (webisodes and mobisodes) the to apply. That's a bit much. The and is so incomprehensible that the day I started working at the Guild (I'm a former WGA Associate Counsel) my boss told me not to bother reading it because none of it meant what it said anyway. Plus setting minimum compensation levels for writers when business models are unknown is not feasible.
However there is a voluntary Internet Sideletter (p. 561 of the agreement) that a few studios have signed on a project-by-project basis. All it requires is that the studios pay pension and health insurance benefits (P&H). The compromise: make the Sideletter apply to all new media (such as cell phones) add a provision requiring credit parity (require that the writer get credit on-screen if the director or actors do) and make the Sideletter mandatory. Done.
There are some other issues as well:
Animation. The over animation writing which they've received on a case-by-case basis. Trouble is a rival union. IATSE (the "IA") also claims jurisdiction in this area. Ironically the president of the WGA is an animation writer. Still this one's probably a lost cause.
Reality. The over this issue but their don't even bar such work (in contrast to movies scripted TV and animation – the writers can't do any such work during a strike). They're on this issue at the end of the day.
The CW. The for compensation and residual purposes. It isn't; treat it like Fox in the '90s and in between network levels and the current lower rates.
MyNetwork TV. The here. Please. MyNetwork TV? This channel is more like no one's network TV.
So a deal is possible. The parties should make one and let the town get back to work.
This article originally appeared in The Huffington Post on November 5. 2007 at
Posted byJonathan Handelat
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Los Angeles. California. United States
I'm Of Counsel at TroyGould (troygould com) and practice digital media entertainment and technology law. (Email is jhandel @ att net and tel is 323 - 650 - 0060.) My background encompasses all of these industries. For instance. I've worked at the Writers Guild and at a small boutique law firm representing movie stars and directors - and have taught film appreciation classes - but I've also worked in the computer business prior to law school.***********************Education: Harvard College (A. B.. Applied Math/Computer Science magna cum laude). Harvard Law School (J. D. cum laude).****************************** Other Experience: I clerked on the U. S. Court of Appeals (5th Cir.) and also served as a federal Associate Independent Counsel in an investigation of the search of Presidential candidate Clinton's passport files. Early in my career. I practiced appellate and commercial litigation.***********************Copyright © 2007-2008 Jonathan Handel. This blog is not legal advice and may not reflect the most current legal developments. Contact an attorney if you need legal advice or opinions. This blog reflects my own opinions and not necessarily my clients' or TroyGould's.
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Related article:
http://digitalmedialaw.blogspot.com/2007/11/writers-and-producers-heres-deal-they.html
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