A major Hollywood actors union and studios Friday had to extend their contentious talks on a new three-year contract for a second time, as the two sides are trying to avoid a disastrous showdown like the recent writers strike.
The Screen Actors Guild (SAG) and Hollywood studios agreed to extend their negotiations through Tuesday in hopes of breaking an impasse in the labor talks.
The talks, which have been going on for three weeks, were scheduled to end Friday, although both sides have conceded that they are far from reaching an agreement. SAG's contract with studios expires on June 30.
"Although both parties have spent considerable time in the negotiating room, we are not yet close to an agreement," said a statement by the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP), which represents the movie studios and television networks.
Two major issues appear to be payments for programming shown on so-called new media -- such as the Internet and cellular telephones -- and residual payments from DVD sales, according to sources familiar with the talks.
The negotiations reached a stalemate earlier this week, prompting both sides to issue statements highlighting the significant gaps between them. SAG and the studios earlier had extended their original talks by one week.
AMPTP had hoped the provisions related to new media in recently reached agreements with the Directors Guild of America, Writers Guild of America and American Federation of Television and Radio Artists would allow it to reach an agreement with SAG.
However, SAG reportedly rejected the new media framework that was approved by other Hollywood unions. The union is looking to double the existing DVD residual formula.
Although Friday's development is considered a positive sign, there are still steep hurdles to overcome before the two sides can agree on a new contract.
Among other things, they are still arguing over the length of time film and TV shows can be streamed over the Internet before residuals can be paid to actors, and what kind of programs created for the Internet should be covered under the union's contract.
In an update to its members last week, SAG officials said they were seeking "reasonable residuals" to ensure working actors maintain a middle-class income.
It is unclear whether the actors union would have the willingness to call a second strike in Hollywood after enduring the 100-day writers strike earlier this year, if the current talks could not yield any results.
High-profile SAG members including Robert De Niro, Tom Hanks and Meryl Streep earlier had asked the union to begin early talks with the studios in order to avoid a strike. SAG officials need an authorization vote from its 120,000 members to call a strike.
The strike by screenwriters from November to February, in their fight for a share in revenues of new media distribution, almost caused a meltdown in Hollywood's entertainment contents production, and cost the industry and local economy billions of dollars.
(Xinhua News Agency May 3, 2008)
