http://hd.engadget.com/2007/11/06/the-writers-strike-affect-on-hd-programming/ Engadget HD Comments for http://hd.engadget.com/media/feedlogo.gif http://hd.engadget.com en-us Copyright 2009 Weblogs, Inc. The contents of this feed are available for non-commercial use only. Blogsmith http://www.blogsmith.com/http://hd.engadget.com/2007/11/06/the-writers-strike-affect-on-hd-programming/http://hd.engadget.com/2007/11/06/the-writers-strike-affect-on-hd-programming/Nov 6th 2007 10:54AMhttp://hd.engadget.com/2007/11/06/the-writers-strike-affect-on-hd-programming/http://hd.engadget.com/2007/11/06/the-writers-strike-affect-on-hd-programming/Nov 6th 2007 11:33AMhttp://hd.engadget.com/2007/11/06/the-writers-strike-affect-on-hd-programming/http://hd.engadget.com/2007/11/06/the-writers-strike-affect-on-hd-programming/
also - writers of online material for shows like ARGs and websites don't get paid any extra.

that's basically what this is all about.]]>Nov 6th 2007 10:58AMhttp://hd.engadget.com/2007/11/06/the-writers-strike-affect-on-hd-programming/http://hd.engadget.com/2007/11/06/the-writers-strike-affect-on-hd-programming/Nov 6th 2007 11:00AMhttp://hd.engadget.com/2007/11/06/the-writers-strike-affect-on-hd-programming/http://hd.engadget.com/2007/11/06/the-writers-strike-affect-on-hd-programming/
mst3k/rifftrax ftw!]]>Nov 6th 2007 11:09AMhttp://hd.engadget.com/2007/11/06/the-writers-strike-affect-on-hd-programming/http://hd.engadget.com/2007/11/06/the-writers-strike-affect-on-hd-programming/Nov 7th 2007 11:10AMhttp://hd.engadget.com/2007/11/06/the-writers-strike-affect-on-hd-programming/http://hd.engadget.com/2007/11/06/the-writers-strike-affect-on-hd-programming/Currently I understand the writers get nothing when someone downloads a show.]]>Nov 6th 2007 11:28AMhttp://hd.engadget.com/2007/11/06/the-writers-strike-affect-on-hd-programming/http://hd.engadget.com/2007/11/06/the-writers-strike-affect-on-hd-programming/
The strike is for residuals. In essence, the writers want more money from DVDs and online content, and they're being screwed over. Just as an example, for DVDs, the writers get 0.3%--yes, three-tenths of a percentage point--of the revenue, or something like 4 cents per DVD set sold. How much are they asking for? A whole 8 cents. That's just one example of how the studios are real buttmunches. BTW, your average writer makes less than $30k a year (many make less), despite the media's claims that this is all millionaires. Unsurprising, since most of the companies being picketed own huge media outlets.

Fans of BSG, Heroes, and many other shows should know that the majority of the writing staff (including most showrunners) are on the picket line, and you should support them the best you can. Here's a list (by no means complete) where most or all of the staff, including producers, showrunners, and actors, have gone on strike:

Battlestar Galactica
Heroes
Smallville
24
The Office (Steve Carrell is supporting the strike)
Grey's Anatomy/Private Practice
The Shield
The Unit
CSI/CSI Miami (several actors are also on the picket line)
All flavors of Law & Order
The Simpsons (including James L Brooks)
SNL/30 Rock (Tina Fey and most SNL actors are on the picket line)
Letterman/Leno (both stars publicly support their writers 110%)
Daily Show/Colbert Report (again, both stars give full support)
Ellen Degeneres
Scrubs
Desperate Housewives
Lost (both showrunners/main writers are on the picket line)
Dirty Sexy Money
Brothers & Sisters
Old Christine (Julia Louis-Dreyfus is picketing)
Dexter
The 4400

In addition, Paul Haggis (Bond 22 writer), Bill Condon (Dreamgirls), and a bunch of others are picketing.]]>Nov 6th 2007 11:08AMhttp://hd.engadget.com/2007/11/06/the-writers-strike-affect-on-hd-programming/http://hd.engadget.com/2007/11/06/the-writers-strike-affect-on-hd-programming/
I don't think we know enough about how they are currently compensated or how they should be compensated to throw support one way or another.

I do know several of my favorite shows are affected, so I'm not happy :)]]>Nov 6th 2007 12:58PMhttp://hd.engadget.com/2007/11/06/the-writers-strike-affect-on-hd-programming/http://hd.engadget.com/2007/11/06/the-writers-strike-affect-on-hd-programming/
I don't get Sci-Fi in High-Definition, so I would love to see it on NBC-HD (or Universal HD, but I don't want to wait a month for the repeats).

I also wouldn't be surprised to see NBC-HD start airing repeats of Law & Order: Criminal Intent, which most people probably don't even realize is on USA (which I also don't get in HD, and it ends up being letterboxed -- which can be zoomed in on).]]>Nov 6th 2007 11:36AMhttp://hd.engadget.com/2007/11/06/the-writers-strike-affect-on-hd-programming/http://hd.engadget.com/2007/11/06/the-writers-strike-affect-on-hd-programming/]]>Nov 6th 2007 2:42PMhttp://hd.engadget.com/2007/11/06/the-writers-strike-affect-on-hd-programming/http://hd.engadget.com/2007/11/06/the-writers-strike-affect-on-hd-programming/
The correct word to use in the title is 'effect', not 'affect'.
Please don't make us suffer with your bad English. :P]]>Nov 6th 2007 12:14PMhttp://hd.engadget.com/2007/11/06/the-writers-strike-affect-on-hd-programming/http://hd.engadget.com/2007/11/06/the-writers-strike-affect-on-hd-programming/
Consider their, there and they're. Almost ritually abused.]]>Nov 6th 2007 1:35PMhttp://hd.engadget.com/2007/11/06/the-writers-strike-affect-on-hd-programming/http://hd.engadget.com/2007/11/06/the-writers-strike-affect-on-hd-programming/Nov 6th 2007 12:26PMhttp://hd.engadget.com/2007/11/06/the-writers-strike-affect-on-hd-programming/http://hd.engadget.com/2007/11/06/the-writers-strike-affect-on-hd-programming/
"The ability for a group to go on strike is a fundamental right in American. . ."

You sound like that Miss Teen USA girl:

"I believe that US Americans need to help the Iraq because they don't have maps...such as...therefore."]]>Nov 6th 2007 12:48PMhttp://hd.engadget.com/2007/11/06/the-writers-strike-affect-on-hd-programming/http://hd.engadget.com/2007/11/06/the-writers-strike-affect-on-hd-programming/Nov 6th 2007 1:09PMhttp://hd.engadget.com/2007/11/06/the-writers-strike-affect-on-hd-programming/http://hd.engadget.com/2007/11/06/the-writers-strike-affect-on-hd-programming/
I don't think we know enough about how they are currently compensated or how they should be compensated to throw support one way or another."

Wrong. We know exactly how they are currently compensated, as well as their requests. Please read up on the current compensation details available in about a million places online. Ignorance is no excuse for attacking workers.]]>Nov 6th 2007 1:04PMhttp://hd.engadget.com/2007/11/06/the-writers-strike-affect-on-hd-programming/http://hd.engadget.com/2007/11/06/the-writers-strike-affect-on-hd-programming/
If you don't know enough it's just because you're lazy. The writer's demands are not confidential. The demands that the writer's made (and the producers denied, causing a strike) were public record.

At the time, the royalties off DVD sales were caculated by multipling 0.0075 (0.75%) times 20% of the DVD cost(assuming 80% of the DVD retail price were Manufacturing costs). If the DVD was sold for $20, the writers received $0.03 (3 pennies).

Now, the writers would like to apply their 0.75% to a number that they've calculated to be 40%. You see, DVD manufacturing costs have gone down significantly since the last time the WGA negotiated a contract. As a result, the writers would see a doubling of their royalties to a big whopping 6 pennies.

Additiontally, the writers believe that they should get paid a fraction of the internet sales costs. Internet sales have significantly lower overhead when compared to DVD sales. Last I read they were asking for the 0.75% on the entire internet sales cost. If we look at the iTunes pricing of $2-$13 the writers are asking for amounts ranging from $0.006 (six tenths of a penny) and $0.039 (Almost four pennies) for a downloaded program.

If I go and buy a DVD, I'm buying it because it tells a good story that I want to watch over and over. I believe that the person who wrote that story is entitled to at least $0.06 of my $20 DVD purchase. If I download a tv show I'm happy that the woman (or man) who wrote that show is going to be paid almost a penny. Is that really too much to ask?

If you guys made a living writing you'd probably ask for more.

I predict that the producers and writers will eventually come to an agreement somewhere in the middle. The writers will get $0.04 per DVD sold, and the Producers will raise the costs of DVD sales $2. Then they'll be able to say they're "passing on the cost of the new WGA terms" while still raking in record profits. Of course, not every company or organization runs like an Oil Company...
]]>Nov 6th 2007 1:31PMhttp://hd.engadget.com/2007/11/06/the-writers-strike-affect-on-hd-programming/http://hd.engadget.com/2007/11/06/the-writers-strike-affect-on-hd-programming/
Perhaps you know exactly how they're compensated, but the vast majority of the nation/world doesn't.

You were the one making the claim that "you should support them the best you can", so I expect you to give us good reasons to throw our support the writers' way. The onus is not on me to provide reasons why I will or won't support the actors, since you're the one making the action statement in the first place.]]>Nov 6th 2007 2:02PMhttp://hd.engadget.com/2007/11/06/the-writers-strike-affect-on-hd-programming/http://hd.engadget.com/2007/11/06/the-writers-strike-affect-on-hd-programming/Nov 6th 2007 1:08PMhttp://hd.engadget.com/2007/11/06/the-writers-strike-affect-on-hd-programming/http://hd.engadget.com/2007/11/06/the-writers-strike-affect-on-hd-programming/Nov 6th 2007 1:43PMhttp://hd.engadget.com/2007/11/06/the-writers-strike-affect-on-hd-programming/http://hd.engadget.com/2007/11/06/the-writers-strike-affect-on-hd-programming/Nov 6th 2007 1:48PMhttp://hd.engadget.com/2007/11/06/the-writers-strike-affect-on-hd-programming/http://hd.engadget.com/2007/11/06/the-writers-strike-affect-on-hd-programming/Nov 6th 2007 1:51PMhttp://hd.engadget.com/2007/11/06/the-writers-strike-affect-on-hd-programming/http://hd.engadget.com/2007/11/06/the-writers-strike-affect-on-hd-programming/
"24" is the show that got me interested in TV again, with amazing shows like "Battlestar," "Lost," and "The Shield" cementing that interest. "Dexter" is a revelation, while "Heroes" and "The Unit" are solid, well done shows. Ironically, "Jericho," which CBS foolishly cancelled but resurrected for an abbreviated 2nd season due to fan protest, has wrapped their 7-episode story arc for the winter. This could be one of few good things that will come of this strike, but it's still a reminder of the roller coaster ride writers constantly endure.

If this isn't resolved, reality shows (ugh) will take over, and that's when I'll increase my NetFlix subscription to 8 DVDs out at a time (and delve into Mass Effect like a madman, lol).]]>Nov 6th 2007 1:54PMhttp://hd.engadget.com/2007/11/06/the-writers-strike-affect-on-hd-programming/http://hd.engadget.com/2007/11/06/the-writers-strike-affect-on-hd-programming/Nov 6th 2007 2:44PMhttp://hd.engadget.com/2007/11/06/the-writers-strike-affect-on-hd-programming/http://hd.engadget.com/2007/11/06/the-writers-strike-affect-on-hd-programming/
I do wish people would get off their high horse about the abundance of facts. Sure, we know exactly what they're demanding but we don't know what they're really making all things considered year to year. Sure, some guy posting a comment on a web blog says a lot of them make $30k, I have no idea if that's in any way reliable or not.

And while we're at it, lets get over this "it's only pennies" and "I think they can give them 6 cents of my $20 purchase" thing. It's not just pennies, it's pennies on every sale, which adds up to full blown dollars, and lots of them.

Forgive me if my math is off here but if a DVD sells a million copies and they're currently getting $.03 per on that, that's $30,000. 6 Pennies would double that, an additional 30k for the writers. Now, I'm fairly ignorant of how this all works but don't all the actors, producers, etc get a cut as well? And I'm assuming that DVD sales do not make up a writer's entire salary, or even the majority of it. And don't many of these writers write for several shows per year?

Now, I'm not saying the other side is right or even near to it, because I don't know enough about the TRUE background here. Stuff like how much writers actually make, and how many other costs are involved on the other end, but it is quite arrogant (and obnoxious) to talk this thing up as if one side is making $19.97 x 1,000,000 on each show's DVD sales while the writers get 3 cents.

Just my 2 cents, which I guess means I have nearly the same salary as a writer.]]>Nov 6th 2007 4:05PMhttp://hd.engadget.com/2007/11/06/the-writers-strike-affect-on-hd-programming/http://hd.engadget.com/2007/11/06/the-writers-strike-affect-on-hd-programming/
Just thought I'd clear that up. And 30k a year as an average is criminal for a TV writer, IMO. ]]>Nov 6th 2007 5:11PMhttp://hd.engadget.com/2007/11/06/the-writers-strike-affect-on-hd-programming/http://hd.engadget.com/2007/11/06/the-writers-strike-affect-on-hd-programming/
I am sure if it was "just a few pennies" we would not be having this problem. The "corporations" are not stupid. It costs them advertising dollars to not have content. What is the actual net on a DVD? Then you need to take that number and redo the percent of a DVD.

I would never have an issue with the group realizing that the relationship needs to change but I think striking probably will only hurt the them in the long run. Companies will remember the danger of relying on them and start generating ways around that...they already started that. "Corporations" employ other people than just the writers. I am sure there are many ways to get around the union rules and hire writers that don't have these union leadership problems. Let people fight themselves, the better writers rise to the top.

Two of my favorite shows are on that list and if they have to be cancelled or delayed to get new writers (hopefully not ones bogged down with union problems) then so be it.]]>Nov 6th 2007 6:18PMhttp://hd.engadget.com/2007/11/06/the-writers-strike-affect-on-hd-programming/http://hd.engadget.com/2007/11/06/the-writers-strike-affect-on-hd-programming/
I do think it's important for the writer teams to get properly compensated on royalties - at least as much as the actors, because the writing is so central to the quality of a show.]]>Nov 6th 2007 6:47PMhttp://hd.engadget.com/2007/11/06/the-writers-strike-affect-on-hd-programming/http://hd.engadget.com/2007/11/06/the-writers-strike-affect-on-hd-programming/Nov 6th 2007 9:32PMhttp://hd.engadget.com/2007/11/06/the-writers-strike-affect-on-hd-programming/http://hd.engadget.com/2007/11/06/the-writers-strike-affect-on-hd-programming/Nov 6th 2007 10:31PMhttp://hd.engadget.com/2007/11/06/the-writers-strike-affect-on-hd-programming/http://hd.engadget.com/2007/11/06/the-writers-strike-affect-on-hd-programming/Nov 7th 2007 9:29AMhttp://hd.engadget.com/2007/11/06/the-writers-strike-affect-on-hd-programming/http://hd.engadget.com/2007/11/06/the-writers-strike-affect-on-hd-programming/Nov 14th 2007 10:09AM