After four months of striking, what exactly has Writers Guild Association of America won?
The Wall Street Journal (link:
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB120256914656156471.html?mod=e-commerce_primary_hs) says the ordeal cost writers more than $270 million in up-front compensation, while Silicon Alley Insider (link:
http://www.alleyinsider.com/2008/2/writers_make_modest_gains_on_digital) claims the dollar gap between the writers and studios was only worth an extra $7.2 million per year.
The most
important thing the writers won was a stake in the future: Web revenues. "By gaining jurisdiction over any original material Hollywood produces for the Internet, the Writers Guild of America has
ensured its survival," says report author Lacey Rose. She adds that the deal benefits both sides, too.
The studios are betting that professional writing will continue to draw the kind
of audiences that keep marketers sending a hefty portion of their budgets the studios' way. Under the new deal, the writers get $1,300 for the first two years of a three-year contract for TV programs
streamed over the Web; they get 2 percent of the distributors' revenue in the deal's final year. For Web-only programs, they get $618 for two-minute dramas plus $309 for each additional minute, and
$360 for two-minute comedy videos, plus $180 for each additional minute. They also get credits and health insurance.
Read the whole story at Forbes.com »