Directors Guild avoid strike action. WGA nearing agreement?

Some good news for the 'average Joe movie fan' and also everyone involved in the industry because at the end of the day, strike action is always the last action and by definition it's designed to disrupt and cause chaos. Variety are reporting that the Directors Guild of America have reached a tentative 3 year deal with the AMPTP, with strike action previously expected to take place on June 30th now avoided. The key deal outlines were as followed...

Establishing DGA jurisdiction over programs produced for distribution on the Internet; Boosting the residuals formula for paid Internet downloads (electronic sell-through) by double the current rate; And establishing residual rates for ad-supported streaming and use of clips on the Internet.

So the DGA settled for a 50% increase in the Internet download residuals, thought to be the main point of strike action. The focus now turns to the WGA and whether a 50% increase in residuals will be enough for them to agree on the same deal. A press release from the AMPTP has gone out inviting members of the WGA to come back to the discussion table was released soon after the DGA agreement was reached.

"We hope that this agreement with DGA will signal the beginning of the end of this extremely difficult period for our industry. Today, we invite the Writers Guild of America to engage with us in a series of informal discussions similar to the productive process that led us to a deal with the DGA to determine whether there is a reasonable basis for returning to formal bargaining. We look forward to these discussions, and to the day when our entire industry gets back to work".

Interesting to see how the WGA respond but I think we are all hoping a deal can be reached soon.