AMPTP seeks to reopen negotiations with WGA

The Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers is finally ready to reopen negotiations with the Writers Guild of America. If successful, this could mean the WGA strike, which has been ongoing since early May, could be ending.

As revealed by Deadline, members received a note from the union declaring that AMPTP’s Carol Lombardini is requesting negotiations begin this Friday. This move is ahead of the strike’s 100-day mark.

Now, it’s worth pointing out, this isn’t going to mean that AMPTP will actually agree to everything that WGA has on the table or that the strike will end with these negotiations. But, if it does, that means that there’s one less entertainment industry strike happening at once. All we’d need is the AMPTP to reopen negotiations with SAG-AFTRA — and come to a deal — and both strikes will be a thing of the past.

There are a lot of things the WGA wants to cover under whatever new deal the two parties have in mind. Chief among those deals includes the duration of their employment, artificial intelligence, and streaming residuals as streaming continues to become a household thing.

It’s hard to fully grasp what the two parties will agree to when it comes to AI and streaming residuals, as the former appears to be a budding new tech that — of course — major companies want to take advantage of. Meanwhile, streaming residuals could be difficult to keep track of, thanks to the increasing number of services.