Directors, Hollywood studios reach deal

LOS ANGELES - Hollywood directors reached a tentative contract deal Thursday with studios, a development that could turn up the pressure on striking writers to settle their 2-month-old walkout that has idled production on dozens of TV shows. "Two words describe this agreement — groundbreaking and substantial," said Gil Cates, chairman of the Directors Guild of America's negotiations committee. "There are no rollbacks of any kind."

Among other things, the agreement increases both wages and residuals for each year of the contract.

It also establishes guild jurisdiction over programs produced for distribution on the Internet and sets a new residuals formula for paid Internet downloads that essentially doubles the rate currently paid by employers, the guild said. It also set residual rates for ad-supported streaming and use of clips on the Internet.

Payment for programs offered on the Internet is a key sticking point between the studios and striking writers.

The Writers Guild of America did not immediately respond to an e-mail request for comment on the deal. Talks between writers and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, which represents studios, broke off on Dec. 7

The alliance said the agreement with directors establishes an important precedent.

"Our industry's creative talent will now participate financially in every emerging area of new media," the alliance statement said.

The alliance expressed hope that the deal would help end what it called an extremely difficult period for the industry.

It also called on the writers guild to engage in a series of informal discussions to determine if there was a reasonable basis for returning to the bargaining table.

The writers guild previously said directors do not represent their interests.

Writers repeated the same refrain when asked how their walkout might be affected if directors reached a quick deal.

"It's important to remember that they do not represent actors and writers," the WGA has said.

The directors guild was prepared when it started negotiations Jan. 12. It had spent $2 million researching the potential value of new media over the next decade and held a series of meetings with key studio heads to establish a basis for the formal talks.

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