The Golden Age of Television will continue on unabated as the Writer's Guild of America and studios reach an agreement to keep all your favorites on the air according to a report by Variety.
A tentative agreement was reached earlier this morning that will avoid a strike that could have crippled TV and film production. Tensions were high leading up to the final bargain, as writers voted to strike if a deal could not be reached by the time the contract expired at midnight on May 2nd.
The dramatic shift in how TV is being consumed by the media-hungry audience was on display during contract negotiations between writers and the studios. Writers are generally paid per episode, and as so-called 'prestige-television' has become more popular, season orders have become shorter - despite the similar loads on writer's schedules. Under the previous deal, writers have been watching their incomes fall even as more scripted series were being produced.
The dilemma is summed up nicely by TV drama veteran Rick Cleveland who told Variety
“These days I might be lucky and earn my per-episode quote — but now it takes four or five times longer to produce every episode,” says TV drama veteran Rick Cleveland. “So I have to work two or three times longer for the same amount of pay.”
The hurt put on Hollywood by the last writer's strike lingered over negotiations as the two sides struggled to put together a deal. Ten years ago, the 100-day writer's strike cost Los Angeles billions of dollars, and delayed several productions.
A memo released by the WGA says that while the union did not get everything it wanted, the TV companies didn't get everything they wanted either.