BloggingStocks http://www.bloggingstocks.com BloggingStocks http://www.blogsmithmedia.com/http://www.bloggingstocks.com/media/feedlogo.gif BloggingStocks http://www.bloggingstocks.com en-us Copyright 2012 Weblogs, Inc. The contents of this feed are available for non-commercial use only. Blogsmith http://www.blogsmith.com/<![CDATA[Was the writer's strike worth it?]]>http://www.bloggingstocks.com/2008/02/14/was-the-writers-strike-worth-it/http://www.bloggingstocks.com/2008/02/14/was-the-writers-strike-worth-it/http://www.bloggingstocks.com/2008/02/14/was-the-writers-strike-worth-it/#commentsFiled under: , , ,

The New York Times reports that the writer's who have been on strike since November look like they're going back to work. But the strike probably cost the writers more in lost wages than they'll make from the new contract they signed. So, I don't understand the economic point of the strike.

How much did the strike cost? Los Angeles's chief economist estimated that the strike cost the area $3.2 billion; writers and production workers lost $772 million in wages; and businesses that serve the strike lost $981 million in revenue. And this doesn't count the cost to the economy from New York writers who were also on strike.

Continue reading Was the writer's strike worth it?

Was the writer's strike worth it? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 14 Feb 2008 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>entertainmentfeaturedfilm studiosFilmStudioshollywoodHollywood writers' strikeHollywoodWriters'StrikemediaTV productionTvProductionwriters guild of americaWritersGuildOfAmericaThu, 14 Feb 2008 09:00:00 EST<![CDATA[NBC boss insults Writers Guild]]>http://www.bloggingstocks.com/2008/01/08/nbc-boss-insults-writers-guild/http://www.bloggingstocks.com/2008/01/08/nbc-boss-insults-writers-guild/http://www.bloggingstocks.com/2008/01/08/nbc-boss-insults-writers-guild/#commentsFiled under: , , ,

Writers Guild of America picketing signsEarlier today, Jonathan Berr noted that the Golden Globes broadcast on General Electric Company (NYSE: GE)'s NBC Network had been canceled. Yes, it's a shame we at home won't be able to comment on the fashions and root for our favorites. Yes, it's a shame for the struggling Peacock network (still often in fourth place) to miss out on the ratings and ad revenue easily procured from a red-carpet event. NBC shells out $5-6 million a year for the broadcast rights and can count on $15-20 million in ad revenue as a result. But yes, it's a testament to the power held by the Writers Guild of America.

Unfortunately, not everyone is giving the Guild its due respect. NBC Entertainment co-chief Ben Silverman aired his grievances about the Golden Globes debacle in a very public forum, speaking with EI Entertainment News anchor Ryan Seacrest. According to the cable network's website, Silverman said "It feels unfair" that United Artists and David Letterman's Worldwide Pants have brokered deals with writers, but Dick Clark Productions (the Globes' producer) is not being given the same option.

SIlverman opined that: "Sadly, it feels like the nerdiest, ugliest, meanest kids in the high school are trying to cancel the prom. But NBC wants to try to keep that prom alive."

Wow. Is it me, or did a top-ranking NBC executive call the Writers Guild ugly, mean nerds? The man's company is out a cool 10 or so million, but the decision has now been made and should be dealt with. Be careful, Ben, or you're going to get a prom like the one Carrie White attended.

Beth Gaston Moon is an analyst at Schaeffer's Investment Research.

NBC boss insults Writers Guild originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 08 Jan 2008 19:44:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>Ben SIlvermanBenSilvermanE! entertainment televisionE!EntertainmentTelevisionGEGolden GlobesGoldenGlobesNBCRyan SeacrestRyanSeacrestWriters Guild of AmericaWriters strikeWritersGuildOfAmericaWritersStrikeTue, 08 Jan 2008 19:44:00 EST<![CDATA[Media World: Hollywood is forgetting about the viewers]]>http://www.bloggingstocks.com/2007/12/10/media-world-hollywood-is-forgetting-about-the-viewers/http://www.bloggingstocks.com/2007/12/10/media-world-hollywood-is-forgetting-about-the-viewers/http://www.bloggingstocks.com/2007/12/10/media-world-hollywood-is-forgetting-about-the-viewers/#commentsFiled under: , , , ,

The waring sides in the Hollywood writers' strike don't give a hoot about the public.

Sure, we TV viewers haven't suffered much yet, but the future looks bleaker than Wisteria Lane on Desperate Housewives after the tornado, according to the Wall Street Journal:
Artful scheduling of remaining episodes of scripted shows will get them through January. Walt Disney (NYSE: DIS)'s ABC Television, for instance, has a couple of episodes of Desperate Housewives and Grey's Anatomy that it can stretch out with some techniques such as longer recaps of previous episodes. After that, the network has a couple of new mid-season scripted shows it is planning to debut.

Oh no, does that mean that we are going to keep hearing about the tornado? Will the slow, torturous relationship between Meredith Grey and Derrick Shepherd continue to move along at a glacial pace on Desperate Housewives? Do the networks want people to start reading?

Continue reading Media World: Hollywood is forgetting about the viewers

Media World: Hollywood is forgetting about the viewers originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 10 Dec 2007 14:06:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Yes it's true -- just like you and me, the writers want more money, and since they did not get it they are walking out. Actually having some keen familiarity with Hollywood, I would find it hard to believe that after not striking since 1988, writers could actually come to any agreement with producers without one now.

First of all, the world is changing rapidly and whatever agreements they settled on in the past is most assuredly not attuned to the media landscape of today. The writers feel they negotiated a borderline contract before, and do not want to give up any revenue opportunities now.

Producers have made more money from the internet and DVD sales than they have in the past, but they have seen weaker box office attendance and are getting burned badly by DVD pirates burning cheap discs for sale at great discount to the legitimate copies.

The last time there was a strike, we are told the industry lost $500 million. I have no way of verifying the legitimacy of that figure because in Hollywood (as those in the know can attest), the most creative talent is found in the accounting department, not on the screen.

Continue reading Writers strike over more money, searching for equal pain

Writers strike over more money, searching for equal pain originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 05 Nov 2007 15:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>inthenewslaborSheldon LiberSheldonLiberstriketelevisionunionWGAwritersWriters Guild of AmericaWritersGuildOfAmericaMon, 05 Nov 2007 15:30:00 EST<![CDATA[Writers strike, poop joke shortage feared]]>http://www.bloggingstocks.com/2007/11/05/writers-strike-poop-joke-shortage-feared/http://www.bloggingstocks.com/2007/11/05/writers-strike-poop-joke-shortage-feared/http://www.bloggingstocks.com/2007/11/05/writers-strike-poop-joke-shortage-feared/#commentsFiled under: , , , ,

At midnight, the Writer's Guild of America walked off the job, leaving the television and entertainment industry without anyone to craft the jokes and dramatic dialog we depend on to fill our otherwise empty lives. No more poop deck gags for Fox's (NYSE: NWS) Family Guy (you really phoned that one in, gang). No more four-times-an-hour plot reversals for 24. No more lame-o quips to eviscerate the comedy of viewer-submitted video on Animal Planet.

The discord is symptomatic of the evolution in the entertainment industry, as the various contributors fight for a fair share of the spoils of internet-based and DVD revenues. These new alternatives provide the long tail for entertainment, allowing once filed-and-forgotten shows to remain available for viewing ad nauseum.

As online entertainment embraces the advertising-supported model, the archive of shows will continue to spin off revenue, and the writers want their share. Can you blame them? Sure, stars like Tom Green deserve millions for embarrassing themselves on television, but shouldn't there be a least a little sump'm sump'm for the people that create the words that drive the entertainment?

Or perhaps the Blue Man Group is all you need or want.

Writers strike, poop joke shortage feared originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 05 Nov 2007 12:35:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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