By Dawn Chmielewski and Lisa Richwine
LOS ANGELES – The Hollywood writers’ strike that kicked off this week could last well into the summer and likely beyond, top executives close to the discussions told Reuters this week.
On day three of the walkout that has roiled the industry, the two sides remained so far apart that each side blamed the other for the abrupt end of 11th-hour negotiations to avert the strike. No new talks have been scheduled.
The dispute represents a clash between writers, who see themselves working more but earning less in the streaming era, and studios attempting to rein in costs to make their money-draining services profitable amid the rapid decline of the traditional television business and threats of another recession.
“There’s no driving force to get a deal done now. I think it will go on for a while,” said one media chief, who, like other executives requested anonymity to discuss private talks.
A protracted strike could be damaging to media companies that rely on scripted material and have a dearth of other content to fill scheduling gaps caused by an extended work stoppage, such as sports rights or news programming, according to an analysis from Moody’s investors service.
Moody’s estimates a three-year contract with writers ultimately will cost the media industry $250 million to $350 million per year, a more modest estimate than the guild’s projections of about $429 million per year.
“Obviously, we’ve been planning for this,” Paramount Global CEO Bob Bakish told investors Thursday, during the company’s quarterly investor call. But “in terms of financial impact, it really ultimately depends on the duration of the strike.” — Reuters
