Striking Writers Report Progress in Negotiations

The Writers Guild of America released a statement on Wednesday (Dec. 5) saying its contract negotiations with the Alliance of Motion Picture & Television Producers have been ''substantive,'' but also citing specific areas where more discussion is needed. The latest round of talks started on Tuesday after breaking last Thursday. Additional talks are scheduled for Thursday (Dec. 6). Wednesday's statement from the WGA said this week's negotiations addressed ''the issues important to writers, the first time this has occurred in this negotiation.'' The main point of contention between the two sides is working out a formula for movies and TV shows streamed online. In a nutshell, studios have proposed a flat fee for a year's use of material online, while the union wants a percentage of a distributor's gross for online streams. (AP via Yahoo!)