Sag Aftra Calls Video Game Publisher Strike

Variety announced the news via X: The corresponding Variety article has more details on the strike. Negotiations had been ongoing for more than a year and a half. The main reason for the stall was to protect actors against AI. Some heavy hitters in the publishing field are being affected. They are: Activision Productions Inc., Blindlight LLC, Disney Character Voices Inc., Electronic Arts Productions Inc., Formosa Interactive LLC, Insomniac Games Inc., Llama Productions LLC, Take 2 Productions Inc., VoiceWorks Productions Inc., and WB Games Inc. SAG-AFTRA president Fran Drescher had some harsh words to spare for the publishers: “We’re not going to consent to a contract that allows companies to abuse A.I. to the detriment of our members. Enough is enough. When these companies get serious about offering an agreement our members can live — and work — with, we will be here, ready to negotiate.” This strike move comes at a transformative time in the industry. Recently, developer Bethesda Game Studios unionized, which was a huge victory for the many teams it represents. It feels like a tide is turning. With unionization on the rise, in addition to this SAG-AFTRA strike, perhaps mass layoffs will become a thing of the past. 2024 has already been worse than 2023 in that department, and the year isn’t even over yet.