NY Times Reports Progress In Talks

As this is written, the WGA and AMPTP are still under a news blackout regarding the ongoing informal negotiations.

However, the NY Times just reported that "major roadblocks" have been gotten past in the negotiations, and progress will be swifter in the negotiations going forward -- with an eye toward an agreement in principle coming out of negotiations fairly soon.

UH has confirmed from off-the-record sources that progress is indeed being made in the informal talks, and that creative solutions to the biggest differences between the AMPTP and the WGA have gotten the tentative and cautious approval of both sides.

This does not mean there is a deal in principle yet. It means we may, finally, be very close to one -- as close as days away.

And while we're cautiously optimistic about what we're hearing, it comes with a real caveat.

Just as happened with the DGA deal, points that are agreed to in informal negotiation can be thought of as points on a deal memo -- but it's the drafting language that comes from hammering out those points that makes them legally binding. And our sources say that draft language doesn't yet exist. That's a big part of what will be happening in the next few days, as negotiations continue.

Until the WGA and the companies have enshrined the deal points -- whatever they are -- into real draft language, those deal points can't be thought of as final.

The only reason we've gotten as far as we have in the negotiations is because the pressure has stayed on. If we let up on that pressure, even a little, it could affect the draft language of the agreement. It could, in a very real way, diminish the power of our negotiators and our Guild now, when it matters most.

Stay out there. Stay on the lines, stay informed. Stay strong. We'll have more soon.