CMU School of Drama


Wednesday, September 13, 2023

WGGB's Sandi Toksvig Demands Changes to Streamer Payment Terms

Variety: The president of the Writers Guild of Great Britain (WGGB), Sandi Toksvig, is set to call for changes to the way in which streamers remunerate writers. Toksvig will speak at the Trades Union Congress (TUC) in Liverpool, U.K. on Wednesday, where the WGGB will propose a motion that the Congress support its efforts to bargain for a return to residuals and an end to buy-outs.

1 comment:

Allie Blaylock said...

I understand the issues that WGGB brings up, and agree that writers deserve royalties. It’s not as if the companies streaming those pieces aren’t making money - they have plenty to pay writers what they deserve. Preying on writers who need work by having them agree to buy-outs is shady. As mentioned in the article, writers often depend on royalties while between gigs. Unless a writer is staff it can be difficult and uncertain as to whether work will come along. The impact of the WGA and SAG-AFTRA strike has once again amazed me. Although WGGB is in an entirely different country, the issues surrounding the work are the same. All artists want is fair pay for their work and companies continue to find sneaky ways to avoid giving it to them, or flat out deny it. I’m interested to see the developments and any outcome from the meeting with the TUC.