Hollywood Performers Strike Against AI in Video Games and Studios

WATCH: Hollywood performers strike against AI at Warner Brothers S

Led by American labour union Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA) national executive director Duncan Crabtree-Ireland the strikers highlighted the threat of AI replacing human performers without consent or fair compensation. The protest marks a major labour action following the union's vote to strike, after 18 months of failed negotiations with major gaming companies. The global gaming industry, worth $184 billion (€170 billion) experienced a major crisis in 2023, cutting thousands of jobs.

Video. WATCH: Hollywood performers strike against AI

Led by American labour union Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA) national executive director Duncan Crabtree-Ireland the strikers highlighted the threat of AI replacing human performers without consent or fair compensation. Led by American labour union Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA) national executive director Duncan Crabtree-Ireland the strikers highlighted the threat of AI replacing human performers without consent or fair compensation. The protest marks a major labour action following the union's vote to strike, after 18 months of failed negotiations with major gaming companies. The global gaming industry, worth $184 billion (€170 billion) experienced a major crisis in 2023, cutting thousands of jobs.

Hollywood's video game performers head to the picket line over AI protections

LOS ANGELES (AP) -- Hollywood's video game performers are heading to the Warner Bros. Studios lot Thursday to picket against what they call an unwillingness from top gaming companies to protect voice actors and motion capture workers equally against the unregulated use of artificial intelligence. The protest marks the first large labor action since game voice actors and performance workers voted to strike last week. The work stoppage came after more than 18 months of negotiations with gaming giants, including divisions of Activision, Warner Bros. and Walt Disney Co., over a new interactive media agreement stalled over protections around the use of AI. Union leaders have billed AI as an existential crisis for performers. Game voice actors and motion capture artists' likenesses, they say, could be replicated by AI and used without consent and fair compensation. The unregulated use of AI, the union says, poses "an equal or even greater threat" to performers in the video game industry than it does in film and television because the capacity to cheaply and easily create convincing digital replicas of performers' voices is widely available. Audrey Cooling, a spokesperson for the video game producers, said the companies have offered AI protections as well as "a significant increase in wages for SAG-AFTRA represented performers in video games." "We have worked hard to deliver proposals with reasonable terms that protect the rights of performers while ensuring we can continue to use the most advanced technology to create a great gaming experience for fans," Cooling said. "We have proposed terms that provide consent and fair compensation for anyone employed under the (contract) if an AI reproduction or digital replica of their performance is used in games." SAG-AFTRA's negotiating committee argued that the studios' definition of who constitutes a "performer" is key to understanding the issue of who would be protected. "The industry has told us point blank that they do not necessarily consider everyone who is rendering movement performance to be a performer that is covered by the collective bargaining agreement," SAG-AFTRA Chief Contracts Officer Ray Rodriguez said at a news conference last week, adding that some physical performances are being treated as "data." The union had been negotiating with an industry bargaining group consisting of signatory video game companies. Those companies 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. The global video game industry generated nearly $184 billion in revenue in 2023, according to game market forecaster Newzoo, with revenues projected to reach $207 billion in 2026. "We are at the table because we want to include SAG-AFTRA-represented performers in our productions, and we will continue working to resolve the last remaining issue in these negotiations," Cooling said. "Our goal is to reach an agreement with the union that will end this strike."

Hollywood's video game performers head to the picket line over AI protections

LOS ANGELES (AP) -- Hollywood's video game performers are heading to the Warner Bros. Studios lot Thursday to picket against what they call an unwillingness from top gaming companies to protect voice actors and motion capture workers equally against the unregulated use of artificial intelligence. The protest marks the first large labor action since game voice actors and performance workers voted to strike last week. The work stoppage came after more than 18 months of negotiations with gaming giants, including divisions of Activision, Warner Bros. and Walt Disney Co., over a new interactive media agreement stalled over protections around the use of AI. Union leaders have billed AI as an existential crisis for performers. Game voice actors and motion capture artists' likenesses, they say, could be replicated by AI and used without consent and fair compensation. The unregulated use of AI, the union says, poses "an equal or even greater threat" to performers in the video game industry than it does in film and television because the capacity to cheaply and easily create convincing digital replicas of performers' voices is widely available. Audrey Cooling, a spokesperson for the video game producers, said the companies have offered AI protections as well as "a significant increase in wages for SAG-AFTRA represented performers in video games." "We have worked hard to deliver proposals with reasonable terms that protect the rights of performers while ensuring we can continue to use the most advanced technology to create a great gaming experience for fans," Cooling said. "We have proposed terms that provide consent and fair compensation for anyone employed under the (contract) if an AI reproduction or digital replica of their performance is used in games." SAG-AFTRA's negotiating committee argued that the studios' definition of who constitutes a "performer" is key to understanding the issue of who would be protected. "The industry has told us point blank that they do not necessarily consider everyone who is rendering movement performance to be a performer that is covered by the collective bargaining agreement," SAG-AFTRA Chief Contracts Officer Ray Rodriguez said at a news conference last week, adding that some physical performances are being treated as "data." The union had been negotiating with an industry bargaining group consisting of signatory video game companies. Those companies 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. The global video game industry generated nearly $184 billion in revenue in 2023, according to game market forecaster Newzoo, with revenues projected to reach $207 billion in 2026. "We are at the table because we want to include SAG-AFTRA-represented performers in our productions, and we will continue working to resolve the last remaining issue in these negotiations," Cooling said. "Our goal is to reach an agreement with the union that will end this strike."

Hollywood's video game performers head to the picket line over AI protections

Hollywood's video game performers are heading to the Warner Bros LOS ANGELES -- Hollywood's video game performers are heading to the Warner Bros. Studios lot Thursday to picket against what they call an unwillingness from top gaming companies to protect voice actors and motion capture workers equally against the unregulated use of artificial intelligence. The protest marks the first large labor action since game voice actors and performance workers voted to strike last week. The work stoppage came after more than 18 months of negotiations with gaming giants, including divisions of Activision, Warner Bros. and Walt Disney Co., over a new interactive media agreement stalled over protections around the use of AI. Union leaders have billed AI as an existential crisis for performers. Game voice actors and motion capture artists' likenesses, they say, could be replicated by AI and used without consent and fair compensation. The unregulated use of AI, the union says, poses "an equal or even greater threat" to performers in the video game industry than it does in film and television because the capacity to cheaply and easily create convincing digital replicas of performers' voices is widely available. Audrey Cooling, a spokesperson for the video game producers, said the companies have offered AI protections as well as "a significant increase in wages for SAG-AFTRA represented performers in video games." "We have worked hard to deliver proposals with reasonable terms that protect the rights of performers while ensuring we can continue to use the most advanced technology to create a great gaming experience for fans," Cooling said. "We have proposed terms that provide consent and fair compensation for anyone employed under the (contract) if an AI reproduction or digital replica of their performance is used in games." SAG-AFTRA's negotiating committee argued that the studios' definition of who constitutes a "performer" is key to understanding the issue of who would be protected. "The industry has told us point blank that they do not necessarily consider everyone who is rendering movement performance to be a performer that is covered by the collective bargaining agreement," SAG-AFTRA Chief Contracts Officer Ray Rodriguez said at a news conference last week, adding that some physical performances are being treated as "data." The union had been negotiating with an industry bargaining group consisting of signatory video game companies. Those companies 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. The global video game industry generated nearly $184 billion in revenue in 2023, according to game market forecaster Newzoo, with revenues projected to reach $207 billion in 2026. "We are at the table because we want to include SAG-AFTRA-represented performers in our productions, and we will continue working to resolve the last remaining issue in these negotiations," Cooling said. "Our goal is to reach an agreement with the union that will end this strike."

Hollywood's Video Game Performers Head to the Picket Line Over AI Protections

LOS ANGELES (AP) -- Hollywood's video game performers are heading to the Warner Bros. Studios lot Thursday to picket against what they call an unwillingness from top gaming companies to protect voice actors and motion capture workers equally against the unregulated use of artificial intelligence. The protest marks the first large labor action since game voice actors and performance workers voted to strike last week. The work stoppage came after more than 18 months of negotiations with gaming giants, including divisions of Activision, Warner Bros. and Walt Disney Co., over a new interactive media agreement stalled over protections around the use of AI. Union leaders have billed AI as an existential crisis for performers. Game voice actors and motion capture artists' likenesses, they say, could be replicated by AI and used without consent and fair compensation. The unregulated use of AI, the union says, poses "an equal or even greater threat" to performers in the video game industry than it does in film and television because the capacity to cheaply and easily create convincing digital replicas of performers' voices is widely available. Audrey Cooling, a spokesperson for the video game producers, said the companies have offered AI protections as well as "a significant increase in wages for SAG-AFTRA represented performers in video games." "We have worked hard to deliver proposals with reasonable terms that protect the rights of performers while ensuring we can continue to use the most advanced technology to create a great gaming experience for fans," Cooling said. "We have proposed terms that provide consent and fair compensation for anyone employed under the (contract) if an AI reproduction or digital replica of their performance is used in games." SAG-AFTRA's negotiating committee argued that the studios' definition of who constitutes a "performer" is key to understanding the issue of who would be protected. "The industry has told us point blank that they do not necessarily consider everyone who is rendering movement performance to be a performer that is covered by the collective bargaining agreement," SAG-AFTRA Chief Contracts Officer Ray Rodriguez said at a news conference last week, adding that some physical performances are being treated as "data." The union had been negotiating with an industry bargaining group consisting of signatory video game companies. Those companies 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. The global video game industry generated nearly $184 billion in revenue in 2023, according to game market forecaster Newzoo, with revenues projected to reach $207 billion in 2026. "We are at the table because we want to include SAG-AFTRA-represented performers in our productions, and we will continue working to resolve the last remaining issue in these negotiations," Cooling said. "Our goal is to reach an agreement with the union that will end this strike." Copyright 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Sag-Aftra strike: 'They're crushing human beings beneath their feet'

Actors from the world of gaming went on strike last week, in a row about the use of artificial intelligence (AI) and the threat it poses to their livelihoods. It has reignited the debate about how the entertainment industry is adapting to new technology. When actor Jennifer Hale talks, you listen. Her delivery is measured and surgically precise, yet her tone has a warmth that most ASMR creators would envy. She could read the phone book and you'd pay attention. It's unsurprising, then, that her voice is her livelihood, and that she takes the threat to her industry posed by AI so seriously. "They see that the work of our souls is nothing more than a commodity to generate profits for them," she says of several of the major gaming companies. "They don't see that they're crushing human beings beneath their feet in blind pursuit of money and profit, it's disgusting." From Commander Shepard in the Mass Effect series to Samus Arran in the Metroid titles, Hale's list of gaming credits is as long as your arm and her voice is familiar to millions. Hale is one of the most high-profile voice actors in the world. She's joined 2,500 members of the US actors union SAG-AFTRA who perform in games, by striking until games divisions of prominent companies like Activision, Warner Brothers, Walt Disney and EA agree to protections around the use of artificial intelligence (AI). She tells BBC News: "They could, for example, take all my performances in a game, let's say Mass Effect, feed them into a machine, not too long down the timeline, spit out an entirely new Mass Effect, with a performance that was entirely generated by AI." Concerns about AI were one of the key issues in last year's 118-day actors strike organised by SAG-AFTRA. Terms were eventually agreed with Hollywood studios for film and TV actors. But the dispute around videogames has rumbled on, finally boiling over into a strike on 25 July. While both sides have agreed on a host of issues, AI protections remains a sticking point. Hale may be one of the most successful voice actors in the business but in contrast to those who work in front of the camera and despite the games industry generating revenue estimated to be around $189bn (£147bn) in 2024, voice acting in games is considerably less well paid than film and TV work. "I'm a single working mother who has bills to pay and a life to provide for my kid, as voice actors we don't get paid star salaries. Under what they're proposing on the other side of this contract, they would pay me nothing." Audrey Cooling, a representative of the 10 game companies negotiating with the union, told BBC News: "Our offer is directly responsive to SAG-AFTRA's concerns and extends meaningful AI protections that include requiring consent and fair compensation to all performers working under the IMA [Interactive Media Agreement]." This is an ongoing deal to cover artists working in video games. Hale argues not all games companies are the problem, some businesses can and are making deals which work for all sides. "Anybody sitting in their basement, anywhere making a game can go to SAG and say, hey, my budget is small, I only have this much money. I really want to work with these good actors. What can I do in SAG will say, absolutely, here you go, how big are you? Great here's your structure." She adds this strike might be a symptom of a growing unease in the wider workplace with AI. "We actors are the canary in the coal mine. You can see them coming for us, but if they dismiss it, if it gets swept under the rug because we're just performers, what does that mean?" On the other side of the Atlantic, John Barclay, assistant general secretary of the UK actor's union Equity, released a statement of solidarity with its stateside counterparts. "We stand shoulder to shoulder with SAG-AFTRA as partners in a global fight to secure fair pay and protect our members' rights, which could not be more urgent as we move forward with artificial intelligence innovation." Regulations around strikes are different in the UK, Equity members aren't striking and neither will UK members of SAG-AFTRA be compelled to. Actor David Menkin has provided the voice for Luke Skywalker in Lego Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga, as well as voice work in Final Fantasy XVI and Horizon Zero Dawn, amongst a host of other games. He explains: "Here in the UK, we don't have a mutually agreed contract between the union Equity and the producers that make these games. So therefore, even if you're SAG-AFTRA but you were hired on a UK based contract, you can't stop, you cannot strike, you cannot leave the production, you have to fulfil everything in your contract." He tells me he' s concerned that US companies may try and work around the issue of striking American actors by coming to the UK and hiring British talent to perform in games instead. "All we can do is make sure that if the work is dumped in the UK, that we are making sure that UK-based actors are fully informed." In the US the strike continues and while she waits for both sides to return to the negotiating table, Jennifer Hale hopes long time creative concerns will overcome short-term commercial gain. "I hope they see that we are all in this together. I don't understand why they're willing to kill us all off to increase things a few percentage points, it makes no sense to me."