Video Game Actors Strike Over AI Concerns and Fair Compensation

Video Game Makers See Actors As AI 'Data,' Says Union On Strike

Artificial intelligence was key to last year's Hollywood strikes, and it has now sparked a second walkout by those actors who work in a far larger industry, at the heart of advancing technology -- video games. The Screen Actors Guild (SAG-AFTRA) on Friday began its second strike in nine months, this time against gaming giants that dominate an industry which grosses well over $100 billion each year. And while many demands are the same -- consent and compensation for actors, whose voices and movements are used by AI to build game characters -- the latest talks are posing unique challenges, union negotiators told AFP. Technology companies, by their nature, tend to view actors simply "as data," said Ray Rodriguez, lead negotiator for the video game contract. "They're getting performances that are nuanced, that are informed by the psychology of the character and the circumstance," he said. "That's what makes it compelling." But "the fact that they see themselves as technology companies" is directly connected to "their unwillingness to perceive the performance value," he added. The work stoppage began immediately after midnight Friday. The struck deal concerns some 2,600 artists who provide voice dubbing services for video games, or whose physical movements are recorded in order to animate computer-generated characters. The strike followed more than a year and a half of fruitless negotiations between the union and the likes of Activision, Disney, Electronic Arts and Warner Bros. Games. Talks have been sporadic, as video game companies have not appointed dedicated full-time negotiators, and are "absolutely obsessed with secrecy," said Rodriguez. There are other complicating factors. Video game characters often fuse multiple human performers -- for example, one person may voice a hero whose movements are motion-captured by another actor. It's "a really joyful, cool" way to collaborate, said Sarah Elmaleh, chair of the union's negotiating committee. But video game companies have tried to exploit that ambiguity to create "loopholes" in their counteroffers, she warned. This is because video game companies can use AI not just to replicate a specific actor, but to create "new" voices or body movements from a composite of human performers. Such use of generative AI can make it far harder for actors to trace their work, and therefore to deny consent or get paid. "There are a lot of ways that you could try to be evasive around this," Elmaleh told AFP, at this week's Comic-Con gathering in San Diego, California. Picket lines outside iconic Hollywood studios, often attended by A-list stars, helped draw attention to last summer's strikes. The video game walkout may call for a more "surprising and diverse" approach, said Elmaleh. She suggested strike strategies could focus on "streamers and the online arena, as well as the in-person arena," without elaborating. For video game voice actors like Lindsay Rousseau, any industrial action cannot come soon enough, as AI rapidly encroaches on her job. "I do ancillary characters, those NPCs (non-player characters) that give you side quests, characters that you fight and die, a lot of creature voices," she said. "That's the first work that's going to go away." Without AI protections, only a few famous voice actors at the top of the video game industry will make a living, while those starting out or scraping by will be left behind, Rousseau warned. For vulnerable actors, still reeling from the impact of the Hollywood strikes, the idea of more time out of work is challenging. But "the way that strike went last year really demonstrated to us that we are right about the issue," said Rodriguez. "It did not make us reluctant to go into another fight about AI. In fact, it underscored the righteousness of fighting this fight, and the need to fight it now."

Video game makers see actors as AI 'data,' says union on strike

San Diego (AFP) - Artificial intelligence was key to last year's Hollywood strikes, and it has now sparked a second walkout by those actors who work in a far larger industry, at the heart of advancing technology -- video games. The Screen Actors Guild (SAG-AFTRA) on Friday began its second strike in nine months, this time against gaming giants that dominate an industry which grosses well over $100 billion each year. And while many demands are the same -- consent and compensation for actors, whose voices and movements are used by AI to build game characters -- the latest talks are posing unique challenges, union negotiators told AFP. Technology companies, by their nature, tend to view actors simply "as data," said Ray Rodriguez, lead negotiator for the video game contract. "They're getting performances that are nuanced, that are informed by the psychology of the character and the circumstance," he said. "That's what makes it compelling." But "the fact that they see themselves as technology companies" is directly connected to "their unwillingness to perceive the performance value," he added. 'Secrecy' of video game companies The work stoppage began immediately after midnight Friday. The struck deal concerns some 2,600 artists who provide voice dubbing services for video games, or whose physical movements are recorded in order to animate computer-generated characters. The strike followed more than a year and a half of fruitless negotiations between the union and the likes of Activision, Disney, Electronic Arts and Warner Bros. Games. Talks have been sporadic, as video game companies have not appointed dedicated full-time negotiators, and are "absolutely obsessed with secrecy," said Rodriguez. There are other complicating factors. Video game characters often fuse multiple human performers -- for example, one person may voice a hero whose movements are motion-captured by another actor. It's "a really joyful, cool" way to collaborate, said Sarah Elmaleh, chair of the union's negotiating committee. But video game companies have tried to exploit that ambiguity to create "loopholes" in their counteroffers, she warned. This is because video game companies can use AI not just to replicate a specific actor, but to create "new" voices or body movements from a composite of human performers. Such use of generative AI can make it far harder for actors to trace their work, and therefore to deny consent or get paid. "There are a lot of ways that you could try to be evasive around this," Elmaleh told AFP, at this week's Comic-Con gathering in San Diego, California. Jobs could 'go away' Picket lines outside iconic Hollywood studios, often attended by A-list stars, helped draw attention to last summer's strikes. The video game walkout may call for a more "surprising and diverse" approach, said Elmaleh. She suggested strike strategies could focus on "streamers and the online arena, as well as the in-person arena," without elaborating. For video game voice actors like Lindsay Rousseau, any industrial action cannot come soon enough, as AI rapidly encroaches on her job. "I do ancillary characters, those NPCs (non-player characters) that give you side quests, characters that you fight and die, a lot of creature voices," she said. "That's the first work that's going to go away." Without AI protections, only a few famous voice actors at the top of the video game industry will make a living, while those starting out or scraping by will be left behind, Rousseau warned. For vulnerable actors, still reeling from the impact of the Hollywood strikes, the idea of more time out of work is challenging. But "the way that strike went last year really demonstrated to us that we are right about the issue," said Rodriguez. "It did not make us reluctant to go into another fight about AI. In fact, it underscored the righteousness of fighting this fight, and the need to fight it now."

Hollywood video game performers are going on strike because they worry studios could train AI to copy them

The strike -- the second for video game voice actors and motion capture performers under the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists -- will begin at 12:01 a.m. Friday. The move comes after nearly two years of negotiations with gaming giants, including divisions of Activision, Warner Bros. and Walt Disney Co., over a new interactive media agreement. SAG-AFTRA negotiators say gains have been made over wages and job safety in the video game contract, but that the two sides remained split over the regulation of generative AI. A spokesperson for the video game producers, Audrey Cooling, said the studios offered AI protections, but SAG-AFTRA's negotiating committee said 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 Thursday afternoon. He said some physical performances are being treated as "data." Without guardrails, game companies could train AI to replicate an actor's voice, or create a digital replica of their likeness without consent or fair compensation, the union said. "We strike as a matter of last resort. We have given this process absolutely as much time as we responsibly can," Rodriguez told reporters. "We have exhausted the other possibilities, and that is why we're doing it now." Cooling said the companies' offer "extends meaningful AI protections." "We are disappointed the union has chosen to walk away when we are so close to a deal, and we remain prepared to resume negotiations," she said. Andi Norris, an actor and member of the union's negotiating committee, said that those who do stunt work or creature performances would still be at risk under the game companies' offer. "The performers who bring their body of work to these games create a whole variety of characters, and all of that work must be covered. Their proposal would carve out anything that doesn't look and sound identical to me as I sit here, when, in truth, on any given week I am a zombie, I am a soldier, I am a zombie soldier," Norris said. "We cannot and will not accept that a stunt or movement performer giving a full performance on stage next to a voice actor isn't a performer." The global video game industry generates well over $100 billion dollars in profit annually, according to game market forecaster Newzoo. The people who design and bring those games to life are the driving force behind that success, SAG-AFTRA said. Members voted overwhelmingly last year to give leadership the authority to strike. Concerns about how movie studios will use AI helped fuel last year's film and television strikes by the union, which lasted four months. The last interactive contract, which expired in November 2022, did not provide protections around AI but secured a bonus compensation structure for voice actors and performance capture artists after an 11-month strike that began in October 2016. That work stoppage marked the first major labor action from SAG-AFTRA following the merger of Hollywood's two largest actors unions in 2012. The video game agreement covers more than 2,500 "off-camera (voiceover) performers, on-camera (motion capture, stunt) performers, stunt coordinators, singers, dancers, puppeteers, and background performers," according to the union. Amid the tense interactive negotiations, SAG-AFTRA created a separate contract in February that covered independent and lower-budget video game projects. The tiered-budget independent interactive media agreement contains some of the protections on AI that video game industry titans have rejected. Games signed to an interim interactive media agreement, tiered-budget independent interactive agreement or interim interactive localization agreement are not part of the strike, the union said.

Video game performers begin strike over AI concerns

A new wave of strikes has erupted in Hollywood, this time over the use of artificial intelligence in the video games industry. Performers who lend their vocal talents to video games have voted to go on strike after talks broke down with the studios over the use of AI in productions. This is the second stoppage in the last year for the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA), which ended its historically long 118-day walkout over film, television and streaming contracts in November last year. Last year's action, paired with a strike by the Writers Guild of America (WGA), also disputed the use of AI within the film and television industries. Now, the issue of AI has become the central focus of a new disagreement within a different division of the SAG-AFTRA union. SAG-AFTRA represents more than 2,500 video game performers who do work including voice-overs, motion-capture, to stunt performers and singers. The strike, which began at 12:01 a.m. Friday, comes after nearly two years of negotiations with gaming giants, including divisions of Activision, Warner Bros. and Walt Disney Co., over a new interactive media agreement. SAG-AFTRA negotiators say gains have been made over wages and job safety in the video game contract, but that the two sides remained split over the regulation of generative AI. A spokesperson for the video game producers, Audrey Cooling, said the studios offered AI protections, but SAG-AFTRA's negotiating committee said 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 on Thursday afternoon. He said some physical performances are being treated as "data." Without guardrails, game companies could train AI to replicate an actor's voice, or create a digital replica of their likeness without consent or fair compensation, the union said. "We strike as a matter of last resort. We have given this process absolutely as much time as we responsibly can," Rodriguez told reporters. "We have exhausted the other possibilities, and that is why we're doing it now." The global video game industry generates well over $100 billion (€92 billion) in profit annually, according to game market forecaster Newzoo. The people who design and bring those games to life are the driving force behind that success, SAG-AFTRA said. Members voted overwhelmingly last year to give leadership the authority to strike. Concerns about how movie studios will use AI helped fuel last year's film and television strikes by the union, which lasted four months. The last interactive contract, which expired in November 2022, did not provide protections around AI but secured a bonus compensation structure for voice actors and performance capture artists after an 11-month strike that began in October 2016. That work stoppage marked the first major labour action from SAG-AFTRA following the merger of Hollywood's two largest actors unions in 2012.

Video game actors are now on strike. Here's why

LOS ANGELES -- Hollywood's video game performers went on strike Friday after negotiations with game industry giants that began more than a year and a half ago came to a halt over artificial intelligence protections. Leaders of the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists have billed the issues behind the labor dispute -- and AI in particular -- as an existential crisis for performers. Game voice actors and motion capture artists' likenesses, they say, could be replicated by AI and used without their consent and without fair compensation. The union says the unregulated use of AI 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. SAG-AFTRA negotiators said gains had been made over wages and job safety in the video game contract, but that the two sides remained split over the regulation of generative AI. A spokesperson for the video game producers, Audrey Cooling, said the studios offered "meaningful AI protections" to performers in their proposal, but SAG-AFTRA's negotiating committee said 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 Thursday afternoon. He said some physical performances are being treated as "data." Here are five things to know about the strike, which went into effect 12:01 a.m. Friday: The agreement covers more than 2,500 "off-camera voiceover performers, on-camera (motion capture, stunt) performers, stunt coordinators, singers, dancers, puppeteers, and background performers," according to SAG-AFTRA. The union had been negotiating with an industry bargaining group consisting of signatory video game companies, including divisions of Activision and Electronic Arts. 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 union said. "We are disappointed the union has chosen to walk away when we are so close to a deal, and we remain prepared to resume negotiations," Cooling said. Thursday's labor action marks the second time SAG-AFTRA's video game performers have gone on strike. Their first work stoppage, in October 2016, began after more than one year of negotiations failed. The union and video game companies reached a tentative deal 11 months later, in September 2017. At the time, the strike -- which helped secure a bonus compensation structure for voice actors and performance capture artists -- was the longest in the union's history, following the merger of Hollywood's two largest actors unions in 2012. SAG-AFTRA has said that some of the key issues include securing wages that keep up with inflation, protections around "exploitative uses" of artificial intelligence and safety precautions that account for the strain of physical performances as well as vocal stress. Union negotiators told The Associated Press that they had made gains in bargaining over wages and job safety, but that the game studios refused to "provide an equal level of protection from the dangers of AI for all our members." "If we had seen sufficient protection for all performers who work this contract ... then we would not be here today," Interactive Media Agreement Negotiating Committee Chair Sarah Elmaleh said in an interview Thursday afternoon. Although the unchecked use of artificial intelligence has been a sticking point in talks, voice actors and members of the union negotiating committee have said they are not anti-AI. The performers are worried, however, that unchecked use of AI could provide game makers with a means to displace them -- by training an AI to replicate an actor's voice, or to create a digital replica of their likeness without consent. Some also argue that AI could also strip less experienced actors of the chance to land smaller background roles, such as non-player characters, where they typically cut their teeth before landing larger roles. The unchecked use of AI, performers say, could also lead to ethical issues if their voices or likenesses are used create content that they do not morally agree with. SAG-AFTRA created a separate contract in February that covered indie and lower-budget video game projects. The tiered-budget independent interactive media agreement contains some of the protections on AI that video game industry bargaining group rejected. The union also announced a side deal with AI voice company Replica Studios in January that enables major studios to work with unionized actors to create and license a digital replica of their voice. It also sets terms that allow performers to opt out of having their voices used in perpetuity.

Video game voice and motion actors announce second strike over AI concerns

Hollywood's video game performers announced they would go on strike Thursday, throwing part of the entertainment industry into another work stoppage after talks for a new contract with major game studios broke down over artificial intelligence protections. The strike -- the second walkout for video game voice actors and motion capture performers under the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists -- will begin at 12:01 a.m. Friday. The move comes after nearly two years of negotiations with gaming giants, including divisions of Activision, Warner Bros. and Walt Disney Co., over a new interactive media agreement. SAG-AFTRA negotiators say gains have been made over wages and job safety in the video game contract, but that the two sides remained split over the regulation of generative AI. A spokesperson for the video game producers, Audrey Cooling, said the studios offered AI protections, but SAG-AFTRA's negotiating committee said 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 Thursday afternoon. He said some physical performances are being treated as "data." Without guardrails, game companies could train AI to replicate an actor's voice, or create a digital replica of their likeness without consent or fair compensation, the union said. "We strike as a matter of last resort. We have given this process absolutely as much time as we responsibly can," Rodriguez told reporters. "We have exhausted the other possibilities, and that is why we're doing it now." Cooling said the companies' offer "extends meaningful AI protections." "We are disappointed the union has chosen to walk away when we are so close to a deal, and we remain prepared to resume negotiations," she said. Andi Norris, an actor and member of the union's negotiating committee, said that those who do stunt work or creature performances would still be at risk under the game companies' offer. "The performers who bring their body of work to these games create a whole variety of characters, and all of that work must be covered. Their proposal would carve out anything that doesn't look and sound identical to me as I sit here, when, in truth, on any given week I am a zombie, I am a soldier, I am a zombie soldier," Norris said. "We cannot and will not accept that a stunt or movement performer giving a full performance on stage next to a voice actor isn't a performer." The global video game industry generates well over $100 billion dollars in profit annually, according to game market forecaster Newzoo. The people who design and bring those games to life are the driving force behind that success, SAG-AFTRA said. Members voted overwhelmingly last year to give leadership the authority to strike. Concerns about how movie studios will use AI helped fuel last year's film and television strikes by the union, which lasted four months. The last interactive contract, which expired in November 2022, did not provide protections around AI but secured a bonus compensation structure for voice actors and performance capture artists after an 11-month strike that began in October 2016. That work stoppage marked the first major labor action from SAG-AFTRA following the merger of Hollywood's two largest actors unions in 2012. The video game agreement covers more than 2,500 "off-camera (voiceover) performers, on-camera (motion capture, stunt) performers, stunt coordinators, singers, dancers, puppeteers and background performers," according to the union. Amid the tense interactive negotiations, SAG-AFTRA created a separate contract in February that covered independent and lower-budget video game projects. The tiered-budget independent interactive media agreement contains some of the protections on AI that video game industry titans have rejected. Games signed to an interim interactive media agreement, tiered-budget independent interactive agreement or interim interactive localization agreement are not part of the strike, the union said.

Video game makers see actors as AI 'data': union on strike

Artificial intelligence was key to last year's Hollywood strikes, and it has now sparked a second walkout by those actors who work in a far larger industry, at the heart of advancing technology -- video games. For vulnerable actors, still reeling from the impact of the Hollywood strikes, the idea of more time out of work is challenging.Artificial intelligence was key to last year's Hollywood strikes, and it has now sparked a second walkout by those actors who work in a far larger industry, at the heart of advancing technology -- video games. The Screen Actors Guild (SAG-AFTRA) on Friday began its second strike in nine months, this time against gaming giants that dominate an industry which grosses well over $100 billion each year. And while many demands are the same -- consent and compensation for actors, whose voices and movements are used by AI to build game characters -- the latest talks are posing unique challenges, union negotiators told AFP. Technology companies, by their nature, tend to view actors simply "as data," said Ray Rodriguez, lead negotiator for the video game contract. "They're getting performances that are nuanced, that are informed by the psychology of the character and the circumstance," he said. "That's what makes it compelling." But "the fact that they see themselves as technology companies" is directly connected to "their unwillingness to perceive the performance value," he added. - 'Secrecy' of video game companies - The work stoppage began immediately after midnight Friday. The struck deal concerns some 2,600 artists who provide voice dubbing services for video games, or whose physical movements are recorded in order to animate computer-generated characters. The strike followed more than a year and a half of fruitless negotiations between the union and the likes of Activision, Disney, Electronic Arts and Warner Bros. Games. Talks have been sporadic, as video game companies have not appointed dedicated full-time negotiators, and are "absolutely obsessed with secrecy," said Rodriguez. There are other complicating factors. Video game characters often fuse multiple human performers -- for example, one person may voice a hero whose movements are motion-captured by another actor. It's "a really joyful, cool" way to collaborate, said Sarah Elmaleh, chair of the union's negotiating committee. But video game companies have tried to exploit that ambiguity to create "loopholes" in their counteroffers, she warned. This is because video game companies can use AI not just to replicate a specific actor, but to create "new" voices or body movements from a composite of human performers. Such use of generative AI can make it far harder for actors to trace their work, and therefore to deny consent or get paid. "There are a lot of ways that you could try to be evasive around this," Elmaleh told AFP, at this week's Comic-Con gathering in San Diego, California. - Jobs could 'go away' - Picket lines outside iconic Hollywood studios, often attended by A-list stars, helped draw attention to last summer's strikes. The video game walkout may call for a more "surprising and diverse" approach, said Elmaleh. She suggested strike strategies could focus on "streamers and the online arena, as well as the in-person arena," without elaborating. For video game voice actors like Lindsay Rousseau, any industrial action cannot come soon enough, as AI rapidly encroaches on her job. "I do ancillary characters, those NPCs (non-player characters) that give you side quests, characters that you fight and die, a lot of creature voices," she said. "That's the first work that's going to go away." Without AI protections, only a few famous voice actors at the top of the video game industry will make a living, while those starting out or scraping by will be left behind, Rousseau warned. For vulnerable actors, still reeling from the impact of the Hollywood strikes, the idea of more time out of work is challenging. But "the way that strike went last year really demonstrated to us that we are right about the issue," said Rodriguez. "It did not make us reluctant to go into another fight about AI. In fact, it underscored the righteousness of fighting this fight, and the need to fight it now."

Video game actors and performers on strike over artificial intelligence protections

Video game actors went on strike early Friday morning after contract negotiations with major game studios broke down over artificial intelligence protections. The strike of around 2,500 SAG-AFTRA video game voice actors and motion capture performers comes after nearly two years of negotiations between the union and video game producers. The union argues that AI poses an even greater threat to voice and motion performers in the video game industry than it does to actors in film and television. Video game actors are seeking a new contract that would require producers to obtain their consent before reproducing their voices or likenesses with AI. Video game actors last went on strike in October 2016, before AI became a major issue. "We're not going to consent to a contract that allows companies to abuse AI to the detriment of our members. Enough is enough," SAG-AFTRA President Fran Drescher said in a statement. "When these companies get serious about offering an agreement our members can live -- and work -- with, we will be here, ready to negotiate." A spokesperson for the video game producers said the studios offered "meaningful AI protections" to performers in their proposal, but SAG-AFTRA's negotiating committee said that the studios' definition of who constitutes a "performer" is key to understanding the issue of who would be protected. Other key issues the union is asking for include wages that keep up with inflation and safety precautions for physical and voice performances. Union negotiations said gains have been made in bargaining wages and job safety, but not in AI protections. During last year's Hollywood actors' strike, residuals and AI became major issues. The strike, which lasted 118 days, ended with a deal that included wage increases, AI safeguards, streaming bonuses and other Improvements.

Video game performers will go on strike over AI concerns

LOS ANGELES (AP) -- Hollywood's video game performers announced they would go on strike Thursday, throwing part of the entertainment industry into another work stoppage after talks for a new contract with major game studios broke down over artificial intelligence protections. The strike -- the second for video game voice actors and motion capture performers under the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists -- will begin at 12.01 am Friday. The move comes after nearly two years of negotiations with gaming giants, including divisions of Activision, Warner Bros and Walt Disney Co, over a new interactive media agreement. SAG-AFTRA negotiators say gains have been made over wages and job safety in the video game contract, but that the two sides remained split over the regulation of generative AI. A spokesperson for the video game producers, Audrey Cooling, said the studios offered AI protections, but SAG-AFTRA's negotiating committee said 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 Thursday afternoon. He said some physical performances are being treated as "data." Without guardrails, game companies could train AI to replicate an actor's voice, or create a digital replica of their likeness without consent or fair compensation, the union said. "We strike as a matter of last resort. We have given this process absolutely as much time as we responsibly can," Rodriguez told reporters. "We have exhausted the other possibilities, and that is why we're doing it now." Cooling said the companies' offer "extends meaningful AI protections." "We are disappointed the union has chosen to walk away when we are so close to a deal, and we remain prepared to resume negotiations," she said. Andi Norris, an actor and member of the union's negotiating committee, said that those who do stunt work or creature performances would still be at risk under the game companies' offer. "The performers who bring their body of work to these games create a whole variety of characters, and all of that work must be covered. Their proposal would carve out anything that doesn't look and sound identical to me as I sit here, when, in truth, on any given week I am a zombie, I am a soldier, I am a zombie soldier," Norris said. "We cannot and will not accept that a stunt or movement performer giving a full performance on stage next to a voice actor isn't a performer." The global video game industry generates well over USD100 billion dollars in profit annually, according to game market forecaster Newzoo. The people who design and bring those games to life are the driving force behind that success, SAG-AFTRA said. Members voted overwhelmingly last year to give leadership the authority to strike. Concerns about how movie studios will use AI helped fuel last year's film and television strikes by the union, which lasted four months. The last interactive contract, which expired in November 2022, did not provide protections around AI but secured a bonus compensation structure for voice actors and performance capture artists after an 11-month strike that began in October 2016. That work stoppage marked the first major labour action from SAG-AFTRA following the merger of Hollywood's two largest actors unions in 2012. The video game agreement covers more than 2,500 "off-camera (voiceover) performers, on-camera (motion capture, stunt) performers, stunt coordinators, singers, dancers, puppeteers, and background performers," according to the union. Amid the tense interactive negotiations, SAG-AFTRA created a separate contract in February that covered independent and lower-budget video game projects. The tiered-budget independent interactive media agreement contains some of the protections on AI that video game industry titans have rejected.

SAG-AFTRA back on strike over AI, this time in video games

Actors are back on strike for an entirely unsurprising reason: Studios aren't willing to give video game actors enough protection from artificial intelligence. Video game performers with the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA) went on strike on Thursday, calling AI protections "the sticking point" in ongoing negotiations with major game studios. "We're not going to consent to a contract that allows companies to abuse AI to the detriment of our members. Enough is enough," SAG-AFTRA president Fran Drescher said of the strike. "When these companies get serious about offering an agreement our members can live - and work - with, we will be here, ready to negotiate." The move comes nearly a year after union members authorized a wider strike with practically unanimous approval. That industrial action was authorized in the midst of a nearly four-month actor strike that also included concerns over studios scanning actors' likenesses for future AI replication. SAG-AFTRA said in early September 2023 that it was concerned video game (a.k.a. "interactive media") actors could suffer the same AI abuses after their bargaining agreement with studios expired in 2022 and talks stalled. Strike authorization votes don't mean withdrawal of labor begins immediately, but put extra pressure on studios to cave to union demands. With those demands appearing to fall on deaf ears, SAG-AFTRA is taking action against the studios it's been trying to negotiate with for the past 18 months. Studios affected include Activision Blizzard, Disney, Electronic Arts, Sony subsidiary Insomniac Games, and others. "Although agreements have been reached on many issues important to SAG-AFTRA members, the employers refuse to plainly affirm, in clear and enforceable language, that they will protect all performers covered by this contract in their AI language," SAG-AFTRA said of the now-official strike. Like well-known actors cloned by AI for advertisements without their permission, the union is concerned the off-screen performances of their members working in the interactive media space could be cloned and used without their permission too. Essentially, AI models might be used to reproduce those performances without due compensation for or consent from the person depicted, leaving performers out of pocket. Speaking at a press conference yesterday, SAG-AFTRA chief contract negotiator Ray Rodriguez said voice actors aren't the only ones worried - motion capture actors and physical performers could have their work cloned as well. "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," Rodriguez said, adding that in some cases physical performances are being treated as "data" and not the work of an actor. "We strike as a matter of last resort," Rodriguez said during his press conference. "We have given this process absolutely as much time as we responsibly can." A spokesperson for the studios involved in the negotiations told us they were disappointed the union walked away from negotiations "when we are so close to a deal." "We have already found common ground on 24 out of 25 proposals, including historic wage increases and additional safety provisions," studio rep Audrey Cooling told The Register. "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 [Interactive Media Agreement]. These terms are among the strongest in the entertainment industry." ®

Video game actors to go on strike following breakdown in AI talks with game developers - SiliconANGLE

Video game actors to go on strike following breakdown in AI talks with game developers Video game actors represented by the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists have voted to go on strike starting Friday, after a breakdown in negotiations with video game studios over protections from artificial intelligence. The rise of generative AI, and its potential to replace humans, was one of the most critical sticking points for actors and writers during last year's Hollywood strikes. But while actors and screenwriters in the movie industry were ultimately able to negotiate a deal with film studios over AI, video game performers have failed to do so. According to SAG-AFTRA, the negotiations between video game actors and major game developers broke down after more than a year-and-a-half of discussions. SAG-AFTRA is a union that represents 160,000 actors, and it has been negotiating with a group of video game companies that includes Activision Productions Studios LLC, Blindlight LLC, Disney Character Voices International Inc., Electronic Arts Inc., Productions Inc., Formosa Interactive Inc., VoiceWorks Productions LLC and Warner Bros Games. The union said in a statement to media that while agreements have been reached on many of the most relevant issues for its members, the video games studios have refused to "plainly affirm, in clear and enforceable language, that they will protect all performers covered by this contract in their AI language." A spokesperson for the video game producers said they were disappointed to see that the "union has chosen to walk away when we are so close to a deal". He added that the group is prepared to resume negotiations at any moment. "We have already found common ground on 24 out of 25 proposals, including historic wage increases and additional safety provisions," the spokesperson added. "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." SAG-AFTRA voice actors and performance capture artists previously went on strike in October 2016 and didn't return to work for more than 11 months. Their last interactive contract with video games developers expired in November 2022 and did not include any protections around AI. "Frankly, it's stunning that these video game studios haven't learned anything from the lessons of last year -- that our members can and will stand up and demand fair and equitable treatment with respect to A.I., and the public supports us in that," SAG-AFTRA National Executive Director and chief negotiator Duncan Crabtree-Ireland said in a statement. Actors play a crucial role in the video games development industry, lending their voices to game characters and doing full performances in motion capture. Some even lend their likeness to characters that are replicated in the digital world. SAG-AFTRA members voted overwhelmingly to authorize a strike in September, if the negotiations on a new labor contract broke down. It was believed that the union was making progress in its talks. In January, it announced it had struck a deal with the AI company Replica Studios Inc. to establish protections regarding the licensing of digitally-replicated voices. Actors' fears over AI voice replication are justified and they're shared by others, such as music artists. AI voice technology has become widespread in the social media domain, where AI-generated voiceovers are often used with memes. Some actors, such as Roger Clark, who provides the voice for Red Dead Redemption 2's protagonist character Arthur Morgan, have publicly criticized fans for using AI to replicate their voices for use with content shared on social media. According to The Associated Press, union leaders insist they aren't completely "anti-AI", but they are concerned about the unchecked use of the technology. Their biggest fear is that game developers will use their voices and physical likenesses to train AI models that will eventually replace them altogether. SAG-AFTRA's chief contracts officer Ray Rodriguez told reporters on a Zoom call that the strike was a "last resort" for the union's members. "In this negotiation we have not received everything we received in the replica deal, and if we had, we would not be announcing a strike," he said. "We're left with practically no protection for our future," added Zeke Alton, a video game performer who was on the negotiating team.

Hollywood's videogame performers to go on strike over AI, pay concerns

The SAG-AFTRA logo is displayed outside of the National Headquarters on Wilshire Blvd. The union will once again be going on strike, this time over a contract impasse with major video game companies. Video game voice actors and motion-capture performers have called a strike over failed labor contract negotiations focused around AI-related protections for workers, bringing about another work stoppage in Hollywood. The SAG-AFTRA has called a strike of the Interactive Media Agreement that covers videogame performers, effective July 26, the union said on Thursday. The decision follows months of negotiations with major videogame companies including Activision Productions, Electronic Arts, Epic Games, Take-Two Interactive, Disney Character Voices and Warner Bros Discovery's WB Games. The Interactive Media Agreement expired in November 2022 and was being extended on a monthly basis during the talks. "Although agreements have been reached on many issues important to SAG-AFTRA members, the employers refuse to plainly affirm, in clear and enforceable language, that they will protect all performers covered by this contract in their AI language," the union said in a statement. The SAG-AFTRA also represents the film and television actors who went on strike in July last year over concerns of inadequate safeguards against artificial intelligence (AI), putting Hollywood in the midst of two simultaneous work stoppages for the first time in 63 years. Apart from AI protections, the SAG-AFTRA's most pressing issues in the contract negotiations for videogame performers are higher pay, medical treatment and breaks for motion capture performers. SAG-AFTRA is seeking wage increases for videogame performers, saying their pay has not kept pace with inflation, and pursuing more protections for the motion-capture performers who wear markers or sensors on the skin or a body suit to help game makers create character movements. "We are disappointed the union has chosen to walk away when we are so close to a deal, and we remain prepared to resume negotiations. We have already found common ground on 24 out of 25 proposals, including historic wage increases and additional safety provisions," said Audrey Cooling, a spokesperson for the videogame producers party to the Interactive Media Agreement. The offer presented to the SAG-AFTRA features AI protections that include requiring consent and fair compensation to all performers working under the IMA, Cooling said.

Video Game Actors To Strike In California

Hollywood's video game actors will go on strike early Friday to demand safeguards against artificial intelligence, the US actors' union announced. The work stoppage for the industry's video game voice actors and motion capture performers begins at 12:01 am (0401 GMT) in California, according to the Screen Actors Guild and American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA). Thursday's announcement comes after more than a year and a half of fruitless negotiations between the union and several video game giants including Activision, Disney, Electronic Arts and Warner Bros. Games. "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," SAG-AFTRA President Fran Drescher, star of 1990s sitcom "The Nanny," said in a statement. "When these companies get serious about offering an agreement our members can live -- and work -- with, we will be here, ready to negotiate." The agreement under discussion concerns some 2,600 artists who provide voice dubbing services for video games, or whose physical movements are recorded in order to animate computer-generated characters. Union members are concerned about the industry's use of AI, as the technology makes it possible to reproduce an actor's voice or digitally recreate a stuntman's actions without their consent or fair remuneration. With American actors winning their case against movie studios and television producers after a historic strike largely paralyzed Hollywood last year, SAG-AFTRA is similarly demanding guarantees from the video game industry. "Frankly, it's stunning that these video game studios haven't learned anything from the lessons of last year -- that our members can and will stand up and demand fair and equitable treatment with respect to A.I., and the public supports us in that," said Duncan Crabtree-Ireland, the union's chief negotiator. Facing stalled negotiations, the video game actors had authorized their union to call a strike last September. The collective agreement governing their working conditions expired in November 2022. The video game producers had cited progress in the talks. "We are disappointed the union has chosen to walk away when we are so close to a deal, and we remain prepared to resume negotiations," Audrey Cooling, a spokesperson for the producers, said in a statement. According to Cooling, the management's offer includes "historic wage increases" and "meaningful AI protections," including requiring "consent and fair compensation" for artists.

Videogame voice actors are officially on strike over AI: 'We refuse this paradigm'

It's happening again: Voice and motion capture actors in the SAG-AFTRA union are going on strike. Over 160,000 performers will refuse to work for major videogame makers including Activision, Disney, and EA until the companies agree to a contract with "critical AI protections" for union members. The strike officially begins on July 26. "Although agreements have been reached on many issues important to SAG-AFTRA members, the employers refuse to plainly affirm, in clear and enforceable language, that they will protect all performers covered by this contract in their AI language," says the union. The voice actors, who authorized the strike with a 98.32% "yes" vote, want big game makers to inform the union when they plan to use generative AI in a way that would replace the work of actors, and to negotiate compensation when they want to generate material based on an actor's voice or likeness. The fear is that without sufficient protections for voice actors, game companies will cut costs by training AI systems on their work, allowing a developer to, for example, endlessly reproduce an actor's voice without hiring them to record new lines. "Eighteen months of negotiations have shown us that our employers are not interested in fair, reasonable AI protections, but rather flagrant exploitation," says actor and union negotiator Sarah Elmaleh. "We refuse this paradigm -- we will not leave any of our members behind, nor will we wait for sufficient protection any longer." Generative AI voices will arguably never be able to perform as convincingly as real actors, but they have already proven a threat to voice actor livelihoods. Free-to-play FPS The Finals, for instance, uses AI text-to-speech software for its commentators rather than voice actors. There are also examples in the wild of real actors having their voices replicated -- Stellaris uses generative AI voices based on the voices of actors, for instance, although Paradox pays royalties to the actors who provided the AI training material, which is the kind of agreement a contract with AI protections can require. This new frontier of generative AI use can get very messy: One notable incident saw OpenAI use a voice that sounded very similar to Scarlett Johansson's, mimicking the Hollywood star's performance as an AI companion in the movie Her. The company said that it was not Johansson's voice -- it had hired an different actor -- but removed the voice "out of respect for Ms. Johansson." AI voice generation and replication is also being used by non-professionals, in some cases to create material that actors vehemently object to, such as pornography. It's hard to stop hobbyists, but contractual protections could at least prevent game companies from exploiting an actor's likeness in work they didn't agree to. The actors are looking for "fair compensation and the right of informed consent for the AI use of their faces, voices, and bodies," says SAG-AFTRA national executive director Duncan Crabtree-Ireland. SAG-AFTRA videogame actors previously went on strike in 2016 over residuals. That strike, which targeted the same subset of the games industry, lasted for nearly a year. It isn't entirely obvious how substantially it affected in-development games at the time, as big developers wouldn't have publicly attributed delays to the strike. One notable consequence was that actor Ashly Burch did not reprise her role as Chloe in Life is Strange: Before the Storm.

Hollywood's Videogame Performers to Go on Strike Over AI, Pay Concerns

(Reuters) - Videogame voice actors and motion-capture performers have called a strike over failed labor contract negotiations focused around AI-related protections for workers, bringing about another work stoppage in Hollywood. The SAG-AFTRA has called a strike of the Interactive Media Agreement that covers video game performers, effective July 26, the union said on Thursday. The decision follows months of negotiations with major videogame companies including Activision Productions, Electronic Arts, Epic Games, Take-Two Interactive, Disney Character Voices and Warner Bros Discovery's WB Games. The Interactive Media Agreement expired in November 2022 and was being extended on a monthly basis during the talks. "Although agreements have been reached on many issues important to SAG-AFTRA members, the employers refuse to plainly affirm, in clear and enforceable language, that they will protect all performers covered by this contract in their AI language," the union said in a statement. The SAG-AFTRA also represents the film and television actors who went on strike in July last year over concerns of inadequate safeguards against artificial intelligence (AI), putting Hollywood in the midst of two simultaneous work stoppages for the first time in 63 years. Apart from AI protections, the SAG-AFTRA's most pressing issues in the contract negotiations for videogame performers are higher pay, medical treatment and breaks for motion capture performers. SAG-AFTRA is seeking wage increases for videogame performers, saying their pay has not kept pace with inflation, and pursuing more protections for the motion-capture performers who wear markers or sensors on the skin or a body suit to help game makers create character movements. "We are disappointed the union has chosen to walk away when we are so close to a deal, and we remain prepared to resume negotiations. We have already found common ground on 24 out of 25 proposals, including historic wage increases and additional safety provisions," said Audrey Cooling, a spokesperson for the videogame producers party to the Interactive Media Agreement. The offer presented to the SAG-AFTRA features AI protections that include requiring consent and fair compensation to all performers working under the IMA, Cooling said. (Reporting by Arsheeya Bajwa and Danielle Broadway; Editing by Devika Syamnath)

Hollywood's videogame performers to strike over AI, pay concerns

The SAG-AFTRA has called a strike of the Interactive Media Agreement that covers video game performers, effective July 26, the union said on Thursday. The decision follows months of negotiations with major videogame companies including Activision Productions, Electronic Arts, Epic Games, Take-Two Interactive, Disney Character Voices and Warner Bros Discovery's WB Games.Videogame voice actors and motion-capture performers have called a strike over failed labor contract negotiations focused around AI-related protections for workers, bringing about another work stoppage in Hollywood. The SAG-AFTRA has called a strike of the Interactive Media Agreement that covers video game performers, effective July 26, the union said on Thursday. The decision follows months of negotiations with major videogame companies including Activision Productions, Electronic Arts, Epic Games, Take-Two Interactive, Disney Character Voices and Warner Bros Discovery's WB Games. The Interactive Media Agreement expired in November 2022 and was being extended on a monthly basis during the talks. "Although agreements have been reached on many issues important to SAG-AFTRA members, the employers refuse to plainly affirm, in clear and enforceable language, that they will protect all performers covered by this contract in their AI language," the union said in a statement. The SAG-AFTRA also represents the film and television actors who went on strike in July last year over concerns of inadequate safeguards against artificial intelligence (AI), putting Hollywood in the midst of two simultaneous work stoppages for the first time in 63 years. While movie and TV studios negotiated from a unified position, and had the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP) negotiating on their behalf, there is no such analogous group in the games industry, so it is highly likely that one or more game developers will accept the union's demands, said Wedbush managing director Michael Pachter. "Once one (developer) does it, all will do it." Apart from AI protections, the SAG-AFTRA's most pressing issues in the contract negotiations for videogame performers are higher pay, medical treatment and breaks for motion capture performers. SAG-AFTRA says pay for videogame performers has not kept pace with inflation. It is also pursuing more protections for the motion-capture performers who wear markers or sensors on the skin or a body suit to help game makers create character movements. "We are disappointed the union has chosen to walk away when we are so close to a deal, and we remain prepared to resume negotiations. We have already found common ground on 24 out of 25 proposals, including historic wage increases and additional safety provisions," said Audrey Cooling, a spokesperson for the videogame producers party to the Interactive Media Agreement. The offer presented to the SAG-AFTRA features AI protections that include requiring consent and fair compensation to all performers working under the IMA, Cooling said. Still, Wedbush's Pachter said voice actors constitute a very small portion of game development costs that average over $80 million, and voice acting makes up only about $500,000 of that. "It just isn't worth holding up a game's release to save a few hundred thousand dollars," said Pachter.

Video game performers will go on strike over artificial intelligence concerns - VnExpress International

The strike -- the second for video game voice actors and motion capture performers under the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists -- will begin at 12:01 a.m. Friday. The move comes after nearly two years of negotiations with gaming giants, including divisions of Activision, Warner Bros. and Walt Disney Co., over a new interactive media agreement. SAG-AFTRA negotiators say gains have been made over wages and job safety in the video game contract, but that the two sides remained split over the regulation of generative AI. A spokesperson for the video game producers, Audrey Cooling, said the studios offered AI protections, but SAG-AFTRA's negotiating committee said 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 Thursday afternoon. He said some physical performances are being treated as "data." Without guardrails, game companies could train AI to replicate an actor's voice, or create a digital replica of their likeness without consent or fair compensation, the union said. "We strike as a matter of last resort. We have given this process absolutely as much time as we responsibly can," Rodriguez told reporters. "We have exhausted the other possibilities, and that is why we're doing it now." Cooling said the companies' offer "extends meaningful AI protections." "We are disappointed the union has chosen to walk away when we are so close to a deal, and we remain prepared to resume negotiations," she said. Andi Norris, an actor and member of the union's negotiating committee, said that those who do stunt work or creature performances would still be at risk under the game companies' offer. "The performers who bring their body of work to these games create a whole variety of characters, and all of that work must be covered. Their proposal would carve out anything that doesn't look and sound identical to me as I sit here, when, in truth, on any given week I am a zombie, I am a soldier, I am a zombie soldier," Norris said. "We cannot and will not accept that a stunt or movement performer giving a full performance on stage next to a voice actor isn't a performer." The global video game industry generates well over $100 billion dollars in profit annually, according to game market forecasterNewzoo. The people who design and bring those games to life are the driving force behind that success, SAG-AFTRA said. Members voted overwhelmingly last year to give leadership the authority to strike. Concerns about how movie studios will use AI helped fuel last year's film and television strikes by the union, which lasted four months. The last interactive contract, which expired in November 2022, did not provide protections around AI but secured a bonus compensation structure for voice actors and performance capture artists after an 11-month strike that began in October 2016. That work stoppage marked the first major labor action from SAG-AFTRA following the merger of Hollywood's two largest actors unions in 2012. The video game agreement covers more than 2,500 "off-camera (voiceover) performers, on-camera (motion capture, stunt) performers, stunt coordinators, singers, dancers, puppeteers, and background performers," according to the union. Amid the tense interactive negotiations, SAG-AFTRA created a separate contract in February that covered independent and lower-budget video game projects. The tiered-budget independent interactive media agreement contains some of the protections on AI that video game industry titans have rejected. Games signed to an interim interactive media agreement, tiered-budget independent interactive agree mentor interim interactive localization agreement are not part of the strike, the union said.

AI threats are causing SAG-AFTRA video game actors to strike - Fast Company

The union had been negotiating with an industry bargaining group consisting of signatory video game companies, including divisions of Activision and Electronic Arts. Those companies are Activision Productions; Blindlight; Disney Character Voices; Electronic Arts; Productions Inc.; Formosa Interactive; Insomniac Games; Take 2 Productions; VoiceWorks Productions; ad WB Games. The game companies have said that they were negotiating in good faith and had reached tentative agreements "on the vast majority of proposals." Wednesday's labor action marks the second time SAG-AFTRA's video game performers have gone on strike. Their first work stoppage, in October 2016, began after more than one year of negotiations failed. The union and video game companies reached a tentative deal 11 months later, in September 2017. At the time, the strike -- which helped secure a bonus compensation structure for voice actors and performance capture artists -- was the longest in the union's history, following the merger of Hollywood's two largest actors unions in 2012. SAG-AFTRA has said that some of the key issues include securing wages that keep up with inflation, protections around "exploitative uses" of artificial intelligence and safety precautions that account for the strain of physical performances as well as vocal stress. Union negotiators told The Associated Press that they had made gains in bargaining over wages and job safety, but that the game studios refused to "provide an equal level of protection from the dangers of AI for all our members." The signatory companies refused to extend AI protections to on-camera performers, the union said. "They're saying we'll protect voiceover performers, but we won't protect anybody else," Duncan Crabtree-Ireland, SAG-AFTRA's executive director, said in an interview last month. "The bottom line is if you have performers working for you, helping create the content that's in your game, whether it's voice content, whether it's stunt work, whether it's motion work...all of those performers deserve to have their right to have informed consent and fair compensation for the use of their image, their likeness or voice, their performance. It's that simple." Although the unchecked use of artificial intelligence has been a sticking point in talks, voice actors and members of the union negotiating committee have said they are not anti-AI. The performers are worried, however, that unchecked use of AI could provide game makers with a means to displace them -- by training an AI to replicate an actor's voice, or to create a digital replica of their likeness without consent. Some also argue that AI could also strip less experienced actors of the chance to land smaller background roles, such as non-player characters, where they typically cut their teeth before landing larger roles. The unchecked use of AI, performers say, could also lead to ethical issues if their voices or likenesses are used create content that they do not morally agree with. SAG-AFTRA created a separate contract in February that covered indie and lower-budget video game projects. The tiered-budget independent interactive media agreement contains some of the protections on AI that video game industry bargaining group rejected. The union also announced a side deal with AI voice company Replica Studios in January that enables major studios to work with unionized actors to create and license a digital replica of their voice. It also sets terms that allow performers to opt out of having their voices used in perpetuity.

Video game performers go on strike over artificial intelligence

The industrial action was called by the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (Sag-Aftra), which last year paralysed Hollywood with a strike by film and television actors. The performers are worried about gaming studios using generative AI to reproduce their voices and physical appearance to animate video game characters without providing them with fair compensation. "Although agreements have been reached on many issues... the employers refuse to plainly affirm, in clear and enforceable language, that they will protect all performers covered by this contract in their AI language," Sag-Aftra said in a statement. "We're not going to consent to a contract that allows companies to abuse AI to the detriment of our members," it added. However, the video game studios have said that they have already made enough concessions to the union's demands. "We are disappointed the union has chosen to walk away when we are so close to a deal," said Audrey Cooling, a spokesperson for the 10 video game producers negotiating with Sag-Aftra. "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 [Interactive Media Agreement]," she added. The Interactive Media Agreement covers artists who provide voiceover services and on-camera work used to create video game characters. The last such deal, which did not provide AI protections, was due to expire in November 2022 but has been extended on a monthly based while talks continued.

Video game performers to go on strike in another blow to Hollywood...

Video game voice actors and motion-capture performers have called a strike over failed labor contract negotiations focused around AI-related protections for workers, bringing about another work stoppage in Hollywood. The SAG-AFTRA has called a strike of the Interactive Media Agreement that covers video game performers, effective Friday, the union said Thursday. The decision follows months of negotiations with major videogame companies including Activision Productions, Electronic Arts, Epic Games, Take-Two Interactive, Disney Character Voices and Warner Bros Discovery's WB Games. The Interactive Media Agreement expired in November 2022 and was being extended on a monthly basis during the talks. "Although agreements have been reached on many issues important to SAG-AFTRA members, the employers refuse to plainly affirm, in clear and enforceable language, that they will protect all performers covered by this contract in their AI language," the union said in a statement. The SAG-AFTRA also represents the film and television actors who went on strike in July last year over concerns of inadequate safeguards against artificial intelligence, putting Hollywood in the midst of two simultaneous work stoppages for the first time in 63 years. Apart from AI protections, the SAG-AFTRA's most pressing issues in the contract negotiations for videogame performers are higher pay, medical treatment and breaks for motion capture performers. SAG-AFTRA is seeking wage increases for videogame performers, saying their pay has not kept pace with inflation, and pursuing more protections for the motion-capture performers who wear markers or sensors on the skin or a body suit to help game makers create character movements. "We are disappointed the union has chosen to walk away when we are so close to a deal, and we remain prepared to resume negotiations. We have already found common ground on 24 out of 25 proposals, including historic wage increases and additional safety provisions," said Audrey Cooling, a spokesperson for the videogame producers party to the Interactive Media Agreement. The offer presented to the SAG-AFTRA features AI protections that include requiring consent and fair compensation to all performers working under the IMA, Cooling said.

Union game performers strike over AI voice and motion-capture training

Use of motion-capture actors' performances for AI training is a sticking point. SAG-AFTRA has called for a strike of all its members working in video games, with the union demanding that its next contract not allow "companies to abuse AI to the detriment of our members." Further ReadingThe strike mirrors similar actions taken by SAG-AFTRA and the Writers Guild of America (WGA) last year, which, while also broader in scope than just AI, were similarly focused on concerns about AI-generated work product and the use of member work to train AI. "Frankly, it's stunning that these video game studios haven't learned anything from the lessons of last year -- that our members can and will stand up and demand fair and equitable treatment with respect to A.I., and the public supports us in that," Duncan Crabtree-Ireland, chief negotiator for SAG-AFTRA, said in a statement. During the strike, the more than 160,000 members of the union will not provide talent to games produced by Disney, Electronic Arts, Blizzard Activision, Take-Two, WB Games, and others. Not every game is affected. Some productions may have interim agreements with union workers, and others, like continually updated games that launched before the current negotiations starting September 2023, may be exempt. The publishers and other companies issued statements to the media through a communications firm representing them. "We are disappointed the union has chosen to walk away when we are so close to a deal, and we remain prepared to resume negotiations," a statement offered to The New York Times and other outlets read. The statement said the two sides had found common ground on 24 out of 25 proposals and that the game companies' offer was responsive and "extends meaningful AI protections." The Washington Post says the biggest remaining issue involves on-camera performers, including motion capture performers. Crabtree-Ireland told the Post that while AI training protections were extended to voice performers, motion and stunt work was left out. "[A]ll of those performers deserve to have their right to have informed consent and fair compensation for the use of their image, their likeness or voice, their performance. It's that simple," Crabtree-Ireland said in June. It will be difficult to know the impact of a game performer strike for some time, if ever, owing to the non-linear and secretive nature of game production. A game's conception, development, casting, acting, announcement, and further development (and development pivots) happen on whatever timeline they happen upon. SAG-AFTRA has a tool for searching game titles to see if they are struck for union work, but it is finicky, recognizing only specific production titles, code names, and ID numbers. Searches for Grande Theft Auto VI and 6 returned a "Game Over!" (i.e. struck), but Kotaku confirmed the game is technically unaffected, even though its parent publisher, Take-Two, is generally struck. Further ReadingVideo game performers in SAG-AFTRA last went on strike in 2016, that time regarding long-term royalties. The strike lasted 340 days, still the longest in that union's history, and was settled with pay raises for actors, while residuals and terms on vocal stress remained unaddressed. The impact of that strike was generally either hidden or largely blunted, as affected titles hired non-union replacements. Voice work, as noted by the original English voice for Bayonetta, remains a largely unprotected field.

Hollywood's videogame performers to strike over AI, pay concerns

The SAG-AFTRA has called a strike of the Interactive Media Agreement that covers video game performers, effective July 26, the union said on Thursday. The decision follows months of negotiations with major videogame companies including Activision Productions, Electronic Arts, Epic Games, Take-Two Interactive, Disney Character Voices and Warner Bros Discovery's WB Games. The Interactive Media Agreement expired in November 2022 and was being extended on a monthly basis during the talks. "Although agreements have been reached on many issues important to SAG-AFTRA members, the employers refuse to plainly affirm, in clear and enforceable language, that they will protect all performers covered by this contract in their AI language," the union said in a statement. The SAG-AFTRA also represents the film and television actors who went on strike in July last year over concerns of inadequate safeguards against artificial intelligence (AI), putting Hollywood in the midst of two simultaneous work stoppages for the first time in 63 years. While movie and TV studios negotiated from a unified position, and had the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP) negotiating on their behalf, there is no such analogous group in the games industry, so it is highly likely that one or more game developers will accept the union's demands, said Wedbush managing director Michael Pachter. Apart from AI protections, the SAG-AFTRA's most pressing issues in the contract negotiations for videogame performers are higher pay, medical treatment and breaks for motion capture performers. SAG-AFTRA says pay for videogame performers has not kept pace with inflation. It is also pursuing more protections for the motion-capture performers who wear markers or sensors on the skin or a body suit to help game makers create character movements. "We are disappointed the union has chosen to walk away when we are so close to a deal, and we remain prepared to resume negotiations. We have already found common ground on 24 out of 25 proposals, including historic wage increases and additional safety provisions," said Audrey Cooling, a spokesperson for the videogame producers party to the Interactive Media Agreement. The offer presented to the SAG-AFTRA features AI protections that include requiring consent and fair compensation to all performers working under the IMA, Cooling said. Still, Wedbush's Pachter said voice actors constitute a very small portion of game development costs that average over $80 million, and voice acting makes up only about $500,000 of that. "It just isn't worth holding up a game's release to save a few hundred thousand dollars," said Pachter. (Reporting by Arsheeya Bajwa, Danielle Broadway and Dawn Chmielewski; Editing by Devika Syamnath)

Hollywood's videogame performers to go on strike over AI, pay concerns

The SAG-AFTRA has called a strike of the Interactive Media Agreement that covers video game performers, effective July 26, the union said on Thursday. The decision follows months of negotiations with major videogame companies including Activision Productions, Electronic Arts, Epic Games, Take-Two Interactive, Disney Character Voices and Warner Bros Discovery's WB Games. The Interactive Media Agreement expired in November 2022 and was being extended on a monthly basis during the talks. "Although agreements have been reached on many issues important to SAG-AFTRA members, the employers refuse to plainly affirm, in clear and enforceable language, that they will protect all performers covered by this contract in their AI language," the union said in a statement. The SAG-AFTRA also represents the film and television actors who went on strike in July last year over concerns of inadequate safeguards against artificial intelligence (AI), putting Hollywood in the midst of two simultaneous work stoppages for the first time in 63 years. Apart from AI protections, the SAG-AFTRA's most pressing issues in the contract negotiations for videogame performers are higher pay, medical treatment and breaks for motion capture performers. SAG-AFTRA is seeking wage increases for videogame performers, saying their pay has not kept pace with inflation, and pursuing more protections for the motion-capture performers who wear markers or sensors on the skin or a body suit to help game makers create character movements. "We are disappointed the union has chosen to walk away when we are so close to a deal, and we remain prepared to resume negotiations. We have already found common ground on 24 out of 25 proposals, including historic wage increases and additional safety provisions," said Audrey Cooling, a spokesperson for the videogame producers party to the Interactive Media Agreement. The offer presented to the SAG-AFTRA features AI protections that include requiring consent and fair compensation to all performers working under the IMA, Cooling said. (Reporting by Arsheeya Bajwa and Danielle Broadway; Editing by Devika Syamnath)

Hollywood video game workers go on strike over AI concerns

Top Hollywood union has called for a strike of all video game work produced under its Interactive Media Agreement starting Friday, after more than a year of negotiations with video game makers that broke down over the failure to ensure AI guardrails. Negotiations had been ongoing with companies including Activision Productions, Electronic Arts (NASDAQ:EA), Take-Two Interactive (NASDAQ:TTWO), Epic Games, Disney (NYSE:DIS) Character Voices and Warner Bros Discovery's (NASDAQ:WBD) WB Games. The Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists has been pushing for "fair compensation and the right of informed consent for the AI use of their (video game performers) faces, voices, and bodies." "Although agreements have been reached on many issues important to SAG-AFTRA members, the employers refuse to plainly affirm, in clear and enforceable language, that they will protect all performers covered by this contract in their AI language," the union said in a statement. "We are disappointed the union has chosen to walk away when we are so close to a deal, and we remain prepared to resume negotiations," said Audrey Cooling, spokesperson for the video game firms involved in the negotiations. "We have already found common ground on 24 out of 25 proposals, including historic wage increases and additional safety provisions." SAG-AFTRA actors along with writers went on strike against major Hollywood studios last year over poor working conditions and other issues, including inadequate AI safeguards.

Video game actors to strike in California

Los Angeles (United States) (AFP) - Hollywood's video game actors will go on strike early Friday to demand safeguards against artificial intelligence, the US actors' union announced. The work stoppage for the industry's video game voice actors and motion capture performers begins at 12:01 am (0401 GMT) in California, according to the Screen Actors Guild and American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA). Thursday's announcement comes after more than a year and a half of fruitless negotiations between the union and several video game giants including Activision, Disney, Electronic Arts and Warner Bros. Games. "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," SAG-AFTRA President Fran Drescher, star of 1990s sitcom "The Nanny," said in a statement. "When these companies get serious about offering an agreement our members can live -- and work -- with, we will be here, ready to negotiate." The agreement under discussion concerns some 2,600 artists who provide voice dubbing services for video games, or whose physical movements are recorded in order to animate computer-generated characters. Union members are concerned about the industry's use of AI, as the technology makes it possible to reproduce an actor's voice or digitally recreate a stuntman's actions without their consent or fair remuneration. With American actors winning their case against movie studios and television producers after a historic strike largely paralyzed Hollywood last year, SAG-AFTRA is similarly demanding guarantees from the video game industry. "Frankly, it's stunning that these video game studios haven't learned anything from the lessons of last year -- that our members can and will stand up and demand fair and equitable treatment with respect to A.I., and the public supports us in that," said Duncan Crabtree-Ireland, the union's chief negotiator. Facing stalled negotiations, the video game actors had authorized their union to call a strike last September. The collective agreement governing their working conditions expired in November 2022. The video game producers had cited progress in the talks. "We are disappointed the union has chosen to walk away when we are so close to a deal, and we remain prepared to resume negotiations," Audrey Cooling, a spokesperson for the producers, said in a statement. According to Cooling, the management's offer includes "historic wage increases" and "meaningful AI protections," including requiring "consent and fair compensation" for artists.

SAG-AFTRA announces video game performers' strike over AI, pay

Members of SAG-AFTRA have voted 98.23% in favor of a strike authorization against the video game industry. Video game voice actors and motion-capture performers have called a strike over failed labor contract negotiations focused around artificial intelligence-related protections for workers, bringing about another work stoppage in Hollywood. SAG-AFTRA announced Thursday that union members called a strike of the Interactive Media Agreement that covers video game performers, effective July 26 at 12:01 a.m. Negotiations began in October 2022, the union says, and members authorized a strike in a 98.32% yes vote in September. The decision follows months of negotiations with major video game companies, including Activision Productions, Electronic Arts, Epic Games, Take-Two Interactive, Disney Character Voices and Warner Bros Discovery's WB Games. The Interactive Media Agreement expired in November 2022 and was being extended on a monthly basis during the talks. "Although agreements have been reached on many issues important to SAG-AFTRA members, the employers refuse to plainly affirm, in clear and enforceable language, that they will protect all performers covered by this contract in their AI language," SAG-AFTRA said in a statement. SAG-AFTRA's membership also includes the film and television actors who went on strike in July last year over concerns of inadequate safeguards against AI, which brought Hollywood to a halt for half the year amid a simultaneous strike by the Writers Guild of America. While movie and TV studios negotiated from a unified position and had the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP) negotiating on their behalf, there is no such analogous group in the games industry, so it is highly likely that one or more game developers will accept the union's demands, said Wedbush managing director Michael Pachter. "Once one (developer) does it, all will do it," Pachter said. Apart from AI protections, SAG-AFTRA's most pressing issues in the contract negotiations for video game performers are higher pay, medical treatment and breaks for motion capture performers. SAG-AFTRA says pay for video game performers has not kept pace with inflation. It is also pursuing more protections for the motion-capture performers who wear markers or sensors on the skin or a body suit to help game makers create character movements. "We are disappointed the union has chosen to walk away when we are so close to a deal, and we remain prepared to resume negotiations. We have already found common ground on 24 out of 25 proposals, including historic wage increases and additional safety provisions," said Audrey Cooling, a spokesperson for the video game producers party to the Interactive Media Agreement. The offer presented to SAG-AFTRA features AI protections that include requiring consent and fair compensation to all performers working under the IMA, Cooling said. Still, Wedbush's Pachter said voice actors constitute a very small portion of game development costs that average over $80 million, and voice acting makes up only about $500,000 of that. "It just isn't worth holding up a game's release to save a few hundred thousand dollars," said Pachter. Not all "interactive programs" are being struck. The find out the status of a game, use the search function at sagaftra.org/videogamestrike.

Video game performers are becoming Hollywood stars in their own right - and are on strike to be paid and protected accordingly

Macalester College provides funding as a member of The Conversation US. Hollywood screenwriters went on strike in May 2023. Two months later, actors joined them on the picket line. Those strikes ended later that year with historic deals that included, for the first time, protections regarding the use of artificial intelligence. Now it's video game actors' turn. After nearly two years of negotiations with gaming companies, video game performers, who are represented by the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists union, announced that they would go on strike due to an impasse over protections from generative AI. The strike began at 12:01 a.m. on July 26, 2024. The Conversation U.S. asked James Dawes, a scholar of video game narration, about the role voice actors have traditionally played in this industry and the threat that AI could pose to these performers. What is this strike about? The Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists voted to authorize a strike, with an overwhelming 98.32% of the union's members voting "Yes." SAG-AFTRA's 160,000 members will refuse to work on video games produced by the industry's major developers in support of the union's more than 2,500 video game performers, which include voice actors and those who use their bodies to bring video game characters to life - often referred to as "mocap," or motion-capture actors. A key sticking point appears to involve the AI protections offered to performers. SAG-AFTRA charges that gaming giants such as Activision, Disney and Electronic Arts have refused to "plainly affirm, in clear and enforceable language, that they will protect all performers covered by this contract in their A.I. language." Representatives for the industry counter that they have already agreed to historic wage increases and meaningful AI protections that include consent and fair compensation. How has voice acting in video games evolved? The video game industry has gone from a niche form of entertainment to a force that rivals Hollywood, with estimated revenues exceeding US$200 billion in 2023. Voice and mocap acting have evolved along with it. For the 1983 classic Dragon's Lair, game developers did the voice acting themselves to keep costs low, which means that among the first voice actors are Vera Lanpher Pacheco and Dan Molina, the game's head of assistant animators and sound engineer, respectively. The jump from that cringey-but-beloved amateur work to the voice acting of today represents one of the most rapid advances in any modern aesthetic medium. Now performances like those of Troy Baker and Ashley Johnson are drawing the attention of major film and television studios. Their work in the 2013 action-adventure title The Last of Us earned them honorific cameos in the smash hit HBO series adaptation of the game. How crucial are actors to video games? Put simply, voice and body acting are as essential for a video game's success as they are in movies and TV shows. Immersion - that magical state in which gamers lose themselves and feel transported to more exciting, more fulfilling worlds - depends upon soulful and persuasive performances. I'll never forget the moment when I walked into the family television room and saw my hyperactive, 12-year-old son sobbing as he listened to the final voice-overs of Red Dead Redemption 2. Now a college student, he remembers that performance like my parents remember the death of the dog starring in "Old Yeller" and I remember E.T. phoning home. Gamers may come for the hacking and slashing, but many of them stay for the characters. Is performing in video games lucrative? Compared with their film and television counterparts, video game performers are still relatively invisible. But their fan bases are rapidly expanding. When Amelia Tyler, the dungeon master narrator for Baldur's Gate 3, released clips of her outtakes and bloopers on YouTube, they became viral hits, garnering more than 2.5 million views. Unfortunately, the bulk of the earnings go to established movie stars. When publishers and studios seek to generate excitement about forthcoming games, they'll recruit actors such as Keanu Reeves, Kiefer Sutherland or Patrick Stewart to voice characters. According to one agent, a big-name movie star can garner upward of six figures for a single recording session. However, SAG-AFTRA points out that at the low end of the pay scale, performers are paid as little as $902 for four hours of work. Legendary voice actress Jennifer Hale recently revealed that she was paid just $1,200 for her first voice-acting gig in the Metal Gear Solid series. Will AI be able to easily replace voice actors? Video games present special aesthetic and technical challenges. Performers need to differentiate death by a knife to the throat from a bullet to the chest. They need to protect their voices while recording screams over background gunfire. And they also need to authentically capture the vulnerability of romantic and sexual relationships. For its recent smash hit Baldur's Gate 3, Larian Studios set an industry precedent by hiring intimacy coordinators for its performers. At the extreme ends, there are two ways of thinking about the effect AI will have on any industry: You are either an AI boomer or an AI doomer; you either believe the technology will usher in a new era of creativity and possibility, or you believe it will destroy everything we hold dear. I became involved in AI research by way of drones and the global weaponization of artificial intelligence - literal end-of-the-world scenarios - so I tend to focus on the risks. And the risk here is that large corporations will purloin the creative work of artists to reap even more profit and, eventually, displace them altogether. At its core, the strike is an attempt to protect some of the most essential but least compensated and least protected workers in a multibillion-dollar industry.

SAG-AFTRA goes on strike against the video game industry

Hollywood's video game performers announced they would go on strike, throwing part of the entertainment industry into another work stoppage after talks for a new contract with major game studios broke down over artificial intelligence protections. 'Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree' game review: A testing challenge with dark comedy The strike -- the second for video game voice actors and motion capture performers under the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists -- will begin at 12:01 a.m. Friday. The move comes after nearly two years of negotiations with gaming giants, including divisions of Activision, Warner Bros. and Walt Disney Co., over a new interactive media agreement. SAG-AFTRA negotiators say gains have been made over wages and job safety in the video game contract, but that the two sides remained split over the regulation of generative AI. A spokesperson for the video game producers, Audrey Cooling, said the studios offered AI protections, but SAG-AFTRA's negotiating committee said 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 Thursday afternoon. He said some physical performances are being treated as "data." 'Ghost of Tsushima PC' game review: A samurai masterpiece in a new format Without guardrails, game companies could train AI to replicate an actor's voice, or create a digital replica of their likeness without consent or fair compensation, the union said. "We strike as a matter of last resort. We have given this process absolutely as much time as we responsibly can," Rodriguez told reporters. "We have exhausted the other possibilities, and that is why we're doing it now." Cooling said the companies' offer "extends meaningful AI protections." "We are disappointed the union has chosen to walk away when we are so close to a deal, and we remain prepared to resume negotiations," she said. Andi Norris, an actor and member of the union's negotiating committee, said that those who do stunt work or creature performances would still be at risk under the game companies' offer. "The performers who bring their body of work to these games create a whole variety of characters, and all of that work must be covered. Their proposal would carve out anything that doesn't look and sound identical to me as I sit here, when, in truth, on any given week I am a zombie, I am a soldier, I am a zombie soldier," Norris said. "We cannot and will not accept that a stunt or movement performer giving a full performance on stage next to a voice actor isn't a performer." The global video game industry generates well over $100 billion dollars in profit annually, according to game market forecaster Newzoo. The people who design and bring those games to life are the driving force behind that success, SAG-AFTRA said. 'Final Fantasy VII Rebirth' game review: Breathing new life into a classic saga Members voted overwhelmingly last year to give leadership the authority to strike. Concerns about how movie studios will use AI helped fuel last year's film and television strikes by the union, which lasted four months. The last interactive contract, which expired in November 2022, did not provide protections around AI but secured a bonus compensation structure for voice actors and performance capture artists after an 11-month strike that began in October 2016. That work stoppage marked the first major labor action from SAG-AFTRA following the merger of Hollywood's two largest actors unions in 2012. The video game agreement covers more than 2,500 "off-camera (voiceover) performers, on-camera (motion capture, stunt) performers, stunt coordinators, singers, dancers, puppeteers, and background performers," according to the union. 'Marvel's Spider-Man 2' game review: Sets a new standard in gaming Amid the tense interactive negotiations, SAG-AFTRA created a separate contract in February that covered independent and lower-budget video game projects. The tiered-budget independent interactive media agreement contains some of the protections on AI that video game industry titans have rejected. Games signed to an interim interactive media agreement, tiered-budget independent interactive agreement or interim interactive localization agreement are not part of the strike, the union said. Read Comments

The actors' strike reaches the world of video games: the threat of AI on the table - Softonic

This movement had to happen after the major Hollywood strikes of 2023 The main video game developers, such as Activision, Warner Bros, and Walt Disney, are facing a Hollywood artists strike over the use of artificial intelligence (AI). The strike comes after a year and a half of negotiations over a new contract between the companies and a union representing more than 2,500 video game artists. Both parties claim to have reached an agreement on several key issues, such as wages and job security, but protections related to the use of AI technology remain a significant obstacle. The strike was called by the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (Sag-Aftra), which last year paralyzed Hollywood with a strike by film and television actors. Interpreters are concerned that video game studios use generative AI to reproduce their voices and physical appearance to animate video game characters without offering them fair compensation. "Although agreements have been reached on many issues... the employers refuse to clearly state, in clear and enforceable language, that they will protect all interpreters covered by this contract in their AI language," Sag-Aftra said in a statement. However, video game studios have stated that they have already made enough concessions to the union's demands. The Interactive Media Agreement covers artists who provide voice-over services and on-camera work used to create video game characters. The last agreement of this kind, which did not offer protection to performers, expired in November 2022, but it has been extended monthly while the conversations continued. The 118-day strike was the longest in the 90-year history of the union and resulted in the greatest victory for actors and screenwriters. Hopefully our colleagues in the video game industry will be able to achieve their demands. Stay strong and keep fighting!

Video game performers call strike against gaming companies

SAG-AFTRA members picket outside Paramount Studios in 2023. Members of the union were on strike between July and November during negotiations with Hollywood film and television studios. Now, the focus is on video games. Mario Tama/Getty Images hide caption Actors and performers in the union SAG-AFTRA have declared a strike against video game companies. Starting on Friday, members of the union will stop any voice acting, motion-capture work, stunts, and more that appear in video games. SAG-AFTRA has been negotiating with companies including Activision, Electronic Arts, WB Games, and Disney for over a year and a half. Union members approved a strike authorization in September. The use of A.I. in video game development has become a central issue in negotiations: "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," SAG-AFTRA President Fran Drescher wrote in a statement today. SAG-AFTRA National Executive Director Duncan Crabtree-Ireland wrote that video game performers deserve "fair compensation and the right of informed consent for the A.I. use of their faces, voices, and bodies." But the video game producers see their offer as strong. "We have already found common ground on 24 out of 25 proposals, including historic wage increases and additional safety provisions," Audrey Cooling, a spokesperson for video game companies involved in the negotiations, wrote today. "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 [Interactive Media Agreement]." Between July and November of last year, SAG-AFTRA members were on strike against major Hollywood studios.

SAG-AFTRA Says Publishers' AI Measures Are 'Dangerously Incomplete' as Video Game Members Go on Strike - IGN

It's official: members of SAG-AFTRA who work on video games are going on strike at midnight on July 26, and in a call with the media on Thursday, several on the guild's negotiating committee explained what's led them to this point. The key issue, as highlighted by SAG-AFTRA's initial statement announcing the strike, is the lack of agreement between the guild and video game producers on the subject of artificial intelligence technology. In a statement, SAG-AFTRA President Fran Drescher said, "our employers are not interested in fair, reasonable A.I. protections, but rather flagrant exploitation." Negotiating committee chair Sarah Elmaleh elaborated on that in the call on Thursday, saying, "unfortunately, exploitation is exactly what the bargaining group would have us accept for ourselves." "The employers refuse to plainly affirm in clear and enforceable language that they will protect all performers covered by this contract in their AI language," she added. "They insist we overlook obvious AI loopholes that imperil both movement and voice performance, which are in today's games frequently combined. Their offer is quite literally unacceptable." Negotiating committee member Zeke Alton said they've had "productive" talks with the video game producers party to the Interactive Media Agreement (IMA), but what's currently on the table is "dangerously incomplete." "Delayed, vague, and riddled with so many legal loopholes that we're left with practically no protection for our future," Alton said. Largely at issue (though not the only issue, representatives on the call clarified), is uncertainty over who a "performer" is and who is protected under the IMA as one. The definition by the video game producers, they argued, leaves out motion capture performers, at least in some ways. Or, as negotiating committee member Andi Norris put it: "They say they get to choose, seemingly arbitrarily, who is a performer and who is just data." The current AI provisions from the video game industry, Norris added, "leave the folks who put their bodies on the line the most vulnerable to abuse." "We cannot and will not accept that a stunt or movement performer giving a full performance onstage next to a voice actor isn't a performer," she continued. "It would be like shooting all of Second Unit on a film without union protections simply because it's action." For its part, the group of video game producers that are part of the IMA issued its own statement after the strike was called, saying its offer "extends meaningful AI protections that include requiring consent and fair compensation to all performers working under the IMA." Responding directly to that statement, however, SAG-AFTRA Chief Contracts Officer Ray Rodriguez said it's that definition of "performers" that's in dispute. He explained that employers could potentially be "excluding a whole class of members" by not including motion capture performers in that definition in a contract. "If it said on the piece of paper that they put across the table what they're saying that all performers are covered, we wouldn't be sitting here. It's disingenuous. I'm sorry. All right?" Alton said. "There is a base level that protects all of the members of this union and that is what we expect and that is what we demand, and that's why we're here. Because we are not getting that. So you can say something. Put it in the contract if you mean it." When asked if there are video game companies who are already running afoul of the AI protections they're seeking, Rodriguez said that they wouldn't necessarily know for sure, but he personally has a "concern" that there are. The strike begins at 12:01 a.m. PT on July 26, and comes after more than a year and a half of negotiations without a deal. The companies that bargain with SAG-AFTRA include Activision, Electronic Arts, Insomniac Games, Take 2, WB Games, and more.

SAG-AFTRA Says Publishers' AI Measures Are 'Dangerously Incomplete' as Video Game Members Go on Strike

It's official: members of SAG-AFTRA who work on video games are going on strike at midnight on July 26, and in a call with the media on Thursday, several on the guild's negotiating committee explained what's led them to this point. The key issue, as highlighted by SAG-AFTRA's initial statement announcing the strike, is the lack of agreement between the guild and video game producers on the subject of artificial intelligence technology. In a statement, SAG-AFTRA President Fran Drescher said, "our employers are not interested in fair, reasonable A.I. protections, but rather flagrant exploitation." Negotiating committee chair Sarah Elmaleh elaborated on that in the call on Thursday, saying, "unfortunately, exploitation is exactly what the bargaining group would have us accept for ourselves." "The employers refuse to plainly affirm in clear and enforceable language that they will protect all performers covered by this contract in their AI language," she added. "They insist we overlook obvious AI loopholes that imperil both movement and voice performance, which are in today's games frequently combined. Their offer is quite literally unacceptable." Negotiating committee member Zeke Alton said they've had "productive" talks with the video game producers party to the Interactive Media Agreement (IMA), but what's currently on the table is "dangerously incomplete." "Delayed, vague, and riddled with so many legal loopholes that we're left with practically no protection for our future," Alton said. Largely at issue (though not the only issue, representatives on the call clarified), is uncertainty over who a "performer" is and who is protected under the IMA as one. The definition by the video game producers, they argued, leaves out motion capture performers, at least in some ways. Or, as negotiating committee member Andi Norris put it: "They say they get to choose, seemingly arbitrarily, who is a performer and who is just data." The current AI provisions from the video game industry, Norris added, "leave the folks who put their bodies on the line the most vulnerable to abuse." "We cannot and will not accept that a stunt or movement performer giving a full performance onstage next to a voice actor isn't a performer," she continued. "It would be like shooting all of Second Unit on a film without union protections simply because it's action." For its part, the group of video game producers that are part of the IMA issued its own statement after the strike was called, saying its offer "extends meaningful AI protections that include requiring consent and fair compensation to all performers working under the IMA." "Exploitation is exactly what the bargaining group would have us accept for ourselves. Responding directly to that statement, however, SAG-AFTRA Chief Contracts Officer Ray Rodriguez said it's that definition of "performers" that's in dispute. He explained that employers could potentially be "excluding a whole class of members" by not including motion capture performers in that definition in a contract. "If it said on the piece of paper that they put across the table what they're saying that all performers are covered, we wouldn't be sitting here. It's disingenuous. I'm sorry. All right?" Alton said. "There is a base level that protects all of the members of this union and that is what we expect and that is what we demand, and that's why we're here. Because we are not getting that. So you can say something. Put it in the contract if you mean it." When asked if there are video game companies who are already running afoul of the AI protections they're seeking, Rodriguez said that they wouldn't necessarily know for sure, but he personally has a "concern" that there are. The strike begins at 12:01 a.m. PT on July 26, and comes after more than a year and a half of negotiations without a deal. The companies that bargain with SAG-AFTRA include Activision, Electronic Arts, Insomniac Games, Take 2, WB Games, and more. Alex Stedman is a Senior News Editor with IGN, overseeing entertainment reporting. When she's not writing or editing, you can find her reading fantasy novels or playing Dungeons & Dragons.

Video game actors go on strike

Many of us made a sigh of relief when the Hollywood strikes finally ended last November, but the gamers in us were worried. SAG-AFTRA was still negotiating new contracts for the video game industry, and didn't exactly seem close to an agreement. Things haven't changed much since then, so Ben writing that actors were preparing to strike again back in March wasn't surprising...which brings us to today. SAG-AFTRA confirms that its union members are going on strike today after more than a year and a half of negotiations. They highlight that progress has been made, but several video game companies and their performance production divisions continue to fight the actors' demands about protection against the use and abuse of artificial intelligence. Last year's film and TV strikes made it clear that this is an area the companies are ready to argue hard and long about, so it'll be interesting to see how long the video game strike will last when the use of AI has increased a lot lately and many higher-ups continue to tell investors that it's the future. It's worth noting that we'll probably not see the consequences of this strike for a while, as games launching the in the near future have finished their performance capture and voice recordings. We might see it in a couple of years or so, however, as the game companies could be "forced" to either pause development or use actors that aren't in SAG-AFTRA. Either way, this will definitely be a decisive moment for AI in video games. Do you think games will become worse if actors are replaced by artificial intelligence?

Video Game SAG-Aftra Union Members to Go on Strike -- Update

The union representing performers in video games said its members are going on strike, affecting companies such as Activision Blizzard and Electronic Arts. The Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists, or SAG-Aftra, on Thursday said that it called a video game strike, effective Friday, after more than a year and a half of negotiations without reaching a deal. The union said AI-related protections remain the sticking point for an agreement, and that video gaming workers deserve the same fundamental protections as performers in film, television, streaming and music. "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," SAG-Aftra President Fran Drescher said. SAG-Aftra is negotiating with companies that have signed onto the Interactive Media Agreement. Those include Activision Productions, Disney Character Voices, Blindlight and Electronic Arts Productions, among others. The union said that any game looking to employ SAG-Aftra members to perform covered work must sign one of three agreements. Negotiations on the contract began in October 2022 and union members approved a video game strike authorization in September 2023. The union said that agreements have been reached on many key issues aside from AI. "It's stunning that these video game studios haven't learned anything from the lessons of last year--that our members can and will stand up and demand fair and equitable treatment with respect to AI, and the public supports us in that," SAG-Aftra's chief negotiator Duncan Crabtree-Ireland said. Write to Sabela Ojea at sabela.ojea@wsj.com; @sabelaojeaguix