GUILD AND AFTRA TO MEET ADVERTISING INDUSTRY NEGOTIATORS ON APRIL 8

Parties Agree to Consider a Joint Study on Alternate Compensation Models for Commercials

New York and Los Angeles (April 6, 2006) – The advertising industry’s Joint Policy Committee on Broadcast Talent Union Relations (JPC) and representatives of Screen Actors Guild (SAG) and the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (AFTRA) will meet on Saturday, April 8, it was jointly announced today by both parties.

The focus of the meeting will be to consider commissioning a joint study of alternate methods to compensate performers for their participation in commercials that appear on television and radio as well as in the growing array of new media. Should the JPC and the unions agree, the study will be conducted by an independent consultant with experience in television, radio and labor relations, with the resulting approaches to be considered in the bargaining process between the advertising industry and the unions on new Commercials contracts.

These contracts currently expire on October 29, 2006. However, the parties have also agreed to consider an extension of the contract to enable completion and review of such a comprehensive study, should more time be needed.

The payment structures in the current collective bargaining agreements have been developed over the last 60 years. But with the opportunities presented by digital technology to reach consumers in new ways, both parties have recognized that a study analyzing adaptability of this technology to those structures would be particularly useful at this time.