Striking Hollywood writers have given resounding support to a tentative agreement with studios that could end a strike which has crippled the entertainment industry.

But it appeared the approval process might briefly delay their return to work.

About 3,500 writers packed the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles on Saturday night to hear from union leaders about the proposed deal that was finalized just hours before meetings were held on both coasts by the Writers Guild of America.

A person familiar with the guild's plan, who requested anonymity because of a media blackout, said the WGA board would meet yesterday and decide on whether to authorize a quick, two-day vote of its members to determine if a strike order should be lifted.

Giving writers a 48-hour window to vote on lifting the strike order would help alleviate concerns that the agreement was being pushed too rapidly by the guild's board. If guild members support lifting the strike order, they could return to work as early as Wednesday.

Compensation for projects delivered via digital media was the central issue in the 3-month-old walkout, which idled thousands of workers, disrupted the TV season and moviemaking and took the shine off Hollywood's awards season.

"I believe it is a good deal. I am going to be recommending this deal to our membership," Michael Winship, president of the Writers Guild of America, East, told reporters before the New York meeting. But he cautioned that it's not a "done deal" until the contract is ratified by members who need to be polled by mail in a process that usually takes two weeks.

An outline of the three-year deal was reached in recent talks between media executives and the guild, with lawyers then drafting the contract language that was concluded on Friday.

According to the guild's summary, the deal provides union jurisdiction over projects created for the Internet based on certain guidelines, sets compensation for streamed, ad-supported programs and increases residuals for downloaded movies and TV programs.

One observer said the guild gained ground in the deal but not as much as it wanted. "It's a mixed deal but far better than the writers would have been able to get three months ago. The strike was a qualified success," said Jonathan Handel, an entertainment attorney with the TroyGould firm and a former associate counsel for the writers guild.

Agencies

(China Daily 02/11/2008 page6)