Ziffren pointed to the agreement the Directors Guild of America secured as a

 Ziffren pointed to the agreement the Directors Guild of America secured as a 

“good deal” and said it should serve as a template to resolve contentious negotiating points relating to artificial intelligence and performance-based residuals.

Less than two months into the writers strike, the Directors Guild quickly came to terms with the AMPTP in an agreement that secured a new residuals formula and an obligation that companies consult members when using generative AI “in connection with creative elements.” Both sides highlighted a new formula for foreign subscription video on-demand (SVOD) residuals that revolves around the number of international subscribers on a given platform. Under the deal, the largest streaming services are obligated to pay $89,415 in residuals for one-hour series for the first three years of use (representing a 76 percent increase in foreign residuals and a 21 percent increase in general).

“That’s where the future is in getting further residuals,” said Ziffren, who’s long worked with the DGA. “The Directors Guild negotiated a one hour series residual for high-priced video series that is double digits better than on a network, either broadcast or cable. That fact has not reached the audience that it should have.”

Ziffren added that he was dubious that the studios would “agree to an add-on of several million or hundreds of millions of dollars in this world by adding some kind of performance base that may or may not relate to their respective revenues.” All of the seven major studios and streamers, with the exception of Netflix, are losing money under the current framework, he