It remains to be seen what impact this change will have on ad renewal. For actors represented by agents, this should not play a big role, as many agents (such as La Solitude) would automatically send notices of termination for previous contracts and request a renegotiation. Some types of performers – including non-professionals (who do not qualify for waiver), group singers, stuntmen and performers who are not represented by agents – have often not sent notices of dismissal. For spots with these categories of performance groups, this will certainly do more work for producers and, in some cases, this could lead to higher wages. SAG-AFTRA and the Joint Policy Committee on Broadcast Talent Union Relations (JPC) caused a stir two years ago when they amended the 2016 SAG-AFTRA (Commercial Contract) commercial contract by introducing the Low Budget Digital Waiver (LBD Waiver 2017). The abandonment of LBD in 2017 allows signatory advertising agencies to negotiate more flexible rates with talent when it comes to producing low-budget digital ads, helping to allay the frustrations of signatory agencies trying to compete with their non-union counterparts in the growing digital advertising space. And unlike other SAG AFTRA theatrical agreements, you don`t need to provide theatrical performance as part of this agreement. Although SAG and AFTRA (the two unions) merged in 2012, the sag pension plan and the AFTRA pension fund remain separate units. Each SAG-AFTRA collective agreement determines the fund in which pension contributions are made. The SAG Commercial contract refers to the SAG pension plans and the SAG-AFTRA audio sales contract and the SAG-AFTRA Corporate/Educational – Non-Broadcast contract (the “co-ed contract”) each refer to the AFTRA pension fund. A graphic summary: “This is an incredibly innovative agreement [and] has had a lot of trust between the parties,” said Stacy Marcus de Reed Smith, chief negotiator for advertisers and advertising agencies. “We have a common goal: to increase the production of union advertisements.” The contract is worth about $1 billion a year, she added.
The commercial contract plays an extremely important role in the advertising ecosystem. For more than half a century, the contract has grown through accretion, with any change in the media landscape resulting in a new layer of payment rules and additional complexity. The “Tells” are clearly visible to the demanding contract archaeologist – layers that reflect the “good days” of live commercials (such as those for Jell-O with Johnny Carson), the birth of cable, the Internet and “New Media” and much more. The ACS takes a completely different approach to talent compensation and is a potential game change. The CCMs and the union deserve to be congratulated for making the leap. There`s a lot to like about ACS – for producers and performers. #Respect. The use of commercials on over-the-top platforms (“OTT”) like Hulu is now included in Internet use.
Imagine this: your child asks for money to go shopping at the mall, and you say he can spend $50 per store in as many stores as he wants, or he can spend $100 for the whole day, regardless of the number of stores.
