SAG-AFTRA has participated in many strikes, from striking for the rights of those working in Hollywood to those working in the TV industry. This time is no different, and SAG-AFTRA is now striking for those in the games industry. Since 25 July 2024, SAG-AFTRA has been on strike, where all projects with actors in them that have been in development for less than a year will no longer have access to the actors. This will continue until an agreement has been reached regarding the use of AI.
SAG-AFTRA’s union members are on strike again after more than a year and a half of negotiations. While they don’t deny that progress has been made, several video game companies continue to fight off the union. Specifically, the use of Artificial Intelligence in their video games and having actors protected against AI being shaped after them or even replaced entirely by Artificial Intelligence. While most major video game companies aren’t considering even utilizing AI like this, some companies out there are beginning to test the waters using AI in any capacity.
While they are actively striking now, it’s unlikely that the video game industry will see the effects of the ongoing strike for a while, as it wasn’t evident for a while with the Hollywood strike. However, people can expect to see more delays going forward if video game companies aren’t willing to meet SAG-AFTRA’s demands.
The Hollywood strike that SAG-AFTRA coordinated took place for a whopping 118 days, and it’s looking like the video game industry is desperately trying to avoid that happening again. Electronic Arts CEO Andrew Wilson responded to questions during a presentation where they reported their results for the fiscal year’s first quarter.
In response to the questions, Andrew Wilson assured people that the SAG-AFTRA strike would not have any impact on their operations in the short term. He also mentioned that he is in negotiations with them.
“We are committed to continuing to negotiate in good faith and hope that the parties can quickly resolve our issues at the negotiating table. But we do not anticipate any significant short-term impact on EA.” In addition to this statement, Wilson added, “This is not an EA-specific situation; it’s an industry-specific situation, and we are working diligently to negotiate at the table.”
Some of EA’s pre-existing contracts are exempt from the SAG-AFTRA strike, such as Take Two’s Grand Theft Auto VI contract. This is because the game was in development before December 2023, meaning the game’s development can continue on without facing punishment.
