Advertising Industry Issues RFQ to develop new methods for Talent Payment in commercials.

The Joint Policy Committee on Broadcast Talent Union Relations (JPC), the entity that represents the advertising industry in contract negotiations with the major talent unions, issued a Request for Qualifications (RFQ) for an independent consultant to develop alternate methods to compensate actors for their participation in commercials that appear on television and radio as well as in the growing array of new media.

The RFQ is intended to identify individuals with experience in television, radio and labor relations, who have the expertise to study the concerns of both the advertisers and the unions and propose alternative methods of compensation. The resulting approaches will be offered for consideration in this fall’s bargaining process surrounding the advertising industry’s contract with SAG/AFTRA, which expires on October 29, 2006.

“The payment structures in the current collective bargaining agreements with SAG/AFTRA were originally developed to meet the needs and problems of the early 1950s,” said Douglas J. Wood, Esq., Lead Negotiator for the JPC. “As different means of broadcasting were developed, new payment streams were added-on to the contract, creating enormous administrative complexity, distortions in the allocation of compensation and the potential for out-of-control costs. For example, talent payments for broadcasts that reach very small audiences can today exceed the actual cost of the media.” he added.

According to Wood, the burgeoning world of media diversification can no longer be accommodated within the outmoded payment system defined by the current contracts. “We need a new, equitable approach to talent payment – one that recognizes that consumers are viewing commercials on cell phones and iPods, and advertisers are using digital editing to customize messages for very narrow audiences. Continued reliance on an outmoded compensation structure will lead to out-of-control costs and administrative burdens on the one hand, and failure to account for all uses of a commercial on the other,” explained Wood.

The payment methods resulting from the independent consultant’s study will be presented as alternatives in the bargaining process and are not meant to be binding on either side, according to Wood.

The full text of the JPC’s RFQ is available at http://www.ana.net/pdf/Request_for_Qualifications.pdf. Consultants wishing to be considered for the project should submit credentials indicating their relevant expertise by March 31, 2006 to: Douglas J. Wood, Esq. Lead Negotiator, Joint Policy Committee, Reed Smith LLP, 599 Lexington Avenue, New York, NY 10022, 212-549-0377, dw***@*******th.com. The JPC will interview qualified candidates and solicit formal proposals from a select group.

The Joint Policy Committee on Broadcast Talent Union Relations (JPC) represents the advertising industry in negotiations with the Screen Actors Guild (SAG) and the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (AFTRA) in connection with new contracts governing the employment of actors in television and radio commercials. The JPC is comprised of members appointed from the Association of National Advertisers (ANA) and the American Association of Advertising Agencies (AAAA).