LOS ANGELES (AP) — After more than a month of strikes, Video game performers It struck tentative or phased-in budget deals with performers’ unions and reached agreements with 80 games that accepted the artificial intelligence clauses they sought.
Member of the Screen Actors Guild (American Federation of Television and Radio Entertainers) Strike begins in July After negotiations with the gaming giant that began more than a year and a half ago were halted over AI protections, union leaders say the likeness of game voice actors and motion capture artists can be replicated by AI and used without their consent or fair compensation.
SAG-AFTRA announced deals with 80 video game studios on Thursday that will allow performers affected by the work shutdown to continue working on those projects going forward.
Strikes against other major video game publishers, including Disney, Warner Bros. games and Electronic Arts Productions, are expected to continue.
The tentative agreement calls for wage improvements, “Exploitative Use” of Artificial Intelligence There are also safety measures in place to account for the physical strain of performance and vocal stress. The tiered budget agreement is intended to make it easier for independent game developers and lower-budget projects to work with unionized talent, while still providing performers with the protections of the interim agreement.
Duncan Crabtree Ireland, national executive director and chief negotiator for SAG-AFTRA, said in a statement that the companies that signed the agreement are “contributing to preserving the human art, ingenuity and creativity that fuels interactive storytelling.”
“These agreements demonstrate that video game companies that are part of collective bargaining groups do not represent the will of the larger video game industry,” Crabtree Ireland continued. “The many companies that have willingly agreed to our AI terms demonstrate that these terms are not only reasonable, but also achievable and sustainable for their businesses.”
The union announced Wednesday that game development studio Lightspeed LA has agreed to make current and future games, including popular title “The Last Sentinel,” under the union’s tentative agreement, meaning it can continue to use union talent while the strike continues.