Analytic Dreamz: Notorious Mass Effect - "THE SAG-AFTRA VIDEO-GAME STRIKE AUTHORIZATION, EXPLAINED"

Episode Date: October 15, 2023

Linktree: https://linktr.ee/AnalyticThe video game industry is facing a potential strike from SAG-AFTRA, the union that represents video game voice actors and motion capture performers. In a recent vote, 98.32% of SAG-AFTRA members voted to authorize a strike, if necessary. This is a sign of the growing dissatisfaction among video game performers with their working conditions and pay.Analytic Dreamz discusses the implications of a potential video game strike, and what it could mean for gamers, developers, and performers alike.Privacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Breaking news, and by breaking news, I mean news that's been broke a couple days ago. WGA Rider Strike is officially ending. But what does that mean for video game connoisseurs like myself? There's a possibility of a video game voice actor strike. And the reason why is because once you see something work for one group of people in a way that benefits them financially, you're going to be more enticed. to do the same thing to get that same financial benefit. So not everybody's looking to strike to up their money, right?

First, it was the pilots. If y'all forget, if y'all remember, the pilots went on strike. Like, not too many people, you know, be filming the pilots because I guess they're not famous or whatever, but, you know, they literally fly in the plane and, you know, have to have a bunch of people's lives in their hands. So they went on strike. So all the airlines was going through. it so they had to pay them right ups workers they went on strike and no no they threatened they didn't even go on strike they threatened to go on strike and ups was like we know we can't handle this all these

packages getting delayed nope can't do it that's lawsuit after lawsuit after like imagine you need something important you and it gets delayed nah i can't do that so they basically got a pay increase way before they even went on strike now obviously i'm i'm conflating some issues but now we had sag after and wGA go on strike and wGA just came to her agreement with the studios and to the point where they received not everything but most of what they wanted so the deal that they finally uh the deal that they finally were offered was uh acceptable by them so with that being said all of these strikes or efficient or efficient in increasing revenue for the workers. So why not more groups? Why wouldn't more groups follow suit? And that's why I'm here to talk about. So the video game

voice actors are set to go on strike. SAC after of course the is still on strike. Representing artists is seeking strike authorization from voice act actor artists. And if approved the strike could impact video game companies like EA. Activision and Asomniac. Shameless plug to my analytic dreams video podcast on Spotify to look at the video version along with the audio. But if you don't know, Insomniac is basically over the Spider-Man franchise currently with Spider-Man Pets 4, Spider-Man 2, which is already finished.

So those aren't in jeopardy. But they're currently working on Wolverine, which that could be pushed back. a project that nobody that we haven't heard anything about yet that could get pushback and EA works on all type of stuff from Star Wars to basically EA has a lot of stuff that can get pushed back so from Star Wars to like sports games like it's going to get pushback and of course Activision with Call the Duty like everybody knows Activision that stuff

honestly all you got to say is Call the Duty going to get pushback and I think the lines are going to start getting blurred about who supports who you know but um obviously i support this strike as you know it's for the workers being compensated more for the work like in the midst of a recession why not compensate your workers for doing the job well right actors are concerned about the violation of the voices and AI projects without consent so it comes back full circle to what the the WGA was originally striking for the uses of AI is to a point where you can do some unthinkable things and get away with it so now you have to crack down even harder so that your hard

work isn't being mimic in other ways via AI technology because we're at the point now where barred chat bot gpti uh Bing just came out with some type of AI but anyways these AIs can do stuff that you cannot imagine. And I didn't even get into the voice recognition side of things. AI can start mimicking voices to the point where you would think something is said by a person, but it's completely AI. Like that's how legit technology has advanced to. With that being said, they also seek better compensation and residuals, given the rise

cost of living and industry revenues. And a strike could have international implications for video game characters. Oh no, video game actors. And the strike authorization received overwhelming support from union members, of course. The authorization doesn't guarantee a strike, but provides leverage and negotiations. Because if somebody doesn't think you'll leave from a deal, why would they go back and change it, basically, to take more money out of their pockets? Like, owners, I saw this quote, right?

I wasn't going to even bring this up. Hold up. I'll see if I could find this, because this quote was ridiculous. And this pertains to the topic, so that's why I got to look this up. Hopefully it just pulls it up. I think I'm,

I think I'm getting better with technology. I don't know. Oh, I am. All right, here we go. Sometimes I'll be, I'll be struggling. All right. There we go. A millionaire CEO

calls for a 40% rise in unemployment because workers are quote too arrogant. I kid you not. And if you don't believe me, look at this for yourself. And for people over at the video channel, here it is in full. I hope so that's way too low. Yeah, we have people decided they didn't really want to work so much anymore through COVID. And that has had a massive issue on productivity.

You know, ladies have definitely pulled back on productivity. You know, they have been paid a lot to do not too much in the last few years. He said paid a lot to not do much. And we need to see that change. We need to see unemployment rise. Unemployment. This man said we need to see unemployment rise and to jump by 40 and 50%. It has to jump 40, 50 percent, in my view.

We need to see pain in the economy. We need to remind people that they work for the employer, not the other. I wonder if this man, it looks like this man is talking in front of a live audience, which is very telling, because you know how when sometimes people get to monologuing or giving a soliloquy and people in the crowd, they'll start applauding, right? They're like, yeah, that's right. You go. Yeah, you're talking.

Everybody's dead silent while he's saying this. Because who in the world is going to clap for somebody saying, we need to see a rise in unemployment. I swear to you, I could not make this up. The other way around, I mean, there's been a systematic change where employees feel the employer is extremely lucky to have them, as opposed to the other way around. So it's a dynamic that has to change. We've got to kill that attitude, and that has to come through hurting. And I think the wording is very interesting. He said we have to kill that attitude of employers feeling lucky for the employee, uh, that, I messed that up.

Basically, he wants to kill the attitude of the employee feeling lucky or no, thinking that the employer is lucky to have them. Basically saying that they need to feel like their workers instead of being empowered and feel like they're adding to the company. That's technically what he's saying. He's like, don't think y'all add it to nothing. Like, obviously we give y'all a paycheck, but don't feel like we're lucky to have you. Like, you know, and that's, look, he's going to keep going. in the economy, which is what the whole global, you know, the world is trying to do. The governments around the world are trying to increase unemployment to get that to some sort of normality.

And we're seeing it. I think every employer now is seeing it. I mean, there is definitely massive layoffs going off. People might not be talking about it, but people are definitely laying people off. And we're starting to see less arrogance in the employee. And that is a point where I think he had a, yeah, that was his best point, what he said right here. be talking about it, but people are definitely being off. People might not be

talking about it. I think every employer now is saying it. I mean, there is definitely massive layoffs going off. There are massive layoffs happening and it is because owners really think like this man is thinking. He's just brave enough to say it. I don't know if he's brave, arrogant, could be

both. He's basically the only one saying it, but he's telling you exactly how owners feel about employers and probably 90 to 95 cent of owners feel like this right now. People might not be talking about it but people are definitely laying people off and we're starting to see less arrogance in the employment market and that has to continue because that will cascade across the cost balance. So like I said, these owners aren't playing around. So that's why all these strikes are happening because guess what? The employees are also not

playing around. So now we had a crossroad. So what else? A strike could also have international implications for video game actors. The strike authorization received overwhelming support. Already said that. Doesn't guarantee a strike. Negotiation have been gone. Okay, so negotiations have been ongoing for nearly a year focusing on compensation, AI use, and safety measures. I think that's about the WGA stuff. The next negotiation rounds, that's WGA. The strike aims to address the needs of voice actors to earn fair compensation and protect their livelihoods.

And that, ladies and gentlemen, sums up the majority of what I've been talking about this entire segment. If the owner feels like how this guy in the video was talking, the only way to show that employers are also serious about their work is to go on strike so obviously being in a recession we're going to go through stuff like this workers want to get paid more employees think that i mean employers think they don't do enough to make more so we just go on strike now let's see now we don't now we're not doing

anything then we're going to see uh what you come back with for the counter offer so that's currently where we're at and once again it's a possibility nothing set in stone but it seems like it's getting and more likely to happen, especially with all of these strikes ending in a positive result for the employees. So why not follow suit? So anyways, click my link to share my bio. Let me know on one of my social media's. What do you think about WGA rider strike ending? One, and also, what do you think about the possibility of a video game voice actor strike?