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2024–2025 SAG-AFTRA video game strike
On July 26, 2024, SAG-AFTRA (Screen Actors Guild – American Federation of Television and Radio Artists) initiated a labor strike involving the union’s voice actors and motion capture artists against American video game companies signed to the union’s Interactive Media Agreements over failed renegotiation terms of the contract that had expired in November 2022.[2][3] The strike had been authorized in September 2023.[4][5][6] The strike started after a year and a half of negotiations which failed to result in a protection agreement from the use of artificial intelligence (AI) for all performers covered by the Interactive Media Agreement.[2] In addition to video game performers, there were concerns about companies having the ability to train AI to replicate an actor’s voice, or create a digital replica of their likeness, without consent or fair compensation.[3] BackgroundWith significant advances in generative AI in the early 2020s, game developers have seen potential to reduce labor costs and increase productivity by substituting AI for human performers.[7] Additionally, mass layoffs in the video game industry from 2023 onwards have led to concerns about the future sustainability of game development, as this led to the cancellation of several game projects and shutdown of several studios. AI has been explored as one solution to mitigate the rising development costs of games, including costs associated with hiring voice-over and motion capture actors. According to sources, motion capture studios may charge $500-$2000 per hour,[8] and a unionized voice actor may make $450-$2000 per hour.[9] While AI could potentially reduce or even eliminate these costs, this has also led to significant concerns from video game actors of all sectors, including unwanted replication of voice and likeness, job security, and lack of compensation.[10] In November 2022, the last agreement expired and was subsequently extended on a monthly basis.[11] On September 1, 2023, the SAG-AFTRA National Board voted to send the video game strike authorization vote to its members,[12][13] and on September 25, the results showed the authorization passed with 98.32% voting in favor.[14] Months of negotiations which were held between SAG-AFTRA and major video game companies such as Activision, Blindlight, Electronic Arts (EA), Epic Games, Insomniac, Take-Two Interactive, Disney Character Voices and Warner Bros. Games proved to be a failure.[15][16] In January 2024, SAG-AFTRA announced an agreement with Replica Studios for voice model replicas in video game. The agreement included requirements for consent for any new project, safe storage of voice model replicas, time limit for replica usage without further payment and usage transparency.[17] StrikeOn July 25, 2024, SAG-AFTRA president Fran Drescher and chief negotiator Duncan Crabtree-Ireland stated that SAG-AFTRA would go on strike against major video game publishers.[18][19] Crabtree-Ireland affirmed that the strike would become effective at 12:01 am PDT on July 26, 2024, while Drescher stated that "We're not going to consent to a contract that allows companies to abuse A.I. to the detriment of our members. Enough is enough. When these companies get serious about offering an agreement our members can live — and work — with, we will be here, ready to negotiate."[20] Roughly 2,600 people employed in the video game industry in voice acting, motion capture and other work would then go on strike.[15] On September 4, Lightspeed LA, a division of Tencent's Lightspeed Studios, signed an interim agreement with the union to continue to work with its actors.[21] SAG-AFTRA announced the following day that 80 games had signed acceptable interim agreements with the union, allowing actors to return to work on those games and putting more pressure on the larger publishers.[22] As with the 2016–17 strike, it is unknown how long the strike is expected to last or how much it will impact production on a large scale. According to Joost van Dreunen of the NYU Stern School of Business, companies would try to resolve this by September, and no later than the end of 2024.[23] On September 17, 2024, California Governor Gavin Newsom officially signed two bills, AB 1836, which grants protections against AI being used on dead performers and grants rights to performers' estate, and AB 2602, which grants protections against AI being used on living performers without it being spelled out with reasonable specificity. The bills include protections for voice-over work and video game performances (ex. motion capture work) and were signed at SAG-AFTRA headquarters with support from union leadership.[24] Protections against AI for motion capture work is of particular note, as SAG-AFTRA leadership has cited the identity of motion capture professionals as performers (which directly impact AI regulations) as a significant reason for initiating the strike, as well as one of the most heated points of disagreement with video game companies.[25] As California is a significant base for voice-over and motion capture work—many of the companies targeted by the strike are also based out of the state—this is expected to play a pivotal role in negotiations moving forward. It is unclear how companies plan to respond to or interpret these bills.[citation needed] On September 24, 2024, SAG-AFTRA called for a strike against League of Legends after accusing Formosa Interactive, who contribute post-production audio work to the game, of making an effort to go around the strike.[26] According to SAG-AFTRA, Formosa Entertainment "secretly transferred an unrelated title to a shell company and sent out casting notices for 'non-union' talent only."[27] SAG-AFTRA's interactive negotiating committee would unanimously vote to file an unfair labor practice charge against Formosa Interactive with the National Labor Relations Board.[27] Part of this charge called for a strike against League of Legends.[27] In response, Formosa released a statement stating that it has denied the allegations and has not acted in any way to undermine employee or union rights.[26] However, Riot Games, the developer and publisher of League of Legends, also released a statement stating that they have only instructed Formosa Interactive to engage with US union performers and that SAG-AFTRA's press release relates that cancelling a game or hiring non-union talent are related to a game not developed and/or published by them, stating that "we’ve never asked Formosa to cancel a game that we've registered."[26][28] Riot Games changed its arrangement for voices of League of Legends skins by using already recorded "base voiceovers".[29] The same arrangement is also used for League of Legends: Wild Rift in case of voice actor for that game opts to not record in solidarity with the strike.[29] On October 15, 2024, it was announced that SAG-AFTRA officials and representatives for video game companies would hold in-person negotiations again for the first time since November 2023 starting on October 23, 2024.[30][31] On October 28, 2024, SAG-AFTRA announced a partnership deal with AI company Ethovox for voice model replicas, the deal included session fees and revenue sharing with the union.[32] On the same day, the union announced that the strike will continue after days of negotiations with video game companies.[33] On November 14, 2024, SAG-AFTRA announced a new type of agreement for video game localization, called Independent Interactive Localization Agreement. This agreement was designed to allow video game developers based outside of the United States to hire union voice actors for the purpose of content localization subject to terms of the agreement.[34][35] As of December 2024, the strike remains ongoing, with Aftermath reporting that the voice actors "have plenty of fight left in them."[36] League of Legends said that their skins would temporary not have custom voicelines in English due to the strike.[37] The planned release of Hideo Kojima's games OD and Physint would also be delayed due to the strike as well.[38][39] See alsoReferences
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