SAG-AFTRA announces its National Board has approved the tentative deal to end the almost year-long videogame voice actor strike. This isn't surprising since the union already suspended the strike. The only remaining hurdle before the matter is settled is a vote by the union rank-and-file tomorrow:
Today, the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA) National Board approved the tentative agreement with the video game bargaining group on terms for the Interactive Media Agreement. The contract will now be submitted to the membership for ratification.
If ratified, the agreement would provide compounded increases in performer compensation at a rate of 15.17% upon ratification plus additional 3% increases in Nov. 2025, Nov. 2026 and Nov. 2027. Additionally, the overtime rate maximum for overscale performers will now be based on double scale. The health & retirement contribution rates to the SAG-AFTRA Health Plan will be raised from 16.5% to 17% upon ratification and to 17.5% in Oct. 2026.
The new contract accomplishes important guardrails and gains around A.I., including the requirement of informed consent across various A.I. uses and the ability for performers to suspend informed consent for Digital Replica use during a strike. Compensation gains include the establishment of collectively-bargained minimums for the use of Digital Replicas created with IMA-covered performances and higher minimums (7.5x scale) for “Real Time Generation,” i.e., embedding a Digital Replica-voiced chatbot in a video game. “Secondary Performance Payments” will also ensure compensation when visual performances are re-used in another video game.