About 12,000 members of the Writers Guild of America are being asked to cease work and set up picket lines from 0001 local time (0701 GMT).

The last such action, nearly 20 years ago, lasted 22 weeks and disrupted the autumn television season.

Studio representatives are hoping for a last-minute deal to halt the stoppage.

The strike deadline was issued by WGA leaders on Friday on the recommendation of their negotiators, after talks with producers broke down.

"The Writers Guilds will go on strike Monday, November 5th at 1201 AM," a statement said.

"At that time, all Guild-covered work under the MBA [Minimum Basic Agreement] must cease."

The union called for volunteers to man picket lines.

'DVD roadblock'

Talks between WGA negotiators and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP) broke down on Wednesday, hours before an existing agreement was due to expire.

Writers are demanding an increase in the fees they receive when their work is reproduced on DVDs, the internet, mobile phones and other electronic devices.

Producers reject their demands as unworkable.

Michael Winship, president of the WGA on the East Coast, said there was still time for producers to avoid the action.

"We urge the studios to come back and bargain fairly," he said after the strike announcement.

Nick Counter, president of the AMPTP, said the studios were ready to meet and finish negotiations over the weekend.

Earlier, Mr Counter had said no progress was possible at the talks "for overriding business reasons" as long as writers insisted on increasing royalties from DVD sales.

"The DVD issue is a roadblock to these negotiations," he added.

Gradual effect

Some of the most popular shows on US television could be forced off the air if writers go ahead with the strike.

Late-night talk shows are expected to stop almost immediately since they rely on a daily supply of topical jokes.

Television host David Letterman described producers as "cowards, cutthroats and weasels" on his CBS show on Thursday.

The comedy show Saturday Night Live could also suffer immediately.

"Boom - our show just shuts down," Amy Poehler, a member of the cast, told LA-based newspaper Daily Variety.

"It's just done. There is no backlog of scripts."

While it could be months before the TV networks run out of programmes that have already been made, Hollywood analysts expect the supply of shows such as Desperate Housewives, Ugly Betty and CSI to fizzle out by next spring.

Many writers fear the TV networks will simply turn to more repeats and reality programmes to fill the gap left by scripted shows.

Courtesy: BBC News 

Published in : The News, Entertainment

Keywords : News, Entertainment, Hollywood writers go for strike

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