In an effort to resolve the contract talks with the Hollywood studios, the national board of the Screen Actors Guild recently demanded that a federal mediator be invited to join the debates. The heavy discussions involve the actors’ belief that they should receive union coverage for their work distributed over the Internet, also residual payments for the actors involved in made-for-Internet projects and even protections for actors during work stoppages.

SAG’s request has not been received well by the studios which appear determined to keep the current contracts already negotiated by actors with the talent unions. "There is simply no justification for SAG to expect a deal that is in excess of what the other guilds negotiated in better times," the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, responsible for negotiations on behalf of the major studios, said in its statement. They also added that the expectations of SAG’s negotiators for better terms during the current grim financial climate are completely unrealistic. AMPTP’s officials concluded that even if SAG finally authorizes a strike or decides on a different approach, "it will not change the harsh reality that currently confronts our industry."

The situation is considered critical and must be addressed as soon as possible, with actors working without a contract for more than three months, since the last one expired on June 30. They continued their work over these past few months under the expired contracts’ terms hoping to resolve the issues without another incident similar to last year’s writers’ strike which lasted for 100 days and cost the area’s economy an estimated $2.5 billion.

Considering the fact that so far the discussions haven’t solved anything, there is a strong possibility that actors might be considering a walkout, which would disrupt all film and TV productions. The problem is that a strike authorization requires an approval from at least 75 percent of the voting members which is unlikely to be received. Still, if out of SAG’s 120,000 members, 75 percent decide on this option, the national negotiation committee will be able to call the strike, if necessary. The authorization is considered a powerful bargaining tool which could bring a significant weight on SAG’s side during its talks with the AMPTP.

SAG's chief negotiator Doug Allen explained that the union's goal is to reach an agreement and secure good contracts without going on strike, but wanted to make it clear that if the situation will call for such a move, they will not hesitate to make it.

"We hope mediation will help move the process forward," SAG President Alan Rosenberg said in a statement. "Economic times are tough for all Americans, but we must take a stand for what is fair," he added.

The debates are very likely to demand a lot more time before reaching a solution that will be considered acceptable by both parts involved and at this point there are no clear signs about the talks' final direction.