The ACCC has issued a draft determination proposing to grant authorisation to enable the Australian Directors' Guild (the ADG) and its members to collectively negotiate model terms of engagement with Screen Producers Australia (SPA) and its members.
The ADG is a not-for-profit industry organisation that represents the interests of film, television, streaming, and digital media directors. Authorisation is sought because the ADG’s members are often competitors and therefore acting together to negotiate model terms of engagement gives rise to a risk that they will breach competition laws
The conduct is substantially similar to conduct that the ACCC authorised ADG to undertake in 2015 until September 2020, and is intended to operate in conjunction with a collective bargaining authorisation granted by the ACCC to SPA on 23 April 2021 to enable it to collectively bargain with the ADG.
The proposed conduct would allow the parties to recommence negotiations on model terms of engagement between directors and producers, and to create and give effect to contracts and arrangements which contain these model terms of engagement.
The model terms of engagement may include the rates and terms of pay, copyright and moral rights, credits, royalty and residual payments, conditions of employment, accommodation, travel and transport, rights of termination and dispute resolution.
The ACCC is proposing to grant authorisation for ten years.
The ACCC has also granted interim authorisation to enable the ADG to commence collective negotiations of model terms of engagement with SPA while the ACCC completes its assessment of the substantive application.
The ACCC now invites submissions in relation to this draft determination by 4 August 2021, before making its final decision.
Further information about the ACCC’s draft determination is available on the ACCC’s public register at: Australian Directors’ Guild Ltd.