The content companies have been heavily lobbying for draconian copyright laws, and shaking down music downloaders, and forcing the adoption of overly restrictive DRM systems because, they insist, they need these things in order to make sure that the artists who create the works are properly compensated.
This week, the artists, specifically the writers this time, are striking against the content companies. Their demand: They want to be properly compensated. Specifically, they want a fair share from DVD and Internet distribution.
"They claim that the new media is still too new to structure a model for compensation," said Jose Arroyo, a writer for "Late Night with Conan O'Brien."