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Walt Disney (NYSE:DIS), Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN) and Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX) have been labeled the “new gatekeepers” of the media business, the Writers Guild of America said in a new report on Thursday, adding that the trio needs increased regulation.
“Disney, Amazon, and Netflix are positioning themselves to be the new gatekeepers of media, growing through acquisitions and using their increased power to disadvantage competitors, raise prices for consumers, and to push down wages for creative workers,” the WGA wrote in the report.
“Without intervention, these conglomerates will seize control of the media landscape and the streaming era’s advances for creativity and choice will be lost,” the WGA added.
Netflix (NFLX) received notable ire in the report, with the guild stating that though it was once an innovative competitor, it is now using its position in the streaming market “to abuse its leverage as an employer, decrease innovative content spending and raise prices for consumers.”
Members of the guild have been on strike for more than 100 days already, an event that has cost the California economy more than $2B in losses, according to the Milken Institute.
The guild added that the trio of companies, which have a collective market cap of more than $1.7T (including $1.4T for Amazon), should be under further scrutiny, with regulators blocking additional mergers, while also proactively investigating anti-competitive issues and increasing regulation and oversight in streaming.
Netflix, Disney and Amazon did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Seeking Alpha.
In addition to the writer’s strike, the Screen Actors Guild – American Federation of Television and Radio Artists, or SAG-AFTRA, are also on strike, with that walk-out having recently surpassed 30 days length.
Last month, it was reported the major studios had offered the actors guild an additional $1B in compensation and benefits before the strike.
The writer’s guild and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, which represents the major media companies, recently met to continue negotiating in hopes of a return to work.
