Writers do not get paid when TV shows are streamed for free on advertising-supported network sites such as ABC.com or HULU.com

In ads in “Variety” and “The Hollywood Reporter,” studios emphasized that writers already get paid when TV episodes and films are downloaded from Internet stores such as Apple Inc.’s iTunes.

The ads from the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers also stated that writers get a fee, or “residual,” when episodes or films are rented online.

Headlined “Setting the Record Straight,” the ads offered the group’s most extensive public statement on Internet payments since the strike began on Nov. 5.

Writers do not get paid when TV shows are streamed for free on advertising-supported network sites such as ABC.com or HULU.com.

But the ads said a proposal to pay writers for that streaming was on the table when talks broke off on Nov. 4.

Producers said payments from digital rentals and 예천출장샵 downloads were part of the more than $260 million in “record-breaking residuals” paid to members of the Writers Guild of America’s West Coast branch in 2006.

Producers said the figure came from the union’s 2006 annual report, which didn’t break down what percentage of the residuals came from digital distribution.

The union has invited actors to join its picket lines on Tuesday in Los Angeles. Members of the union’s East Coast branch were expected to stage a protest on Wall Street.

Both branches sent a letter of support Monday to striking Broadway stagehands.

Members of Local One of the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees went on strike Nov. 10 against Broadway producers, shuttering some of New York’s most popular plays and musicals.

By Gary Gentile