Filmmaker Liman forms own company

LOS ANGELES, Jan. 17 (UPI) -- U.S. filmmaker Doug Liman formed a new media company and immediately announced an agreement with the striking Writers Guild of America.

Called Jackson Bites, the company will create television-style programming for alternative distribution.

Liman said he will serve as co-owner of the venture with the support of a wide range of new media and business investors.

As a result of the company's agreement with the WGA, members will be able to write, develop and create programming for distribution on the Internet, set-top boxes, cell phones and other wireless devices, and via direct deals with satellite networks and cable companies.

"We have gone from three networks to six, and from a handful of channels to a thousand and YouTube," Liman, who directed "The Bourne Identity" and "Mr. & Mrs. Smith," said in a statement. "In that environment, what matters is compelling programming -- and compelling programming starts with the writer. Jackson Bites will afford writers the opportunity to create content that will be seen and enjoyed by audiences with or without the involvement of the television networks."

WGA East President Michael Winship said the new pact "reflects precisely what we have held from the start."

"For writers, the Internet and new media are the future. Doug Liman's company makes that vision reality, with high-end, TV-quality programming created for alternative distribution," Winship said in a statement.

The WGA said its deal with Jackson Bites is similar to the pacts it made recently with United Artists, Worldwide Pants, the Weinstein Co., MRC and Spyglass Entertainment.