(Agencies)
Updated: 2008-01-23 16:26

The Writers Guild of America (WGA), the union for striking Hollywood screenwriters, announced on Tuesday that the writers will not picket the 50th Annual Grammy Awards.

The announcement marked a surprise reversal from its previous stance that the writers would likely picket the Grammy show, set for Feb. 10 from the Staples Center in downtown Los Angeles.

The move was welcomed by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences, which sponsors the show, and CBS, which will carry the telecast.

"We are gratified that the 50th annual Grammy Awards will focus solely on the great music, artists and charitable work resulting from our show," academy spokesman Neil Portnow said.

The decision is seen as a relief for the beleaguered music industry, which had feared that picket lines would deter artists from performing on or attending this year's kudocast, a crucial promotional platform for record labels and artists, and for CBS.

"This is very welcome news," CBS said. "We appreciate the WGA's consideration in this matter. The Recording Academy has put tremendous effort and planning into this 50th anniversary event. It's a big night of entertainment for television audiences and an important event for music artists and everyone in the music business."

The WGA's move to allow the Grammys to proceed without interference means that the kudocast will be able to use the 10-20 actors who usually serve as presenters.

But WGA reminded that it had not granted the music industry show a waiver that would allow its members to work on the ceremony.

Previously, the union refused to grant a waiver for the Golden Globes and threatened to picket, and the Screen Actors Guild (SAG) encouraged its stars to stay away as well.

As a result, the three-hour televised awards extravaganza was reduced to a half-hour, celebrity-free press conference on Jan. 13. with its audience dropping by 70 percent.

The move of writers union possibly allows the music ceremony to escape the fate of the wrecked Golden Globes show.