FACTBOX: Chronology of Hollywood labor dispute

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - The following is a chronology of major developments in the labor dispute between the Writers Guild of America (WGA) and the major film and television studios.

* July 16 - Formal contract negotiations begin between the 12,000-member WGA and the studios' bargaining entity, the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP).

* October 16 - Removing a major sticking point, the studios drop a highly contentious proposal to overhaul the "residual" fees earned by writers when their work moves beyond its initial broadcast or theatrical release.

* October 19 - WGA leaders get authorization from members to call a strike if necessary once their contract expires at the end of October.

* October 25 - Studios seek to break a deadlock by offering a newly condensed package of proposals. The union dismisses it as a collection of "minor adjustments to major rollbacks."

* October 30 - A U.S. federal mediator joins the talks at the invitation of both sides as the expiration of the writers' contract draws near.

* October 31 - With hours to go before the midnight expiration of the old contract, the two sides break off talks.

* November 1 - The writers' negotiating committee tells a boisterous membership meeting it will urge the WGA West and WGA East governing boards to declare a strike.

* November 2 - WGA leaders unanimously endorse the negotiators' recommendation and call for a strike to begin at 12:01 a.m. on November 5, barring a last-minute settlement.