Due to an ongoing contract dispute, all Disney-owned channels were removed from YouTube TV over the weekend. In one fell swoop, YouTube TV lost ESPN, ABC, and a handful of other channels. Needless to say, many YouTube TV subscribers are angry, especially now that we’re in the heart of the college football season. Indeed, some of the louder online voices have said that ESPN is the main reason they signed up for YouTube TV in the first place. What’s more, access to college football on ESPN was a big component of YouTube TV’s advertising push this year.
As it stands now, there’s no indication when Disney and YouTube might resolve their differences. In a way, we’re in uncharted territory right now. Contract disputes involving YouTube TV and content providers are nothing new, but historically speaking, YouTube TV typically manages to reach a deal at the 11th hour. Back in 2021, for example, a similar contract dispute between YouTube TV and Disney was resolved less than 24 hours after Disney-owned channels were removed. Currently, Disney-owned channels have been gone for five days, with no indication that a breakthrough in negotiations is imminent.
Disney asked Google to bring ABC back for Election Day
As contract negotiations between the two companies progress slowly, Variety reports that Disney this week asked Google to add ABC back to YouTube TV on November 4th for 24 hours to let viewers watch the channel’s election coverage. “Despite the impasse that led to the current blackout, we have asked YouTube TV to restore ABC for Election Day so subscribers have access to the information they rely on,” a Disney spokesperson said in a statement earlier this week. “We believe in putting the public interest first and hope YouTube TV will take this small step for their customers while we continue to work toward a fair agreement.”
YouTube TV, not surprisingly, said no. In a statement on the matter, YouTube TV said that Disney’s proposal would only create confusion amongst customers who would see the ABC channel return only to see it removed just as abruptly. YouTube TV also said that there are no shortage of other avenues for customers to access election coverage, including the ABC News page on YouTube.
And adding a bit of fuel to the fire, the statement added the following barb: “In fact, on the last two U.S. election days, the vast majority of tuned in YouTube TV subscribers chose not to watch ABC.” As part of Google’s response, it floated the idea that Disney allow it to bring back ABC and ESPN while negotiations remain ongoing, a request that Disney predictably rejected.
YouTube TV isn’t cheap anymore
What makes the removal of Disney-owned channels from YouTube TV especially frustrating is the fact that YouTube TV over the past few years has morphed into an expensive service. In a way, it’s become everything it was supposed to combat. There was a time when YouTube TV was unquestionably the best streaming deal on the planet. When it launched in 2017, it was only $35 per month. Since then, the price of the service has increased five times. Currently, YouTube TV costs $82.99 per month, which in many areas is more expensive than the pricey cable packages YouTube TV was designed to replace.
Amid all the price hikes in recent years, many people have started asking if YouTube TV is even worth it. And while I’m a fan of YouTube TV, it’s a fair question now that YouTube TV has legit competition from the likes of Fubo, Sling TV, and Hulu.
With respect to the current negotiations between YouTube TV and Disney, it’s unclear which side is being unreasonable. Presumably, Disney wants to charge more as YouTube TV’s subscriber base has exploded over the past few years. And YouTube TV, naturally, likely wants to do all it can to prevent yet another price hike, especially given that it increased the cost of a monthly subscription by 14% less than a year ago.
