YouTube TV loses ESPN, other Disney networks after failing to reach new deal

YouTube TV has failed to reach an eleventh hour deal with Disney to keep more than a dozen Disney-owned channels on the live streaming service. Since December 18, popular networks including ESPN and ABC have been taken off the service. As promised, YouTube TV has dropped its subscriptions to $50 a month as a direct result of lost programming.

Disney said in a statement late Friday that following ongoing negotiations with YouTube TV, "they have declined to make a fair deal with us based on market terms and conditions."

“As a result, their customers have lost access to our unmatched portfolio of networks that includes live sports and news plus family and general entertainment programming from KIDS, ABC, ESPN Networks, Disney Channel, Freeform, FX Networks and National Geographic Channel. said. "We look forward to reaching a similar agreement with Google as soon as possible to reduce inconvenience to YouTube TV viewers by restoring our network. We look forward to joining that effort."

In a blog post, YouTube TV said it will "continue in talks with Disney to advocate on your behalf in the hopes of reinstating its content on YouTube TV."

"We've had good conversations with Disney for several months," YouTube TV said. "Unfortunately, despite our best efforts, we have been unable to reach a similar agreement before our current agreement expires, and their channels are no longer available on YouTube TV."

The announcement follows a notice shared with subscribers earlier this week that the channels could disappear from YouTube TV on Friday, December 17th, if no agreement is reached between the two companies. If negotiations fail, YouTube TV said it would reduce the price from $15 per month to $65 per month to make up for the change.

Earlier this week, a positive resolution to loss of service looked promising. For one, the service told customers in an email on Monday that House of Mouse "is an important partner for us," adding that it expects to negotiate a deal with Disney "provided we reach equal terms." Arrive." Be able to reach." But the companies failed to reach a deal as their existing agreement expired after December 17.

The loss of more than a dozen channels doesn't help YouTube TV stay competitive with Live TV or Fubo TV against other Internet cable services like Hulu. Not only are more than a dozen channels being wiped out of service, but the list of Disney-owned properties is extensive, including not only the Disney Channel but also the FX, ESPN and National Geographic channels.

The full list of channels dropped due to non-dealing includes the following:

Your local ABC channel
ABC News Live
Disney Channel
Disney Junior
Disney XD
freeform
FX
fxx
FXM
National Geographic
National Geographic Wild
ESPN
ESPN2
ESPN3 (by authentication to the ESPN app)
ESPNU
ESPNEWS
SEC Network
ACC Network

Carriage disputes are frustratingly common in our new streaming landscape, and they often come up publicly before a solution is reached – as was the case recently with YouTube TV and NBCUniversal-owned channels. Less often, both parties fail to reach a deal, and it is the consumer who pays the price to shop for a new provider if they want support for their favorite programming.