Disney, YouTube TV reach distribution deal after two-week blackout
Add Axios as your preferred source to
see more of our stories on Google.
Illustration: Maura Losch/Axios
ESPN, ABC, National Geographic and more than a dozen other Disney-owned channels have been reinstated on YouTube TV after the two companies finally struck a distribution agreement.
Why it matters: The blackout, which started October 30, cut off major sports and news programming — including NFL games, college football, and 2025 election night coverage — for more than 8 million subscribers of YouTube TV.
- Consumer surveys suggested people were overwhelmingly willing to cancel their YouTube TV subscription if the blackout wasn't resolved, as the majority of its subscribers paid for the product to access live sports.
Zoom in: The new multi-year distribution agreement gives YouTube TV customers access to Disney's full suite of networks and stations, and makes the unlimited version of ESPN's new direct-to-consumer service available at no additional cost to YouTube TV subscribers.
- They also get access to a selection of live and on-demand programming from ESPN Unlimited within YouTube TV's app.
- Some Disney networks will be included in various genre-specific packages.
- One of Disney's streaming bundles, which includes Disney+ and Hulu, will be available to customers as part of a select offering within YouTube TV.
The big picture: Disputes like the one between Disney and YouTube give digital pay-TV companies an opportunity to reshape distribution agreements in a way that better suits their business objectives.
- One holdup was whether Disney would allow YouTube TV to distribute its streaming content to subscribers within the Alphabet-owned platform.
- Disney, which is trying to build its own streaming services, had little incentive to do that, but has relented to some of those demands as a part of the new deal.
- After a near-blackout fight earlier this year, NBC and YouTube TV finally agreed to a deal that would make some sports content from Peacock available for YouTube TV subscribers, but not NFL content.
What they're saying: "This new agreement reflects our continued commitment to delivering exceptional entertainment and evolving with how audiences choose to watch,'' said Disney Entertainment co-chairs Alan Bergman and Dana Walden and ESPN chairman Jimmy Pitaro in a joint statement.
- "We're happy to share that we've reached an agreement with Disney that preserves the value of our service for our subscribers and future flexibility in our offers," YouTube TV said in a statement.
- "We apologize for the disruption and appreciate our subscribers' patience as we negotiated on their behalf."
