YouTube TV and Disney Programming Update
Dec 19, 2021 – [[read-time]] minute read
Dec 19, 2021 – [[read-time]] minute read
Update as of 12 p.m. PT on 12/19/21:
We’re happy to share that we’ve reached an agreement with Disney to return their content to YouTube TV while preserving a $64.99/mo. price for our members. We have already started to restore access to Disney networks like ESPN and FX, including their live and on-demand content, as well as any recordings that were previously in your Library. We will also be turning on the local ABC stations over the course of the day.
As we promised a $15 discount while the Disney content remained off platform, we will still honor a one-time credit for all impacted members. For active members who have not yet received that $15 discount on their monthly bill, you will automatically receive a one-time credit on your next bill with no action needed. For members who were impacted and have initiated the cancellation process, we would love to welcome you back. Visit tv.youtube.com/membership and click ‘Add’ to return the Base Plan to your membership. If you resume your membership before you lose access, we will still honor the one-time $15 credit on your bill. We’ll update this website soon with more details.
We apologize for the disruption and appreciate your patience as we continued to negotiate on your behalf. We also value Disney's partnership and willingness to work towards an agreement.
Update as of 9 p.m. PT on 12/17/21:
We’ve held good faith negotiations with Disney for several months. Unfortunately, despite our best efforts, we’ve been unable to reach an equitable agreement before our existing one expired, and their channels are no longer available on YouTube TV. We will be decreasing our monthly price by $15, from $64.99 to $49.99 while this content remains off of our platform.
We know this is frustrating news for our customers, and not what we wanted. We will continue conversations with Disney to advocate on your behalf in hopes of restoring their content on YouTube TV. In the meantime, we’ll update this website soon with the latest updates, including channels impacted, alternative ways to continue enjoying some of Disney’s content on The Disney Bundle, information about our price decrease, plus any other questions you may have about this situation.
To our YouTube TV members:
In order to make 85+ channels available to you on YouTube TV, we partner with content owners, and from time to time, these deals need to be renewed to ensure we’re continuing to offer a strong lineup, at a competitive and fair price.
We’re now in negotiations with Disney to continue distributing their content on YouTube TV so you can continue watching everything from your favorite teams on ESPN to The Bachelor to Good Morning America. Our deal expires on Friday, December 17, and we haven't been able to reach an equitable agreement yet, so we wanted to give you an early heads up so that you can understand your choices.
Disney is an important partner for us and we’re in active conversations with them and working hard to keep their content on YouTube TV. Our ask to Disney, as with all our partners, is to treat YouTube TV like any other TV provider – by offering us the same rates that services of a similar size pay, across Disney's channels for as long as we carry them.
If Disney offers us equitable terms, we’ll renew our agreement with them. However, if we are unable to reach a deal by Friday, the Disney-owned channels will no longer be available on YouTube TV and we will decrease our monthly price by $15, from $64.99 to $49.99 (while this content remains off our platform).
We would love every member to stay with our service, but we give you the flexibility to pause or cancel your membership anytime. If you want to continue watching some of Disney’s content, you can consider signing up for their own service, The Disney Bundle, which they offer for $13.99/month.
We appreciate Disney’s partnership and will share any further updates as we have them.