Disney content will return to YouTube TV under a new deal
By Liam Reilly, CNN
(CNN) — Disney and YouTube TV struck a multi-year deal late Friday to get the entertainment giant’s content back onto the streaming site, ending the two-week blackout that spanned a historic election night.
The new carriage deal means Disney sports, entertainment and news programming, such as ESPN and ABC, will return to YouTube’s pay tv platform. The companies said content has begun returning to the platform.
“This new agreement reflects our continued commitment to delivering exceptional entertainment and evolving with how audiences choose to watch,’’ Disney Entertainment Co-Chairmen Alan Bergman and Dana Walden and ESPN Chairman Jimmy Pitaro said in a statement.
In a statement, YouTube said it was happy the agreement “preserves the value of our service for our subscribers and future flexibility in our offers.”
“We apologize for the disruption and appreciate our subscribers’ patience as we negotiated on their behalf,” the statement added.
The deal provides YouTube TV with all of Disney’s traditional broadcasting programming — including all the ESPN networks, ABC, the Disney-branded channels, the FX Networks and National Geographic channels.
ESPN’s new sports streaming platform, which launched earlier this year, will be made available to YouTube TV subscribers, as well, mirroring other Disney deals this year. Still, it’s a bonus for fans struggling to afford an increasingly fragmented landscape for sports online.
Subscribers will also have the option to add Disney’s other streaming assets — Disney+ and Hulu — in a bundle.
YouTube pulled Disney’s content from its pay TV platform after an October 31 midnight deadline saw negotiations at an impasse.
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