YouTube TV-Disney Deal Expires, YouTube TV No Longer Carries ESPN/ABC

Several Disney-owned channels such as ESPN and ABC are no longer available on YouTube TV after Google and Disney failed to reach an agreement on Friday

Photo courtesy of ESPN

Over three million subscribers to YouTube TV no longer have access to several Disney-owned channels, including ABC and ESPN, as Google and Disney failed to reach an agreement before the midnight deadline on Friday. The change went into effect immediately and YouTube TV customers are now unable to view programs on the following channels: ABC local stations, ABC News Live, Disney Channel, Disney Junior, Disney XD, Freeform, FX, FXX, FXM, National Geographic, National Geographic Wild, ESPN, ESPN2, ESPN3, ESPNU, ESPNews, SEC Network, ACC Network.

YouTube TV said the following in a message to its subscribers: “We have held good faith negotiations with Disney for several months. Unfortunately, despite our best efforts, we were unable to reach an equitable agreement before our existing one expired. As of December 17, 2021, end of day Eastern Time, all Disney-owned channels, including ESPN and your local ABC station, are unavailable on YouTube TV.”

The message also stated that YouTube TV would be decreasing the price of its monthly subscription from $64.99 to $49.99 to account for the lost channels.

“We know this is frustrating news, and it is not the outcome we wanted,” the statement continued. “We will continue conversations with Disney to advocate on your behalf in hope of restoring their content on YouTube TV.”

Both Google and Disney remain open to reaching an “equitable agreement”, but there is reportedly still a significant gap between what Disney is charging for its channels and what Google sees as a “fair deal with us based on market terms and conditions” to put the Disney-owned channels back on YouTube TV.

For now, millions of sports fans who use YouTube TV as their streaming provider will need to find alternative means to watch the ESPN family of networks.