Disney wants to return to YouTube TV in the name of public service.
In the media conglomerate’s latest attempt to drum up support for its content in the wake of the Google-owned TV service’s outage, Disney has proposed that YouTube TV resume broadcasting ABC on Nov. 4, when Americans head to the polls on Election Day.
“Despite the impasse that caused the current outage, we have asked YouTube TV to restore ABC on Election Day to ensure our subscribers have access to trusted information,” Disney said in a statement. “We believe in putting the public interest first, and we hope YouTube TV will take this small step on behalf of our customers while we continue to work toward a fair agreement.”
Google did not respond to a request for comment. (Update: Google rejected Disney’s offer and instead suggested the media conglomerate allow YouTube TV to bring back ABC and ESPN (the “channels people want”) while negotiations continue.)
ABC News coverage may now be available in non-traditional ways, including on the live streaming channel ABC News Live. Last weekend, Disney’s ESPN made its popular “College Gameday” show available via the X social media platform, delivering the show to the ESPN mobile app without subscribing to cable, satellite or video services.
Disney’s network has been blacking out YouTube TV since last week. YouTube TV dropped the Disney network late Oct. 30 after the two sides were unable to agree on a contract renewal that would keep ABC, ESPN and other Disney properties on the internet TV service. The biggest problem is the price. Disney is demanding a rate hike, but Google has no intention of agreeing. At the same time, Google is pushing TV companies to accept new tiers of programming, which could result in some subscribers opting out of certain networks.
YouTube TV has announced that it will offer subscribers a one-time $20 credit if their Disney channel remains unavailable for an “extended period of time.” YouTube TV’s basic subscription plan costs $82.99 per month.
Disney is the latest in a string of media companies to spar with Google over YouTube TV in recent months. Other companies that have fought the company include Paramount Global (now Paramount Skydance), Fox Corporation, and NBCUniversal. All new agreements were reached without power outages, but as deadlines approached, some companies scrambled to reach agreements. YouTube TV discontinued Univision and other networks owned by TelevisaUnivision at the end of September after the two sides were unable to reach a new agreement. And these stations remain removed from Google services.
