Overview
- Disney-owned channels have been dark on YouTube TV since Oct. 30, costing viewers a weekend of college games, Monday Night Football and ABC’s election-night coverage.
- ESPN’s Pat McAfee criticized colleagues for urging viewers to visit a Disney site to pressure YouTube TV, reflecting growing fan backlash to the corporate messaging.
- Disney sought a one-day ABC restoration for Election Day, which Google rejected, while YouTube TV proposed Disney restore ABC and ESPN as negotiations continue.
- YouTube TV says it will issue a $20 credit if the outage lasts an “extended period,” a threshold the company has not defined.
- Talks remain far apart on price and terms as Apptopia data shows users shifting to Sling, Fubo and DirecTV, with YouTube TV pushing for MFN-like protections and shorter deals and Disney accusing Google of exploiting market power.