Disney-YouTube Blackout Set to Continue Through Weekend
The carriage dispute between YouTube TV and Disney appears set to continue. In a note sent to employees Friday, Disney Entertainment co-chairs Dana Walden and Alan Bergman and ESPN chairman Jimmy Pitaro said there is no deal yet in place between the two providers. ABC, ESPN and other Disney outlets have not been on YouTube…
The carriage dispute between YouTube TV and Disney appears set to continue.
In a note sent to employees Friday, Disney Entertainment co-chairs Dana Walden and Alan Bergman and ESPN chairman Jimmy Pitaro said there is no deal yet in place between the two providers. ABC, ESPN and other Disney outlets have not been on YouTube TV since Oct. 31 as a result of the dispute, which in turn appears to have impacted ratings for the networks.
“When will ESPN and ABC be back on the service? We wish we could give you that answer today, but unfortunately, we are headed into another sports-packed weekend without a deal in place,” the memo reads.
The executives claim they have offered Google, the owner of YouTube TV, a deal that “would cost less overall than the terms of our recently expired license,” and have offered the ability for customers to have flexible, customized packages around sports, entertainment and kids and families.
“Despite all this, YouTube TV continues to insist on receiving preferential terms that are below market and has made few concessions,” the memo states.
YouTube continues to state that Disney is misrepresenting the offer and is asking for a rate higher than what Charter and DirecTV pay for ABC Networks and more than what they charge Hulu and Fubo. They’re arguing for a Most Favored Nation clause that guarantees that if and when they pass Comcast and Charter as the largest provider of paid TV in the U.S., they will get the lowest rate available in the market. These clauses are typical for the large TV players.
“Once again, Disney is resorting to their old tactics like leaking documents to the press, negotiating in public through their paid talent and misrepresenting the facts including from the deals they’ve offered and taking credit for our product proposals. Our team stands ready to make a fair agreement in line with their deals with other distributors and we encourage Disney to come to the table and do what’s best for our mutual customers,” a spokesperson for YouTube said in response to the memo.
The full memo is below:
Team,
We promised to keep you updated on our negotiations with Google’s YouTube TV following their decision last week to pull our channels from their service, and we are writing today with the latest. We realize this has been a challenging week, with everyone asking the same question as millions of YouTube TV subscribers during the busiest time of the year in sports: When will ESPN and ABC be back on the service? We wish we could give you that answer today, but unfortunately, we are headed into another sports-packed weekend without a deal in place.
We know you’ve seen a swirl of information about the impasse, so we wanted to share some of the facts:
- We began these negotiations by offering YouTube TV a deal that would cost less overall than the terms of our recently expired license. That’s real savings that YouTube TV could pass along to its customers.
- We’ve offered innovative, bespoke programming packages—tailored to sports fans, entertainment fans, kids and families—that would provide tremendous flexibility for YouTube TV and greater choice and value for its customers.
- We’ve offered fair terms that are in-line with the more than 500 other distributors that have renewed their agreements since last summer, including the top distributors, who are far larger than YouTube TV.
- Despite all this, YouTube TV continues to insist on receiving preferential terms that are below market and has made few concessions.
Rather than compete on a level playing field, Google’s YouTube TV has approached these negotiations as if it were the only player in the game. It goes without saying that the reason so many consumers value our programming above others is because we invest in the best talent, creators and content in the world, and we cannot allow anyone to undercut our ability to do so.
We know how difficult this situation is for the YouTube TV customers we serve, and for all of you who provide the sports programming, entertainment, news and live events that our fans know and love. Thank you for the incredible work you do each and every day and for staying focused on maintaining such a high bar throughout this difficult situation.
We will continue to work diligently to find common ground with YouTube TV and will keep you informed as we have more news to share.
With Gratitude,
Alan, Dana & Jimmy
