In a seismic shift for one of television’s marquee events, the Academy Awards will depart ABC and begin streaming on YouTube beginning in 2029, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced Wednesday.
ABC’s Final Run Through 2028
ABC will continue to broadcast the annual ceremony through 2028, a year that will also mark the 100th Oscars. The network’s long-standing partnership with the Academy has spanned more than half a century, cementing its place as the traditional home for the ceremony.
YouTube Secures Streaming Rights Through 2033
Starting in 2029, YouTube will retain global rights to stream the Oscars through 2033, effectively becoming the home for all Oscars-related content. This includes the red-carpet coverage, the Governors Awards and the Oscar nominations announcement, ensuring a unified platform for the Academy’s year-round programming.
A Full-Scale Partnership
“We are thrilled to enter into a multifaceted global partnership with YouTube to be the future home of the Oscars and our year-round Academy programming,” said academy chief executive Bill Kramer and academy president Lynette Howell Taylor. Their statement emphasized the Academy’s international reach and the opportunity to expand access to the Academy’s work for the largest worldwide audience possible.
YouTube’s Vision for the Oscars
Neal Mohan, chief executive of YouTube, added, “Partnering with the academy to bring this celebration of art and entertainment to viewers all over the world will inspire a new generation of creativity and film lovers while staying true to the Oscars’ storied legacy.” The platform will stream the ceremony for free worldwide, in addition to offering the event to YouTube TV subscribers.
Multilingual Accessibility and Closed Captioning
The streaming service will provide audio tracks in many languages and closed captioning, making the Oscars accessible to a diverse global audience. These features align with YouTube’s commitment to inclusivity and broaden the reach of the ceremony beyond traditional television viewers.
Financial Terms Unspecified
Financial terms of the agreement were not disclosed, leaving the economic details of the partnership to remain confidential. Despite the lack of disclosed figures, the partnership signals a significant shift in how major award shows are distributed.
ABC’s Historic Role
The Walt Disney Co.-owned ABC has been the broadcast home to the Oscars for almost its entire history. NBC first televised the Oscars in 1953, but ABC picked up the rights in 1961. Aside from a period between 1971 and 1975, when NBC again aired the show, the Oscars have been on ABC.
ABC’s Statement on the Transition
“ABC has been the proud home to The Oscars for more than half a century,” the network said in a statement. “We look forward to the next three telecasts, including the show’s centennial celebration in 2028, and wish the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences continued success.”
2025 Ratings and Historical Context
The 2025 Academy Awards were watched by 19.7 million viewers on ABC, a slight increase from the year before. That remains one of the biggest TV broadcasts of the year, though less than half of Oscar ratings at their peak. In 1999, more than 55 million watched James Cameron’s “Titanic” win best picture.
Choosing YouTube Over Other Platforms
In selecting YouTube over other options such as Netflix or NBC Universal/Peacock, the film academy chose a platform with a wide-ranging and massive audience but one without as much of an established production infrastructure. The decision reflects the Academy’s desire to reach a broad, digitally native viewership.
YouTube’s Dominance in Streaming Consumption
Still, more people-especially young people-watch YouTube than any other streaming platform. According to Nielsen, YouTube accounted for 12.9% of all television and streaming content consumed in November, while Netflix ranked second with an 8.3% market share.
Key Takeaways
- The Oscars will leave ABC for YouTube in 2029, streaming free worldwide through 2033.
- ABC will continue to broadcast the ceremony through 2028, including the 100th Oscars.
- The partnership brings multilingual audio, closed captioning and a unified platform for all Oscars events.
Closing Thoughts
The move to YouTube marks the first time one of the big four award shows-Oscars, Grammys, Emmys and Tonys-has completely jettisoned broadcast television, placing the ceremony in the hands of Google’s flagship video platform. With 2 billion viewers and a growing share of streaming consumption, YouTube is poised to bring the Oscars to a new generation of viewers while preserving the ceremony’s storied legacy.
