YouTube TV reaches deal with Disney to restore ESPN, ABC and FX channels
If you use YouTube TV, you have access to Disney content like National Geographic, ESPN, ABC and FX again.
YouTube TV announced on Sunday that they reached a deal with Disney to restore access to those channels after they failed to reach a deal last week.
The price of the content will revert to $64.99 per month, but all impacted members will still receive a one-time $15 discount.
"We appreciate Google's collaboration to reach fair terms that are consistent with the market, and we're thrilled that our robust lineup of live sports and news plus kids, family and general entertainment programming is in the process of being restored to YouTube TV subscribers across the country," Disney told U.S. TODAY in a statement.
All Disney recordings previously in your YouTube TV library will be restored, and your local ABC station will be available once again.
YouTube TV wrote to users that for any subscribers who were impacted and have initiated the cancelation process, the company will still honor the one-time $15 credit on your bill if you resume your membership before you lose access. If you go to tv.youtube.com/membership and click "Add," you return the Base Plan to your membership.
You will still see a $64.99 price upon re-activating your membership, but a one-time discount will be reflected in your next bill.
The two companies were negotiating a new contract throughout last week and Disney had told U.S. TODAY it was "optimistic" a deal could be reached. The split came right as the college football bowl season was heating up with many games scheduled to be broadcast on ABC, ESPN and ESPN 2.
During that time, the service lowered its monthly price by $15, from $64.99 to $49.99, while the Disney channels were off the platform. The complete list of channels removed from YouTube included Disney Channel, National Geographic, and the SEC Network.
In a short amount of time, the two streaming behemoths resolved their differences, but consumers still expressed their frustration on Twitter.
"The damage was done and is irreversible. I can't trust YouTube TV to get anything done in a timely manner to avoid disruptions," said Twitter user Brian Prescott.
Other users point out that it's normal for disruptions to occur when companies are renegotiating contracts.
"These disputes happen with every provider," said Twitter user Whitney Lucas. "It's going to keep happening as these channels/content providers want to charge a whole lot more money every time their contracts expire."
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