YouTube TV subscribers, your channels -- and your football -- are back. Disney and YouTube said Friday night that the two companies had reached an agreement. YouTube TV subscribers lost all of Disney's channels, including ESPN and ESPN2, on Oct. 30. Those who wanted to watch NFL or college football on ABC, ESPN or ESPN2 or Disney family-friendly hits such as Bluey, had to find other alternatives.
"We're happy to share that we've reached an agreement with Disney that preserves the value of our service for our subscribers and future flexibility in our offers," a YouTube spokesperson said. "Subscribers should see channels including ABC, ESPN and FX returning to their service over the course of the day, as well as any recordings that were previously in their Library. We apologize for the disruption and appreciate our subscribers' patience as we negotiated on their behalf. "
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The companies said in a statement that they reached a multi-year deal and were already restoring the channels to YouTube TV.
According to YouTube, subscribers should see content and saved recordings restored over the next 24 hours. So if you don't have them back yet, they should show up soon.
I'm a YouTube TV subscriber myself, and as of 5:30 p.m. PT on Friday, Disney, ESPN and other channels have been restored for me. As a die-hard Minnesota Vikings fan (yes, I know), I added Fubo TV temporarily, but I won't be keeping that subscription.
According to the statement, the deal will include the restoration of the channels, plus other items. The unlimited version of ESPN's new direct-to-consumer service will now be made available at no additional cost to YouTube TV subscribers. Subscribers will also have access to a selection of live and on-demand programming from ESPN Unlimited inside YouTube TV. Also, select networks will be included in various genre-specific packages, and there will be the ability to include the Disney Plus Hulu Bundle as part of select YouTube offerings.
"This new agreement reflects our continued commitment to delivering exceptional entertainment and evolving with how audiences choose to watch,'' Disney Entertainment Co-Chairmen Alan Bergman and Dana Walden and ESPN Chairman Jimmy Pitaro said in the statement. "It recognizes the tremendous value of Disney's programming and provides YouTube TV subscribers with more flexibility and choice. We are pleased that our networks have been restored in time for fans to enjoy the many great programming options this weekend, including college football."
Disney-owned channels were pulled on Oct. 30 when the agreement between the two companies expired.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, the resulting 25-day blackout was the longest in recent memory for Disney.
Here's a full list of the channels that were removed due to the dispute:
- ABC
- ABC News Live
- ACC Network
- Baby TV Español (Spanish Plan)
- Disney Channel
- Disney Junior
- Disney XD
- ESPN
- ESPN Deportes (Spanish Plan)
- ESPNews
- ESPNU
- ESPN2
- Freeform
- FX
- FXM
- FXX
- Localish
- Nat Geo
- Nat Geo Mundo (Spanish Plan)
- Nat Geo Wild
- SEC Network