On October 31st, YouTube TV contacted me to let me know that, due to a disagreement with Disney, I was about to lose access to all Disney, CBS, and more importantly, ESPN channels. Needless to say, that caused a bit of frustration, especially with all college and NFL football games, not to mention NBA games taking place. I need to watch and support my Philadelphia Eagles and Sixers.
Oh, and that also means that Disney XD and Disney JR is also gone, so where the heck am I going to get my Bluey fix from?
The kicker is that YouTube TV, owned by Google, said that if they couldn’t resolve the dispute, they would credit subscribers twenty dollars, but only for this month. What heck is that going to do for me when I can’t watch the games I subscribed to watch?
Meanwhile, Google continues to rake in cash while those of us who use YouTube TV are left on the sidelines waiting for the corporate parents to stop fighting. I don’t know all the details, but as usual, it comes down to money. YouTube TV claims that because it doesn’t have as many subscribers as traditional cable, it shouldn’t have to pay the same carriage fees, while Disney insists that it should. YouTube TV believes that by paying Disney more, it would have to jack up the subscription prices, something of which is has done not too long ago.
The ironic thing is that YouTube TV is the one most likely to get hurt if this situation drags on. Disney owns Hulu + Live TV, which still carries all of the channels that disappeared from YouTube TV. For viewers who just want to watch their favorite teams, it’s easy enough to switch. And if that happens, YouTube TV could lose a lot more than twenty dollars per customer. Ironically, since the two giants are fighting, Disney has no problem telling current YouTube TV subscribers to switch to its Hulu + Live TV service and has even a limited time off happening at the moment. What a coincidence.
Viewers don’t have brand loyalty to a streaming bundle. They just want access to the content. So, if ESPN, ABC, and Disney-owned networks vanish from YouTube TV for good, a lot of subscribers will just move to Hulu + Live TV or Fubo (which Disney also owns), both of which still carry those channels.
So, in this case, they have leverage and easy alternatives for frustrated sports fans like me. Since this has all transpired, I’ve signed up for both Hulu TV and Fubo, to see which is a viable replacement for me, and so far, both have everything that YouTube TV has and works perfectly on my TVs, Nvidia Shield, Roku, and Apple TV.
Honestly, I might stay with Fubo, since I like what it offers more than Google’s service, it has more features and feels better overall. But Hulu TV has the better channel selection, at least so far. And thankfully, both are priced aggressively, so my monthly cost won’t go up if I permanently switch from YouTube TV. Fubo also won’t charge me more if my entire family is streaming, versus Hulu TV’s two screen limit, unless you opt to pay for more.
Until both companies agree to bring these channels back, I implore everyone not to let themselves be held hostage just because they prefer one network over another. It’s your money, and if you can’t get what you want on one service while another offers it, then switch. Brand loyalty shouldn’t exist here, and you don’t have to accept less for the same price.
What stinks for me is I’ve been using YouTube TV ever since PlayStation Vue went offline in 2020, and I was hoping I’d never run into this issue again. As Lauryn Hill once said, “It’s funny how money changes situations.” And once again, it’s the viewers who end up paying the price.
Regardless, YouTube TV and Google need to figure out what they plan on doing, as Disney has blitzed them.
