The Academy Awards Are Exiting ABC and Broadcast Live on YouTube Starting in the Year 2029.
The Oscars ceremony will begin broadcasting solely on the global video platform in the year 2029, signaling the newest substantial change in the film industry.
The organization behind the Oscars made the announcement on Wednesday, stating that it entered into a multi-year deal awarding YouTube the unique international license to the Oscars until 2033.
The Oscars, scheduled for 15 March, has been broadcast for 50 years on ABC. Beginning in 2029, the event will be viewable as a free live stream on the digital platform.
It's a further major shakeup in the entertainment world, which is navigating corporate acquisitions and consolidations, in addition to drastic production cuts.
"The Academy is an global institution, and this alliance will permit us to broaden reach to the mission of the Academy to the most extensive international crowd possible - which will be beneficial for our membership and the movie industry," remarked Academy leadership in a release.
For many years, audience numbers of the ceremony have declined, although there was a slight uptick in 2025, with a considerable amount of younger viewers watching from mobile devices and laptops.
In a related comment, YouTube's CEO called the Oscars "among our essential cultural institutions" and said that teaming up with the Academy would "inspire a younger cohort of artistic expression and cinema enthusiasts while remaining faithful to the Oscars' storied history".
The broadcast network, which has aired the awards since the mid-1970s, said that it was eagerly anticipating "to hosting the event three more times" it will retain rights for.
This shift comes as major studios confront challenging merger discussions. These potential deals were seen as unfavourable for an business that has seen severe reductions over the recent period.
In common with big production houses, traditional TV channels have faced issues as the audience has shifted towards streaming services as an alternative.
YouTube obtaining the license to the Academy Awards strongly indicates that the dominance of online services will continue expanding.
