The Academy Awards Are Exiting ABC and Broadcast Live on YouTube Beginning in the Year 2029.
The Academy Awards will begin airing only on YouTube in the year 2029, marking the most recent substantial change in the film industry.
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences declared the decision on this week, indicating that it finalized a long-term agreement giving the streaming service the exclusive global rights to the Oscars through 2033.
The Oscars, which is planned for March 15th, has been televised for a half a century on the traditional network. Beginning in 2029, the ceremony will be available as a free live stream on YouTube.
It's another major shakeup in the entertainment world, which is navigating corporate acquisitions and consolidations, along with steep reductions in filming.
"Our Academy represents an international organization, and this alliance will allow us to expand access to the activities of the Academy to the most extensive international crowd possible - which will be beneficial for our film artists and the movie industry," said organization heads in a release.
Throughout a long period, audience numbers of the ceremony have declined, although there was a small rise in 2025, with a considerable amount of youthful audiences watching from cell phones and laptops.
In a separate statement, the video platform's chief executive described the Oscars "among our vital pillars of culture" and added that working with the Academy would "spark a younger cohort of innovation and film lovers while remaining faithful to the Oscars' illustrious history".
ABC, which has televised the awards since the mid-1970s, stated that it was eagerly anticipating "to the upcoming broadcasts" it will retain rights for.
This decision coincides with large entertainment companies deal with challenging merger discussions. Such proposals were considered problematic for an industry that has experienced drastic cuts over the recent period.
Similar to big production houses, traditional TV channels have struggled as the public has shifted towards on-demand video instead.
YouTube winning rights to the Academy Awards further suggests that dependence on digital platforms will continue to grow.
