The Academy Awards Will Leave Broadcast TV and Stream on the Video Platform Starting in 2029.
The Oscars ceremony will begin airing only on YouTube in 2029, marking the newest substantial shift in Hollywood.
The organization behind the Oscars revealed the news on Wednesday, confirming that it entered into a multi-year deal awarding YouTube the exclusive global rights to the Oscars through 2033.
The awards show, scheduled for March 15th, has been broadcast for a half a century on ABC. Commencing in 2029, the show will be available live and for free on YouTube.
This is a further significant shakeup in the entertainment world, which is navigating studio sales and mergers, along with severe slashes to movie budgets.
"The Academy is an international organization, and this alliance will permit us to broaden reach to the activities of the Academy to the most extensive international crowd imaginable - which will be advantageous for our Academy members and the movie industry," stated the Academy's executives in a statement.
Throughout a long period, ratings of the ceremony have declined, although there was a small rise in 2025, with a considerable amount of Gen Z and millennial watchers streaming from smartphones and computers.
In a separate statement, the video platform's chief executive called the Oscars "a key vital cultural institutions" and noted that partnering with the Academy would "motivate a fresh wave of innovation and cinema enthusiasts while remaining faithful to the Oscars' storied legacy".
The broadcast network, which has aired the awards since the mid-1970s, commented that it was excited "to the next three telecasts" it will still host.
The move coincides with large entertainment companies deal with challenging merger discussions. Both options were viewed as problematic for an sector that has seen severe reductions over the past several years.
Similar to big production houses, traditional TV channels have encountered challenges as the viewers has shifted towards on-demand video instead.
The platform securing broadcasting rights to the Academy Awards clearly signals that reliance on online services will persist increasing.
