Oscars to stream exclusively on YouTube from 2029, academy says

In a seismic shift for one of television's marquee events, the Academy Awards will depart US broadcaster ABC and start streaming on YouTube beginning in 2029, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has announced.

ABC will continue to broadcast the annual ceremony through 2028. That year will mark the 100th Oscars.

But starting in 2029, YouTube will retain global rights to stream the Oscars through 2033.

YouTube will effectively be the home to all things Oscars, including red-carpet coverage, the Governors Awards and the Oscar nominations announcement.

"We are thrilled to enter into a multifaceted global partnership with YouTube to be the future home of the Oscars and our year-round Academy programming," said academy chief executive Bill Kramer and academy president Lynette Howell Taylor.

"The Academy is an international organisation, and this partnership will allow us to expand access to the work of the Academy to the largest worldwide audience possible — which will be beneficial for our Academy members and the film community."

While major award shows have added streaming partnerships, the YouTube deal marks the first of the big four — the Oscars, Grammys, Emmys and Tonys — to completely jettison broadcast television.

It puts one of the most-watched non-NFL broadcasts in the hands of Google. YouTube boasts some 2 billion viewers.

The Academy Awards will stream for free worldwide on YouTube, in addition to YouTube TV subscribers.

It will be available with audio tracks in many languages, in addition to closed captioning.

Financial terms were not disclosed.

"The Oscars are one of our essential cultural institutions, honouring excellence in storytelling and artistry," said Neal Mohan, chief executive of YouTube.

"Partnering with the academy to bring this celebration of art and entertainment to viewers all over the world will inspire a new generation of creativity and film lovers while staying true to the Oscars' storied legacy."

Falling ratings

The Disney-owned ABC has been the broadcast home to the Oscars for almost its entire history.

NBC first televised the Oscars in 1953, but ABC picked up the rights in 1961.

Aside from a period between 1971 and 1975, when NBC again aired the show, the Oscars have been on ABC.

"ABC has been the proud home to The Oscars for more than half a century," the network said in a statement.

The 2025 Academy Awards were watched by 19.7 million viewers on ABC, a slight increase from the year before due to being shown live simultaneously on Disney's streamer Hulu for the first time.

Disney said the broadcast was the most-watched Oscars in five years, although the Hulu stream was beset by technical glitches that left some viewers unable to see the final prizes.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Oscars ratings sank as low as 10.4 million.

The Academy Awards telecast regularly topped 40 million just a decade ago.

New categories, shortlist announced

The Oscars have made several changes in recent years in a bid to freshen up the nearly 100-year-old event, including the introduction of new categories.

Last year, it was announced Best Casting would begin to be awarded from 2026 due to casting directors' essential role in shaping films that reach the big screen.

In April, after years of impassioned calls, the Academy announced it will introduce a Best Stunt Design category, to be in place by the event's 100th anniversary in 2028.

The Oscars' telecast has been slimmed down since 2023, with eight categories — such as editing, production design, sound and makeup and hair styling — presented off-air.

This week, the Oscars shortlist was announced for 12 categories, unveiling a competitive field led by Warner Bros' Sinners and Universal's Wicked: For Good, which each landed eight mentions.

The Academy Award nominations will be announced on January 22.

Comedian Conan O'Brien will return to host the 98th ceremony, taking place on March 15.

AP/AFP