The Oscars to Depart ABC and Broadcast Live on YouTube Starting in 2029.
The Academy Awards will commence streaming exclusively on YouTube in the year 2029, signaling the newest substantial transformation in Hollywood.
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences revealed the news on Wednesday, indicating that it entered into a multi-year deal awarding the streaming service the unique international license to the Oscars until 2033.
The Oscars, scheduled for March 15th, has been broadcast for five decades on the traditional network. Starting in 2029, the event will be available as a free live stream on the digital platform.
This is a further significant upheaval in the entertainment world, which is dealing with company buyouts and fusions, along with steep production cuts.
"The Academy is an worldwide body, and this collaboration will enable us to expand access to the mission of the Academy to the most extensive international crowd attainable - which will be beneficial for our Academy members and the movie industry," remarked the Academy's executives in a statement.
Throughout a long period, viewership of the televised event have dropped, even if there was a slight uptick in 2025, with a significant number of Gen Z and millennial watchers streaming from smartphones and computers.
In a related comment, YouTube's CEO called the Oscars "a key fundamental pillars of culture" and said that teaming up with the Academy would "spark a fresh wave of creativity and movie fans while staying true to the Oscars' storied heritage".
ABC, which has aired the ceremony since 1976, stated that it was looking forward "to hosting the event three more times" it will still host.
The move comes as film industry giants deal with challenging merger discussions. Both options were considered unfavourable for an business that has witnessed significant downsizing over the last few years.
Like major studios, traditional TV channels have encountered challenges as the audience has increasingly opted for on-demand video instead.
YouTube winning broadcasting rights to the Oscars strongly indicates that the dominance of online services will carry on expanding.
