The Academy Awards to Depart Broadcast TV and Broadcast Live on YouTube Beginning in the Year 2029.
The Academy Awards will begin streaming exclusively on the global video platform in 2029, signaling the newest significant shift in Hollywood.
The organization behind the Oscars declared the decision on this week, stating that it finalized a extended contract granting YouTube the unique international license to the Oscars through 2033.
The awards show, set for March 15th, has been broadcast for 50 years on ABC. Commencing in 2029, the event will be accessible in real-time without charge on the digital platform.
This is one more substantial shakeup in Hollywood, which is navigating studio sales and mergers, along with severe production cuts.
"Our Academy represents an worldwide body, and this partnership will allow us to increase availability to the work of the Academy to the largest worldwide audience attainable - which will be beneficial for our membership and the cinematic world," remarked the Academy's executives in a statement.
For many years, viewership of the televised event have fallen, although there was a slight uptick in 2025, with a considerable amount of youthful audiences watching from smartphones and computers.
In a related comment, the head of YouTube referred to the Oscars "among our fundamental cultural institutions" and noted that partnering with the Academy would "spark a new generation of creativity and cinema enthusiasts while adhering to the Oscars' storied history".
ABC, which has televised the awards since 1976, commented that it was eagerly anticipating "to the next three telecasts" it will retain rights for.
This shift follows major studios deal with intricate takeover attempts. Such proposals were viewed as problematic for an business that has experienced significant downsizing over the past several years.
Like big production houses, cable networks have struggled as the public has increasingly opted for on-demand video instead.
YouTube obtaining the license to the Academy Awards strongly indicates that the dominance of digital platforms will persist to grow.
