The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has announced a new multi-year deal granting YouTube the global rights to stream the Oscars.
According to the new deal, which was signed on December 17, 2025, the film award event, which has aired on the ABC network since 1976, will be exclusively streamed live on YouTube starting in 2029 through 2033.
The Oscars will be streamed for free to over two billion people with features such as closed captioning and various language audio tracks.
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YouTube will also have the rights to air other Academy programs, including the Governors Awards, Oscar Nominations announcements, Red Carpet events, Oscars Nominees Luncheon, the Student Academy Awards, Scientific and Technical Awards, Academy member and filmmaker interviews, film education programs, podcasts, and more.
The new deal comes amid a decline in viewership of the award show, with reports indicating that current viewership comprises a younger audience tuning in from cell phones and computers.
In a statement, Academy CEO Bill Kramer and Academy President Lynette Howell Taylor expressed that the partnership would profitably bridge the award show to a massive audience via the video streaming platform.
“The Academy is an international organization, and this partnership will allow us to expand access to the work of the Academy to the largest worldwide audience possible. This will be beneficial for our Academy members and the film community,” they said.
According to the CEO and Academy President, the partnership aims to leverage YouTube’s reach to “infuse the Oscars and other Academy programming with innovative opportunities for engagement while honoring the Academy’s legacy, celebrating cinema, inspiring new generations of filmmakers, and providing access to the history of the Oscars on an unprecedented global scale.”
Disney’s ABC will continue to hold the rights to telecast the Oscars through 2028, after which YouTube will take over starting in 2029.