LOS ANGELES:
The Oscars will be shown only on YouTube starting in 2029, the Academy announced Wednesday, in a radical play for a movie industry that remains wary of streaming platforms even as viewing habits shift online.
The new five-year deal means Hollywood’s most prestigious awards ceremony will be seen exclusively online for the first time, ending a decades-long relationship with US broadcaster ABC.
The decision will allow the Academy Awards to reach “the largest possible audience worldwide — which will benefit our Academy members and the film community,” Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences CEO Bill Cramer and President Lynette Howell Taylor said in a statement.
The annual Academy Awards, which celebrate the year’s top achievements in film and bring together the world’s biggest A-list stars, are regularly watched by an estimated 20 million Americans and millions more worldwide.
ABC’s last contract to broadcast the show was set to expire in 2028, the 100th Academy Awards. The Disney-owned channel will continue to air the Oscars until then.
But the new deal with Google-owned YouTube represents a bold new direction for the show at a time when audiences are increasingly watching all types of content online.
Streamers owned by Silicon Valley companies have lured top talent away from traditional Hollywood studios with huge contracts — despite concerns from filmmakers that they rarely show movies on the big screen in theaters for extended screenings.
Streamers gradually gained wider acceptance at the Academy Awards, where Apple won best picture for “CODA” in 2022.
The SAG Awards, another major Hollywood awards gala recently renamed The Actors Awards, have already moved to Netflix.
YouTube accounts for the largest share of television viewing time in the United States of any streaming platform, surpassing even Netflix.
“This partnership will leverage YouTube’s immense reach and infuse the Oscars and other Academy programs with innovative engagement opportunities while honoring our legacy,” the Academy’s statement said.
Financial terms of the new Oscar deal were not disclosed.
Industry website Deadline said “the amount YouTube was willing to pay didn’t make sense for Disney,” citing unnamed insiders.
Proud home
An ABC Entertainment spokesperson told AFP: “ABC has been the proud home of the Oscars for more than half a century.
“We look forward to the next three telecasts, including the show’s centennial celebration in 2028, and wish the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences continued success.”
Like Hollywood in general, the Oscars have had a tough time in recent years as the viewing habits of younger generations change.
During the Covid-19 pandemic, Oscar ratings plunged by as much as 10.4 million.
The most recent Oscars were watched by 19.69 million people – the highest in five years – as the ceremony was simulcast live on Disney’s Hulu streamer along with ABC.
However, the Hulu stream suffered technical glitches that left some viewers unable to see the final awards.
The telecast of the Academy Awards regularly topped 40 million just over a decade ago.
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