ESPN issues statement on YouTube TV dispute, channel blackout
By Luke Greco
Published:
ESPN has released a statement concerning the carriage dispute between Google and Disney.
Earlier this week, it was reported that Google and Disney were working on a renewed distribution deal. The current deal was set to expire at midnight on Thursday. If the 2 sides could not reach an agreement, ABC and the ESPN family of networks would go dark on YouTube TV, leaving college football fans wondering how they would watch Week 10 in the SEC.
Unfortunately for college football fans, no deal or extension was reached.
Late Thursday night, ESPN released a statement regarding the talks:
Unfortunately, Google’s YouTube TV has chosen to deny their subscribers the content they value the most by refusing to pay fair rates for our channels, including ESPN and ABC. Without a new agreement in place, their subscribers will not have access to our programming, which includes the best lineup in live sports—anchored by the NFL, NBA, and college football, with 13 of the top 25 college teams playing this weekend. With a $3 trillion market cap, Google is using its market dominance to eliminate competition and undercut the industry-standard terms we’ve successfully negotiated with every other distributor. We know how frustrating this is for YouTube TV subscribers and remain committed to working toward a resolution as quickly as possible.
As of now, ABC and the ESPN family of networks will be unavailable on YouTube TV. The two parties will continue to work towards a deal in the near future.
For SEC fans who need an alternative, our friends at Sling TV are offering day and weekend passes starting at $4.99.
