And the Oscars go to ... YouTube

Awards ceremony will stream in 2029, ending broadcast TV run

- BY JOSH ROTTENBERG AND STEPHEN BATTAGLIO

DEFENSE attorney Alan Jackson arrives outside L.A. County Superior Court where Nick Reiner appeared.

Hollywood's biggest night is moving to YouTube.

Beginning in 2029, the Oscars will stream live and free worldwide on the video platform under a new multiyear agreement between the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and YouTube, a major shift for an awards show long synonymous with broadcast television and a clear signal of how entertainment consumption has changed.

The deal, announced Wednesday, gives YouTube exclusive global rights to the Academy Awards starting with the 101st ceremony in 2029 and running through 2033—ending a five-decade partnership with ABC and making the Oscars the most prominent entertainment awards show to abandon a major broadcast network in favor of a digital-first platform. The show, including red carpet coverage and behind-the-scenes access, will stream live on YouTube around the world, with U.S. viewers also able to watch via YouTube TV.

For the Oscars, which have struggled with declining viewership and cultural impact since their ratings peak in the mid-1990s, the move to YouTube offers the potential to reach a far wider audience than it could on any broadcast network. The 2025 telecast, hosted by Conan O'Brien, attracted roughly 19.7 million viewers across ABC and digital platforms — an uptick from the previous year but still a fraction of the 40-plus million who watched in the 1990s and early 2000s.

This trend has been mirrored across awards shows as broadcast viewership declines and fans increasingly turn to streaming and clips on social media. YouTube counts more than 2 billion logged-in users monthly and is available in nearly every market worldwide.