The carriage dispute could result in Fox disappearing from the service entirely — just in time for football season.
Photo: Stacy Revere/Getty Images
This article was originally published Tuesday, August 26, and has been updated to reflect the contract extension.
The first games of football season loom, and with them, the high-profile contract renegotiations for the stations and streamers that air them. On Monday, Fox and YouTube TV fired off dueling statements indicating they were at loggerheads on their latest deal renewal. The way Fox told it on an attack-ad-style microsite: “Google is attempting to use its market power to pressure Fox to agree to unfavorable and one-sided terms, prioritizing their own interests over a fair agreement for its customer.” And per a statement on YouTube TV’s blog: “Fox is asking for payments that are far higher than what partners with comparable content offerings receive.” The parties had until 5 p.m. ET on August 27 before Fox’s local channels, Fox Sports, Fox News, Fox Business, and the Big Ten Network ran the risk of going dark on YouTube TV. Quelle drama!
Well, the deadline came and went, and while they don’t have a deal, they do have an extension: “We have reached a short-term extension with Fox to prevent disruption to YouTube TV subscribers as we continue to work on a new agreement,” YouTube wrote in an update to its blog on Wednesday. They remain in “active and ongoing” negotiations with no interruption, for now, to Fox service on YouTube TV.
In a TV universe largely shaped by streaming, it’s only the latest such carriage dispute for YouT