Edgar Cervantes / Android Authority
TL;DR YouTube TV needs to renew its carriage contract with NBCUniversal.
The service is reportedly frustrated with the high rates it pays, and wants to leverage its size for a better deal.
If nothing is worked out by October, viewers face the proposition of channel blackouts.
Is there anything more pathetic than when big companies take their petty spats public? You’d think that institutions with multi-billion-dollar valuations would be able to negotiate arrangements between themselves professionally (and behind closed doors, most likely), but sometimes us end users get unceremoniously pulled into the fights. That happens far too often with cable companies temporarily dropping channels after failing to work out deals, and right now we’re worried that YouTube TV could be headed for just that kind of confrontation.
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According to CNBC’s Alex Sherman, YouTube’s deal to carry NBCUniversal is expiring at the end of the month, and as of right now a smooth renewal doesn’t sound particularly guaranteed.
Any time one of these carriage contracts is up for renewal, there’s the possibility for something to go wrong — usually one of the parties insisting on a price hike or bundle arrangement that the other’s not particularly interested in. And then when a deal isn’t worked out in time, viewers see the affected channels go dark until their complaints become loud enough to force their provider to reach a compromise.
With NBCU, YouTube TV executives are reportedly trying to get NBCU to cut it a break on rates due the platform’s growing size, making it an increasingly relevant player. Apparently there are also some bad feelings to resolve around Peacock pricing, and while nothing’s certain just yet, there’s internal talk about YouTube TV needing “to make an example out of someone” in regards to these carriage negotiations if it wants to be taken seriously.
Besides the obvious channels like NBC, MSNBC, and CNBC, that could also affect NBCU properties like USA Network, Bravo, and Syfy. Losing those would be bad enough, but if that doesn’t get worked out quickly, YouTube TV viewers could find themselves with an even thinner lineup to choose from, as apparently the company also has to work out a separate deal renewal with Disney — with all the many channels it now owns — before the end of October.
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