Disney and YouTube have reached an agreement to bring back ESPN and more than 20 other Disney-owned channels two weeks after they went dark on YouTube TV.
During the dispute, Google has accused Disney of trying to raise prices for its customers in an effort to boost its own Hulu + Live TV and Fubo offerings, while Disney claimed that Google was being unreasonable and seeking preferential treatment and below-market rates.
Google even gave YouTube TV customers a $20 credit for the inconvenience while the dispute was going on. And days before the deal was done, CEOs Bob Iger and Sundar Pichai reportedly got more involved in the negotiations. FCC Chairman Brendan Carr also urged the companies to “get it done!”
The situation was quite different from the 2021 carriage blackout between the two companies, which was resolved within a couple of days.