The Academy Awards will begin streaming exclusively on YouTube in 2029, the latest big change in Hollywood.
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences made the announcement Wednesday, saying it has signed a multi-year deal that will give YouTube exclusive global rights to the Oscars through 2033.
The Oscars, scheduled for March 15, have been broadcast on ABC for half a century. Starting in 2029, the show will be available live and free on YouTube.
It’s the latest shakeup in Hollywood, which is facing studio sales and mergers, along with steep production cuts.
“The Academy is an international organization, and this partnership will allow us to expand access to the Academy’s work to the widest possible global audience, which will be beneficial to our Academy members and the film community,” Academy CEO Bill Kramer and Academy President Lynette Howell Taylor said in a statement.
Over the decades, the awards show’s viewership has declined, although there was a slight increase in 2025, with a significant number of younger viewers tuning in from cell phones and computers.
In a statement, YouTube CEO Neal Mohan called the Oscars “one of our essential cultural institutions” and said partnering with the Academy would “inspire a new generation of creativity and film lovers while staying true to the Oscars’ historic legacy.”
Meanwhile, ABC said it was looking forward to “the next three broadcasts” it will still host. It has broadcast the awards, American cinema’s highest honor, since 1976.
The move comes as Warner Bros. Discovery on Wednesday recommended its shareholders reject a hostile takeover bid from Paramount Skydance over a rival bid from streaming giant Netflix.
Both options were seen as unfavorable for an industry that has seen drastic cuts in recent years. Like big studios, cable networks have faced problems as audiences have turned to streaming services.
YouTube’s acquisition of the rights to the Academy Awards further suggests continued reliance on streaming sites.
