One of the most prestigious film awards, the Oscars, also known as the Academy Awards, has traditionally been telecast on the ABC broadcast network. However, in a significant move, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced on Wednesday that the Oscars will shift from ABC to YouTube starting in 2029.
Notably, ABC will continue to broadcast the annual ceremony through 2028, which will also mark the 100th edition of the Oscars. Read on for more details.
Oscars to stream on YouTube from 2029
It must be noted that the Academy Awards will be streamed for free worldwide on YouTube, including for YouTube TV subscribers. Viewers can watch the ceremony with audio tracks in multiple languages, along with closed captioning.
The academy chief executive Bill Kramer and academy president Lynette Howell Taylor said, "We are thrilled to enter into a multifaceted global partnership with YouTube to be the future home of the Oscars and our year-round Academy programming."
The online video-sharing platform YouTube will hold the global rights to the Oscars from 2029 to 2033. This will include red-carpet coverage, the Governors Awards and the Oscar nominations announcements. However, the financial terms have not been disclosed yet.
For the unversed, the Oscars were first televised by NBC in 1953, but ABC acquired the rights in 1961. In a statement, the ABC broadcast network said, "ABC has been the proud home to The Oscars for more than half a century."
About the 2026 Academy Awards
It must be noted that the 98th Academy Awards ceremony will be held on Sunday, March 15, 2026, at the Dolby Theatre in Ovation Hollywood. It will be broadcast on the ABC network.
(With PTI inputs)
