YouTube TV reaches ’short-term extension’ in dispute with Fox, warding off immediate disruptions

YouTube TV says it’s reached a “short-term extension” in its contract dispute with Fox, meaning subscribers of the Google-owned streamer won’t see immediate disruptions of Fox channels on the platform.

The current carriage agreement between YouTube TV and Fox originally faced a Wednesday afternoon deadline — with YouTube previously warning that networks like Fox Sports, Business and News would become unavailable on its streaming platform if the two sides didn’t reach a new deal by 5 p.m. ET.

That would have left YouTube TV customers without Week 1 of some college football games and other broadcast programming from Fox. But shortly after the clock hit 5 p.m. ET on Wednesday, YouTube said it was able to “prevent disruption” as it continues to work towards a new agreement.

“We are committed to advocating on behalf of our subscribers as we work toward a fair deal and will keep you updated on our progress,” YouTube said in a brief update announcing the extension.

A spokesperson for Fox had no addition comment, but confirmed that the broadcast giant had agreed to the short-term extension. It was not immediately clear how long the extension would be.

In a statement earlier Wednesday, Fox said that it was “disappointed that Google continually exploits its outsized influence by proposing terms that are out of step with the marketplace.” Fox also directed subscribers to a site called keepfox.com for more information and to call on YouTube to come to an agreement.

In addition to Fox Sports, Business and News, keepfox.com notes that YouTube TV may no longer carry FS1 and the Big Ten Network (which is majority-owned by Fox) if a deal isn’t reached.

Meanwhile, in blog post earlier this week, YouTube said Fox was “asking for payments that are far higher than what partners with comparable content offerings receive.” The company added that it hoped to reach a deal that’s “fair for both sides” without “passing on additional costs to our subscribers.”

If Fox content becomes unavailable on YouTube TV “for an extended period of time,” YouTube also noted it would provide members with a $10 credit. YouTube TV’s base plan — which currently boasts access to over 100 live channels — costs $82.99 a month.

Brendan Carr, chairman of the Federal Communications Commission, also chimed in on the dispute leading up to Wednesday’s deadline — while appearing to target Google particularly. He called on the tech company to “get a deal done” in a post on social media.

“Google removing Fox channels from YouTube TV would be a terrible outcome,” Carr wrote in a Tuesday post on X. “Millions of Americans are relying on YouTube to resolve this dispute so they can keep watching the news and sports they want—including this week’s Big Game: Texas @ Ohio State.”

From sports events to awards shows, live programming that was once reserved for broadcast has increasingly made its way into the streaming world over the years — as more and more consumers ditch traditional cable or satellite TV subscriptions for content they can get online. But renewing carriage agreements can also mean tense contract negotiations — at times resulting in service disruptions.

YouTube TV has been down this road before. In 2021 YouTube TV subscribers briefly lost access to all Disney content on the platform, including networks like ESPN and local ABC stations, after a contract breakdown between the two companies. That outage lasted less than two days, with the companies eventually reaching an agreement.

Beyond deals with YouTube TV and others, Fox last week launched its own streaming platform. “Fox One,” which has a starting price of $19.99 a month.