YouTube TV and NBCUniversal today said that they have reached a new carriage agreement that will keep all of NBCU’s broadcast and cable networks on the streaming service.
NBCU’s carriage deal with YouTube TV was set to expire at midnight on Thursday and would have resulted in all local NBC and Telemundo stations, the NBC Sports regional sports networks and the company’s cable channels including E! and Bravo being dropped. The companies agreed to a short extension and now they have reached a new long-term deal.
“We are thrilled to have reached a deal with YouTube TV and can continue to offer our full network portfolio, without interruption. YouTube is a valued partner and we never want to involve our fans in a dispute, but we felt obligated to let them know what was at stake. We thank our viewers for their loyalty and promise to continue bringing them the networks and programs they love,” said an NBCUniversal spokesperson in a statement.
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Google issued a similar statement and noted that since YouTube TV subscribers won’t lose access to any of their channels, the service will continue to offer more than 85 networks for $64.99. The company had previously promised to lower its price by $10 per month if the NBCU suite of channels were removed.
Notably, neither YouTube TV nor NBCUniversal mentioned Peacock, NBCU’s ad-supported streaming service, in their respective statements regarding the new carriage deal. Earlier reports suggested that NBCU had been trying to get YouTube TV to bundle and pay for Peacock Premium as part of a new affiliation agreement for the NBCU channels.
The new carriage deal comes after a week where NBCUniversal and YouTube TV exchanged accusations.
“NBCUniversal is seeking fair rates from Google for YouTube TV’s continued carriage of the only portfolio offering entertainment, Hispanic, news and sports networks,” an NBCU spokesperson said in a statement. “Unfortunately, Google is refusing to make a deal at these fair rates and is willing to withhold entertainment, news and sports programming from their paying customers. NBCUniversal feels a responsibility to inform our fans that they are at risk of losing their favorite shows if Google continues with their demands.”
“Our ask is that NBCU treats YouTube TV like any other TV provider. In other words, for the duration of our agreement, YouTube TV seeks the same rates that services of a similar size get from NBCU so we can continue offering YouTube TV to members at a competitive and fair price,” the company said in a blog post. “While we would love every member to continue to stay with our service, we understand that you may still choose to pause or cancel your membership. We want to make YouTube TV flexible, so members can pause or cancel anytime. We will give you updates as negotiations continue.”