The Oscars to move to YouTube, leave ABC in 2029

The Oscars will move to YouTube, leaving the show's longtime broadcast home of ABC in 2029, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences said Wednesday.

The awards show will continue to broadcast on ABC through 2028, which will be the 100th Oscars, The Associated Press reported. YouTube will have global streaming rights for the Oscars from 2029 through 2033, which includes red-carpet coverage, the Governors Awards, and the Oscar nominations announcement.

“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,” Academy CEO Bill Kramer and Academy President Lynette Howell Taylor said.

“The Academy is an international organization, and this partnership will allow us to expand access to the work of the Academy to the largest worldwide audience possible — which will be beneficial for our Academy members and the film community.”

Major award shows have added streaming partnerships, but the deal with YouTube is the first of the big four — the Oscars, Grammys, Emmys, and Tonys — to completely leave broadcast TV.

“The Oscars are one of our essential cultural institutions, honoring excellence in storytelling and artistry,” YouTube CEO Neal Mohan said. “Partnering with the academy to bring this celebration of art and entertainment to viewers all over the world will inspire a new generation of creativity and film lovers while staying true to the Oscars’ storied legacy.”

ABC has aired the Oscars for nearly its entire history on TV. NBC first televised the Oscars in 1953, and again between 1971 and 1975, but ABC picked up the airing rights in 1961, then again in 1976.

“ABC has been the proud home to The Oscars for more than half a century,” the broadcast network said in a statement. “We look forward to the next three telecasts, including the show’s centennial celebration in 2028, and wish the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences continued success.”

The 2025 Academy Awards had 19.7 million viewers on ABC, a slight increase from the prior year.