The Academy Awards to Depart Broadcast TV and Stream on YouTube Starting in 2029.
The Academy Awards are set to start airing only on YouTube in 2029, marking the latest major shift in Hollywood.
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences revealed the news on this week, indicating that it finalized a multi-year deal awarding YouTube the sole worldwide broadcasting rights to the Oscars up to 2033.
The awards show, set for 15 March, has aired for a half a century on ABC. Beginning in 2029, the event will be accessible live and for free on the digital platform.
It's another substantial upheaval in the entertainment world, which is dealing with corporate acquisitions and consolidations, coupled with steep slashes to movie budgets.
"Our Academy represents an global institution, and this collaboration will allow us to broaden reach to the activities of the Academy to the biggest global viewership attainable - which will be advantageous for our Academy members and the movie industry," said organization heads in a statement.
Over decades, viewership of the awards show have dropped, even if there was a small rise in recent years, with a considerable amount of younger viewers tuning in from smartphones and computers.
In a corresponding announcement, the video platform's chief executive called the Oscars "a key essential cultural institutions" and noted that working with the Academy would "inspire a younger cohort of innovation and movie fans while staying true to the Oscars' illustrious history".
The broadcast network, which has aired the ceremony since 1976, said that it was looking forward "to hosting the event three more times" it will retain rights for.
The move comes as major studios confront challenging merger discussions. Both options were viewed as problematic for an industry that has seen drastic cuts over the past several years.
Similar to big production houses, traditional TV channels have encountered challenges as the viewers has increasingly opted for digital platforms as an alternative.
YouTube winning rights to the Academy Awards clearly signals that dependence on online services will continue expanding.
