The Academy Awards to Depart ABC and Stream on the Video Platform Starting in 2029.
The Oscars ceremony are set to start airing only on YouTube in the year 2029, signaling the most recent major transformation in Hollywood.
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences revealed the news on this week, indicating that it entered into a long-term agreement granting the streaming service the exclusive global rights to the Oscars through 2033.
The Oscars, scheduled for March 15th, has aired for a half a century on the traditional network. Beginning in 2029, the show will be accessible live and for free on YouTube.
It's a further major upheaval in the entertainment world, which is grappling with corporate acquisitions and consolidations, in addition to drastic production cuts.
"Our Academy represents an international organization, and this partnership will enable us to increase availability to the mission of the Academy to the most extensive international crowd possible - which will be positive for our film artists and the movie industry," said Academy leadership in a announcement.
For many years, ratings of the ceremony have fallen, although there was a slight uptick in recent years, with a significant number of younger viewers streaming from cell phones and computers.
In a corresponding announcement, YouTube's CEO described the Oscars "a key essential cultural institutions" and said that teaming up with the Academy would "motivate a younger cohort of innovation and cinema enthusiasts while adhering to the Oscars' celebrated heritage".
The broadcast network, which has streamed the awards since 1976, said that it was eagerly anticipating "to the next three telecasts" it will retain rights for.
This decision coincides with major studios deal with challenging merger discussions. Both options were seen as problematic for an sector that has witnessed severe reductions over the past several years.
In common with major studios, cable networks have faced issues as the audience has chosen streaming services instead.
YouTube winning rights to the Oscars further suggests that reliance on streaming sites will carry on increasing.
