Millions of YouTube TV subscribers could be in the dark for the opening weekend of college football as the streaming platform and Fox remain locked in a carriage dispute.
On Monday, YouTube TV posted that it is “actively negotiating” with Fox to reach “a fair deal for both sides.” In a blog post on their press site, the company warned, that if no agreement is reached by Wednesday, subscribers could lose access to all Fox-owned networks. That includes FOX Sports, FS1, and the Big Ten Network—channels carrying some of the sport’s most highly anticipated Week 1 matchups.
“We are working diligently with the team at Fox to reach an agreement,” wrote YouTube in a post. “We know this uncertainty is frustrating, and if Fox content becomes unavailable for an extended period of time, we will provide our members with a $10 credit.”
The potential blackout is particularly significant given Fox’s strong college football rights portfolio which kicks off on Saturday. The network is scheduled to broadcast several key contests this weekend, headlined by the noon clash between the defending national champion Ohio State Buckeyes and the Texas Longhorns. Fox also holds broadcast rights for Big Ten and Big 12 programming, meaning fans relying on YouTube TV could be cut off from a large portion of the sport’s national coverage.
With that in mind, Fox struck back yesterday with several Big Ten coaches coming together, encouraging YouTube TV users to reach out to KeepFox.com.
Fox’s programming isn’t limited to college football. A blackout would also affect Major League Baseball’s late-season slate and the start of the NFL, which kicks off next month. This would also affect access to Fix business and news channels as well.
“While FOX remains committed to reaching a fair agreement with Google’s YouTube TV, we are disappointed that Google continually exploits its outsized influence by proposing terms that are out of step with the marketplace,” the network said in a statement to Front Office Sports. “We are alerting FOX viewers who are YouTube TV subscribers that they could lose access to much of their favorite news, sports, entertainment and local station programming unless Google engages in a meaningful way soon.”
The standoff comes just weeks after Fox launched Fox One, its direct-to-consumer streaming service priced at $19.99 per month. It also comes with new data showing YouTube has now spent half a year as the leading company in share of TV viewing in the United States — and its lead grew in July.
The streamer had 13.4 percent of all TV use for the month, according to Nielsen’s Media Distributor Gauge for the July period (which covered June 30-July 27). It held a four-point lead over second-place Disney (9.4 percent), up from 2.8 percentage points (12.8 percent for YouTube, 10 percent for Disney) in June.
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