Nearly 25% of YouTube TV subscribers have already canceled or are considering canceling the service because it “no longer delivers the core content they signed up for” due to the Google-owned platform’s carriage dispute with Disney, according to a new survey.
The survey of 1,107 consumers, conducted by Drive Research, also found that 82% of respondents are “likely” to cancel their YouTube TV subscription because of the programming blackout.
Around 30% of consumers surveyed have or plan to subscribe directly to ESPN or Hulu + Live TV to keep access to the networks and content they care about. About 22% said they use or expect to use someone else’s login for these services.
Others are adjusting how and where they watch, with 43% of respondents choosing to watch sports highlights instead of full games and another 40% choosing to watch sports at bars or restaurants. Around 15% of respondents acknowledged they have used or may consider an illegal stream.
Disney’s networks have been dark on YouTube TV since Oct. 30. When asked which side was at fault, 58% of those surveyed said both sides, while 37% blamed Disney and 5% blamed YouTube TV.
Approximately 56% of consumers surveyed subscribed to YouTube TV to watch live sports, compared to 43% for the overall channel lineup, 33% for ABC programming and 27% for the NFL Sunday Ticket. As for the reason behind signing up for YouTube TV, 51% cited a lower price than cable or other pay-TV options, 47% said they valued the ability to share the service with household members or use multiple streams and 40% said the picture quality and reliability.
YouTube TV has said customers would receive a one-time $20 credit if Disney networks are unavailable on its platform for an “extended” amount of time, though its unclear how long that period would be before it issues them. When asked if a $20 credit would be enough to prevent them from canceling, 44% of survey respondents disagreed, compared to 30% who agreed and 26% who were neutral.
In a statement to TheWrap rebuffing the Drive Research survey, a YouTube TV spokesperson said, “We’re not familiar with this firm and can’t speak to their credibility or methodology. What we can say is that while subscriber churn is always regrettable, it’s been manageable and does not align with the findings of this survey.”
According to Drive Research, the sample size of its survey carries a margin of error of approximately +/- 3% at the 95% confidence level. Representatives for Disney did not immediately return TheWrap’s request for comment.
With over 8 million subscribers, YouTube TV is one of the largest pay TV operators alongside Charter Communications, Comcast and DirecTV. It is the largest virtual multichannel video programming distributor (vMVPD), followed by Hulu + Live TV and Fubo, which combined total nearly 6 million subscribers in North America.
Disney’s senior leadership has blasted YouTube TV and Google for being “not interested in achieving a fair deal.” They also accused them of using their “power and extraordinary resources to eliminate competition and devalue the very content that helped them build their service.”
YouTube TV fired back that Disney used the threat of a blackout as a negotiating tactic to “force deal terms that would raise prices on our customers” and rejected offers to keep their networks on the platform. They added that Disney’s proposals “fundamentally disadvantage” YouTube TV, while “preserving preferential terms and content” for their own services and that they asked for economics that would “significantly raise costs” on subscribers and rates that would “hinder its ability to compete with other distributors.”
Earlier this week, Disney asked YouTube TV to restore ABC’s programming during Election Day to ensure its subscribers had access to the results. YouTube denied the request to restore ABC and ESPN during the blackout as the two sides continue to negotiate, arguing that Disney’s proposal would “cause customer confusion among those who may briefly see ABC on YouTube TV only to lose it again shortly after.” It also called on Disney to come to the table to “get a fair deal done.”
The latest carriage dispute comes after Disney resolved a 13-day programming blackout with DirecTV in September 2024, a 10-day dispute with Charter Communications in 2023 and a 48-hour dispute with Dish in 2022, while YouTube TV recently reached agreements with Fox and NBCUniversal.
In addition to Disney, YouTube TV has yet to reach a deal with TelevisaUnivision, whose programming has been dark on the platform since Sept. 30. President Donald Trump has weighed in on the latter dispute, urging YouTube TV to restore the Spanish-language network’s programming.
