Disney CEO Bob Iger said the company is “working tirelessly” to close a deal with YouTube TV to limit the disruption to subscribers.
“We’re trying really hard, as I said, working tirelessly, to close this deal, and we’re hopeful that we’ll be able to do so on a timely enough basis to at least give consumers the opportunity to access our content over their platform,” Iger said on a company’s earnings call with investors Thursday.
Echoing the company’s earlier comments, Iger told investors that Disney’s deal is either equal to or better than what other large distributors have already agreed to. The chief executive said its imperative that Disney agrees to a deal that reflects the value that it delivers, “which both YouTube, by the way, and Alphabet have told us, is greater than the value of any other provider.”
| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| DIS | THE WALT DISNEY CO. | 107.57 | -9.15 | -7.84% |
| GOOGL | ALPHABET INC. | 278.57 | -8.14 | -2.84% |
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The comments came shortly after Morgan Stanley analysts revealed that Disney’s ongoing carriage dispute with YouTube TV is costing the entertainment giant tens of millions of dollars per week. The analysts projected that 14 consecutive days of a YouTube TV blackout would create a $60 million revenue headwind for the Mouse House. That amounts to about $30 million per week, or about $4.3 million per day, in lost revenue due to the dispute.
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Disney programming, including ESPN, ABC and FX channels, were pulled from Google’s YouTube TV platform after the companies failed to negotiate contract terms by the Oct. 30 deadline. One of the issues at the center of the spat was the fees Disney is seeking from YouTube TV to carry its channels.
As the programming was pulled, YouTube argued that it has been advocating for “fair pricing” and that the company will not agree to terms that it believes would disadvantage its members. It also said that Disney’s move to suspend its content on the platform “directly harms our subscribers while benefiting their own live TV products, including Hulu + Live TV and Fubo.”
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Meanwhile, a Disney spokesperson laid blame on YouTube TV, previously telling FOX Business that “YouTube TV has chosen to deny their subscribers the content they value most by refusing to pay fair rates for our channels, including ESPN and ABC.” Disney said that this includes a “lineup in live sports – anchored by the NFL, NBA, and college football, with 13 of the top 25 college teams playing this weekend.”
“With a $3 trillion market cap, Google is using its market dominance to eliminate competition and undercut the industry-standard terms we’ve successfully negotiated with every other distributor,” the spokesperson said. “We know how frustrating this is for YouTube TV subscribers and remain committed to working toward a resolution as quickly as possible.”
Spanish network Univision is having similar negotiations with YouTube.
Shares of Disney fell nearly 8% on Thursday.
