On Tuesday evening, YouTube TV removed Univision’s Spanish-language channels, escalating a growing disagreement. This move has already caught the attention of several members of Congress, who are examining the situation.
TelevisaUnivision stated that Google’s YouTube TV has decided not to ‘Do the Right Thing’ and has removed Univision from its service-meaning millions of Hispanic viewers no longer have access to the Spanish-language news, sports, and entertainment they watch daily. The company referenced this as a betrayal of its campaign slogan.
The service disruption, happening just after 7 p.m. Pacific Daylight Time, took place hours before the start of a federal government shutdown-a significant event that Univision journalists have been reporting on.
Another deadline arrived in the ongoing contract negotiations between YouTube TV and NBCUniversal, leading to a standstill and the potential for a second service interruption. Both Univision and NBCUniversal’s current agreements were scheduled to end Tuesday night. However, NBCUniversal provided YouTube TV with a temporary extension at the last minute, giving them more time to reach a new agreement.
NBCUniversal owns Telemundo, the other major Spanish-language broadcast network.
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On Thursday, the two companies came to an agreement, ensuring that Fox News and sports channels will remain available on YouTube TV.
Several leading members of Congress – including Senators Ted Cruz (R-Texas), Bernie Moreno (R-Ohio) and Representative Mario Diaz-Balart (R-Fla) – are requesting explanations from Google’s leadership, including CEO Sundar Pichai.
As a movie and TV critic, I was following the negotiations between YouTube TV and Univision closely, and one issue really stood out. It seems a major sticking point was YouTube TV wanting to move the Univision network. Instead of keeping it on their basic plan – the one all subscribers get – they proposed putting it on a pricier add-on package specifically for Spanish-language channels. This, understandably, caused quite a bit of friction, as it would have meant viewers wanting to watch Univision would have to pay more.
Univision protested, stating that the change would effectively raise prices for its Spanish-speaking audience by 18%. This shift would also significantly reduce Univision’s earnings, as platforms like YouTube and other distributors base their payments on how many subscribers can view a channel.
I was really struck by what Senator Cruz said on X. He believes Google is unfairly using its power by making millions of Texans and Americans pay more for Spanish-language programming. He put it simply: it’s not right and it’s not fair, and I completely agree.
YouTube is demonstrating its strength in the market. Nielsen reports that the Google-owned platform is now the leading video service in the U.S., reaching over 120 million people each day.
The subscription service YouTube TV has quickly become popular, now reaching over 10 million households. It offers a traditional TV experience with channels like NBC, ABC, Fox News, and Comedy Central.
A representative from YouTube minimized the significance of Univision’s exit, stating that the Spanish-language network still maintains a large audience on its primary YouTube channel, boasting over “160 million subscribers and billions of views across YouTube, where they generate ad revenue from their content.”
However, according to a YouTube spokesperson, Spanish-language programming on their paid service, YouTube TV, makes up a very small portion of total viewing time.
This outage happens just one month after YouTube reached an agreement with Rupert Murdoch’s Fox Corp. They finalized a new distribution deal only a few days after the deadline in August.
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Almost 10 million households that use YouTube TV might no longer be able to watch Fox News, Fox Sports, and their local stations. This could happen if YouTube TV and Fox don’t agree on a new deal to continue providing these channels.
Discussions between NBCUniversal and Google have also hit some snags. Google is interested in adding Peacock’s shows and movies to its YouTube TV service instead of keeping it separate. However, NBCUniversal is hesitant, as they’ve invested billions of dollars in developing Peacock and want to maintain a direct relationship with their viewers – meaning they want to remain the primary provider of the service.
YouTube TV launched in April 2017 for $35 a month. The package of channels now costs $82.99.
As a huge football fan, I was really excited when YouTube TV stepped up to take over NFL Sunday Ticket. Apparently, DirecTV was losing a ton of money – over $100 million a year! – just keeping the service going. Now, you can get Sunday Ticket as part of your regular YouTube TV plan, or you can subscribe to it separately right on YouTube, which is pretty convenient. It’s a game changer for how we watch football, honestly.
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2025-10-01 07:31