Sawt Falasteen - Oscars to stream exclusively on YouTube from 2029

The new five-year deal means Hollywood's most prestigious awards ceremony will be viewable exclusively online for the first time, ending a decades-long relationship with US broadcaster ABC.

The decision will allow the Academy Awards to reach "the largest worldwide audience possible -- which will be beneficial for our Academy members and the film community," said Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences CEO Bill Kramer and President Lynette Howell Taylor in a statement.

The annual Oscars, which celebrate the year's top achievements in film and draw the world's biggest A-list stars, are regularly watched by around 20 million Americans, and millions more globally.

ABC's latest contract to broadcast the show had been due to end in 2028, with the 100th Academy Awards. The Disney-owned channel will continue to air the Oscars up until then.

But the new deal with Google-owned YouTube represents a bold new direction for the show at a time when audiences increasingly watch all types of content online.

Streamers owned by Silicon Valley firms have lured top talent away from traditional Hollywood studios with massive contracts -- despite filmmakers' concerns that they rarely show movies on the big screen in theaters for extended runs.

Streamers have also gradually gained wider acceptance at the Academy Awards, where Apple won best picture for "CODA" in 2022.

The SAG Awards, another important Hollywood awards gala which recently rebranded as The Actors Awards, have already moved to Netflix.

YouTube accounts for the biggest share of television viewing time in the United States of any streaming platform, dwarfing even Netflix.

"This collaboration will leverage YouTube's vast reach and infuse the Oscars and other Academy programming with innovative opportunities for engagement while honoring our legacy," said the Academy statement.

Financial terms of the new Oscars deal were not disclosed.

Industry website Deadline said "the amount that YouTube was willing to pay didn't make sense for Disney," citing anonymous insiders.

- 'Proud home' -

An ABC Entertainment spokesperson told AFP: "ABC has been the proud home to The Oscars for more than half a century.

"We look forward to the next three telecasts, including the show's centennial celebration in 2028, and wish the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences continued success."

Like Hollywood more broadly, the Oscars have endured a challenging time in recent years, as younger generations' viewing habits shift.

During the Covid-19 pandemic, Oscars ratings sank as low as 10.4 million.

The most recent Oscars were viewed by 19.69 million people -- the highest in five years -- as the ceremony was shown live simultaneously on Disney's streamer Hulu along with ABC.

But the Hulu stream suffered technical glitches that left some viewers unable to see the final prizes.

The Academy Awards telecast regularly topped 40 million just over a decade ago.

T.Ibrahim--SF-PST