I'm Gobsmacked The Oscars Will Be Jumping To YouTube In A Few Years, But The Details Do Sound Win-Win

(Image credit: ABC)

It’s the end of an era, or at least it will be after the Oscars celebrate their 100th anniversary in 2028. That will be the last time the awards ceremony will air on traditional television, at least for a few years, as the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences just dropped the groundbreaking news that the show will be moving to YouTube starting in 2029. This is certainly not what I expected to happen, but honestly, the more I think about it, the more I don’t hate it.

The Oscars Have Struggled On TV, And YouTube Could Help That

It’s no secret that, while the Oscars are still the most important awards for the movie industry, the ceremony itself has struggled. Ratings for the Oscars telecast on ABC haven’t been great. The show has struggled to find great hosts, and while it won big this year with Conan O’Brien, so big he was signed on to return almost immediately, there’s no way to know how long that success will last.

By moving the show to YouTube, ratings, at least in a traditional sense, won’t be an issue. Will the show even have traditional commercial breaks to sell ads for? That’s one of many questions that are as yet unanswered, but no matter what the answer is, it’s simply a different ecosystem online compared to traditional television.

Accessing The Oscars In Recent Years Has Been A Pain

Shifting the Oscars to YouTube will likely also benefit the Oscars, as the simple fact is that online is where the audience is. As a cord cutter myself for years, but also somebody who did have to watch the show because this is my job, I spent years signing up for Hulu Live TV, YouTube TV and every other live TV online service the day before the show, and then cancelling the day after, before the free trial expired.

It was only last year that ABC started to air the Oscars live on a streaming platform, but even then, if you didn’t have a Hulu subscription, you were out of luck. YouTube is free around the world. While it sounds like YouTube plans to paywall the show in the U.S. behind YouTubeTV, which I am not a fan of, I'm hopeful that will change before we get there. We do have a few years.

The Oscars, it should be said, tend to be a little slow when it comes to advancement. They should have added a stunt category decades ago. Instead, the first award for stunt coordinator will be given at the 100th ceremony, which is the last time the show airs on ABC.

It’s an awards ceremony with nearly a century of history, so that isn’t all that shocking that it's a bit too steeped in tradition. It’s impressive that the decision to jump to YouTube was made, and that the Oscars are the first major show of its kind to do it. I’m certainly hopeful this will be a positive change for a show and an award that are still important.

TOPICS

CinemaBlend’s resident theme park junkie and amateur Disney historian, Dirk began writing for CinemaBlend as a freelancer in 2015 before joining the site full-time in 2018. He has previously held positions as a Staff Writer and Games Editor, but has more recently transformed his true passion into his job as the head of the site's Theme Park section. He has previously done freelance work for various gaming and technology sites. Prior to starting his second career as a writer he worked for 12 years in sales for various companies within the consumer electronics industry. He has a degree in political science from the University of California, Davis. Is an armchair Imagineer, Epcot Stan, Future Club 33 Member.

You must confirm your public display name before commenting

Please logout and then login again, you will then be prompted to enter your display name.