As their heated carriage dispute with YouTube TV carries on, ESPN is calling in the big guns: Pat McAfee and College GameDay.
Disney and ESPN announced Saturday that GameDay would be made available on the ESPN App with no subscription or authentication needed, as well as on X via The Pat McAfee Show account.
“We understand the frustration that some fans are feeling about missing out, so we are making this gesture with them in mind,” Disney said in a statement.
The power move comes after Disney-owned channels, including the ESPN family of networks, went dark on YouTube TV. The main sticking point in this negotiation is the per-subscriber fee YouTube TV will pay Disney. Per a report by Puck’s John Ourand, YouTube TV is angling for a price in line with other major distributors, like Comcast and Charter. Usually, carriers with more subscribers can negotiate lower rates. Disney wants to keep YouTube TV’s fee in line with other similarly sized distributors.
YouTube TV’s stance appears to be that, as they continue to grow, traditional cable and satellite distributors shrink due to cord-cutting. The Google-owned service is projected to become the largest pay TV distributor in the country sometime next year, and wants to see that reflected in the carriage fees.
As the blackout means YouTube TV subscribers will lose access to college football content on Saturday, ESPN seems to be sending the message that it can still reach its audience, regardless of how Google might handle it. Making GameDay free is certainly a big move, as it has been generating big numbers this season. Last week’s broadcast averaged 2.5 million viewers, making it the ninth-most-watched GameDay ever.
ESPN has also enlisted its most prominent personalities and front-facing talent to make its case to fans and subscribers.
YouTube TV has said that if Disney’s channels remain unavailable for “an extended period of time,” it will then offer subscribers a one-time $20 credit. The distributor has been involved in multiple other high-profile carriage agreements in recent months, one with Fox and another with Comcast. Neither resulted in any blackouts.
About Sean Keeley
Along with writing for Awful Announcing and The Comeback, Sean is the Managing Editor for Comeback Media. Previously, he created the Syracuse blog Troy Nunes Is An Absolute Magician and wrote 'How To Grow An Orange: The Right Way to Brainwash Your Child Into Rooting for Syracuse.' He has also written non-Syracuse-related things for SB Nation, Curbed, and other outlets. He currently lives in Seattle where he is complaining about bagels. Send tips/comments/complaints to sean@thecomeback.com.