Disney has agreed to pay $10 million in civil penalties to settle allegations that it violated federal data-collection laws designed to protect children.
The Department of Justice (DOJ) announced on Tuesday that a federal court has entered a stipulated order resolving a case against Disney Worldwide Services and Disney Entertainment Operations.
In a complaint filed in a California district court, the DOJ alleged that Disney failed to properly label some of its videos on YouTube as being targeted toward children. By not doing so, Disney and its partners were allegedly able to target ads toward children on YouTube and unlawfully collect children’s personal information without notifying parents or obtaining their consent.
The lawsuit claims this mislabeling violated the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA). The law, first passed in 1998, prohibits website operators from knowingly collecting personal information from children under the age of 13 unless they first obtain consent from a parent.
“The Justice Department is firmly devoted to ensuring parents have a say in how their children’s information is collected and used,” said Assistant Attorney General Brett A. Shumate in a press release. “The Department will take swift action to root out any unlawful infringement on parents’ rights to protect their children’s privacy.”
Disney did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Gizmodo. However, a Disney spokesperson told Axios when the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) first disclosed details of the settlement: “Supporting the well-being and safety of kids and families is at the heart of what we do. This settlement does not involve Disney-owned and -operated digital platforms but rather is limited to the distribution of some of our content on YouTube’s platform.”
According to the DOJ, Disney’s YouTube content has racked up billions of views in the United States alone. The complaint alleges that improperly labeled videos were spread across several Disney-owned YouTube channels, including the Pixar channel, the Disney+ channel, and the Disney Animation Studios channel. The videos featured popular cartoon characters from films like The Incredibles, Coco, Frozen, and Tangled.
After a $170 million settlement with the FTC in 2019 over similar COPPA violations, YouTube began requiring creators to designate whether videos they upload are “made for kids” or “not made for kids.” Videos labeled as made for kids have certain features disabled to comply with COPPA, including personalized advertising, the collection of personal information, and comments.
The case is among the first in which a content creator has settled with the DOJ since YouTube’s own COPPA settlement.
Beyond the financial penalty, the court order prohibits Disney from violating COPPA on YouTube and requires the company to set up an ongoing content review program to ensure its videos on the site comply with the law.
Comments from Galaxy Digital’s leadership have looked into what ultimately sustains value in the crypto market. In a recent YouTube discussion centered on 2026 expectations for Bitcoin, crypto, and artificial intelligence, Galaxy Digital CEO Mike Novogratz and Head of Research Alex Thorn singled out XRP and Cardano, questioning whether even the strongest communities can survive if real usage fails to expand when users have a vast number of alternatives to choose from.
Galaxy Digital Leadership Raises Questions About Community Versus Utility
During the YouTube discussion, Mike Novogratz presented the utility debate through the lens of capital allocation. He explained that the real question is what an investor chooses when presented with many viable options. If capital can flow into something like SpaceX, then crypto assets must compete on similar grounds.
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He acknowledged that XRP and Cardano both have deeply committed communities, but questioned whether that loyalty can be sustained if users do not see any real utility with those ecosystems. “Can Ripple hold it together? Can Cardano hold it together?” Novogratz said.
In drawing comparisons, Novogratz referenced Charles Hoskinson, noting his success in maintaining Cardano’s community over time despite it being a “blockchain that people don’t really use a lot.” He made similar observations about XRP’s following, which has a strong community. However, he posed a direct question about sustainability: “Can you keep it together when there are more and more options?”
Recent crypto market dynamics have caused capital flows to become more selective. Developers and teams behind blockchain ecosystems all know this, and this is why there has been a race to demonstrate usage, revenue models, or clear value flows tied directly to their tokens. According to Novogratz, that doesn’t happen overnight. It’s probably a year-long process, not a one to three-month process.
Cardano And XRP Proving Real-World Relevance
The questions raised during the Galaxy Digital discussion arrive at a time when both Cardano and XRP are actively trying to strengthen their utility narratives. Recent events have seen Cardano attempting to reinforce its practical relevance through initiatives like the Midnight sidechain. Midnight is a privacy-focused Cardano sidechain network designed to support confidential smart contracts and selective data disclosure.
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Midnight is intended as a way to attract enterprise and institutional use cases that require compliance-friendly privacy, an area where public blockchains have traditionally struggled.
XRP, on the other hand, is taking a different path through Ripple’s hard work to increase the utility of the XRP Ledger. Ripple has been expanding utility around Ripple USD (RLUSD), its US dollar-backed stablecoin, including broader deployment across multiple Layer-2 networks.
Ripple has also been on a partnership spree this year in moves to strengthen the utility of the XRP ecosystem, with about $4 billion spent on major acquisitions in 2025. The company also recently partnered with Doppler Finance to explore collaboration in XRP-based yield infrastructure and real-world asset (RWA) tokenization on the XRP Ledger, which is another added utility.
XRP trading at $1.87 on the 1D chart | Source: XRPUSDT on Tradingview.com
Featured image from Pxfuel, chart from Tradingview.com
Nigerian rapper, actor and social media star Falz released his sixth studio album, The Feast, in 2025.
Few Nigerian popular musicians have shown as much versatility and staying power as the man behind the #ElloBae and #WehDoneSir social media trends. For over a decade now, Falz has been marrying musical skills and social activism with digital savvy and comedy.
His rise to global prominence was solidified with his 2018 song This is Nigeria. But it began in 2014 with Marry Me off his debut album Wazup Guy.
As a young artist known for his video skits, he created an online challenge ahead of releasing the song Ello Bae (Hello Babe). In it he tries to romance a woman who appreciates him and his ambition, but is looking for a man with money. It remains a common hashtag when TikTokers post about love and money.
In 2017 he released Wehdone Sir (Well Done, Sir), a witty takedown of people with fake glamour lifestyles. #WehDoneSir is still used on social media to satirise pretentious individuals.
Falz would become known for his unique blend of hip-hop and Afropop, but what really made him stand out was his skill at infusing humour into his socially conscious, often revolutionary, songs.
It’s oftenargued that Falz is a natural heir to Fela Anikulapo-Kuti. He was the Nigerian music legend and activist who helped create the Afrobeat movement (a precursor to today’s Afrobeats).
Like Fela, Falz packs his music with playfulness and satire while also stirring public consciousness with activist lyrics. Both call for action against the oppressive political class. In 2020, when young Nigerians took to the streets to demand an end to police corruption, Fela and Falz were both part of the inventory of #EndSARSprotest songs.
As a scholar of Nigerian hip-hop, I have published papers on Fela and Falz and how they have shaped protest music that responds to social challenges in Nigeria.
So, who is Falz, and how has he spread his message – and come to be the political voice of his generation, as Fela was to his?
Who is Falz?
Falz (real name Folarin Falana) was born in 1990 in Mushin, Lagos. He is the son of a respected human rights lawyer and activist father, Femi Falana, and lawyer mother, Funmi Falana. In fact, his father was Fela’s lawyer, defending him against charges brought by the state.
Falz also qualified as a lawyer, but chose instead to pursue his interests in music and acting. These multiple skills feed into his productions on diverse levels. Beyond his songs, he is also very active on Instagram and Tik-Tok, where he establishes trends, especially around his songs and films.
His character in Ello Bae, for instance, struggles with English, using big formal words in unexpected ways, finding comedy in his faux Yoruba inflections. It would be a trademark of the #ElloBaeChallenge and would enjoy renewed public attention when Falz was cast in the TV series Jenifa’s Diary playing a similar character.
In 2016, Falz won best new international act at the BET Awards in the US. Numerous other awards would follow. His albums have received commercial and critical success. His roles in movies have further solidified his status as a multitalented entertainer.
Activism
Falz does not shy away from living the talk. He took part in the 2020 #EndSARS protests and his work repeatedly tries to steer the government towards addressing socio-economic challenges.
Soon after the protests, he released Moral Instruction. On the album, the track Johnny depicts the everyday experiences of Nigerians. This is Nigeria, a localised version of US rapper Childish Gambino’s This is America, depicts Nigeria as a country struggling with corruption, lawlessness and social injustice. A stark contrast to its potential. The video reflects a breakdown in law and order, corrupt officials, and the struggles of young people facing limited opportunities and resorting to crime.
Falz has used his platform as a celebrity and his background as a lawyer to call for social justice and for young people to make a difference.
There have been a number of pretend heirs to Fela’s throne of musical consciousness. Many of these have either not lived up to the hype or have fizzled out.
However, many popular Nigerian artists leverage Fela’s ethos through sampling his beats and lyrics. This is evident in Falz’s musicography too.
My study on the lyrical and thematic connections between Fela and Falz songs compares a number of tracks. Fela’s No Agreement and Falz’s Talk, for example, both draw attention to social inequality and systemic challenges in Nigeria.
Fela’s song was produced in the context of a military regime while Falz’s was within a democratic dispensation. But both speak of a crisis of leadership in Nigeria, as is the case in many postcolonial societies. What particularly links Fela and Falz is that both are unrelenting in their revolutionary struggles and determination to ensure an equitable Nigerian society.
Religious leaders are not spared criticism. Echoing Fela’s Coffin for Head of State (1980), Falz’s Amen (2019) points to the deceptive practices and complicity of religious leaders in poor political leadership and endemic poverty. Both critique the double standards that have become normal in the country.
Falz’s Follow Follow (2019) addresses current realities in Nigerian society – a lack of personal conviction and independent thought and the mindless following of social media trends. Integrating lyrics from Fela’s Zombie (1976), the song is about asserting one’s identity. It also rehashes Fela’s Follow Follow, mocking those who allow themselves to be led blindly by others.
To make sure his advocacy resonates, Falz co-opts his listeners through a call-and-response strategy. A phrase is sung and the next phrase answers it. This way, along with catchy lyrics, the audience become active participants.
This also echoes the traditional Yorubachant-and-refrain rendition used by musicians, poets and bards to engage their audience. Its possible nod to the indigenous is also at the heart of his faux Yoruba accent, a style that downplays his prestigious upbringing and connects him to ordinary people, much like Pidgin did for Fela.
But echoes of Fela don’t in any way take away from the creative force of Falz’s work. Rather they reinforce his critique of how the postcolonial Nigerian state has failed to live up to its promise.
Into the future
While Fela was unrepentantly anticolonial, Falz is sublimely hybridised. His mixture of talents and views creates a pulsating pan-African consciousness that’s able to exist in a global contemporary world view.
His lyrics and videography are aimed at the masses – especially young people – who have the most to gain from positive social change. In this way Falz can be said to represent a generational conscience. He uses his empowering songs to motivate his fans to take their destinies in their own hands.
Earlier this year, it was reported YouTube was very much aware its platform was plagued by fake movie trailers, often for films that didn’t have actual trailers of their own. Created or marketed with generative AI, these have made looking for trailers such a pain, and now that’s thankfully a bit less painful.
Per Deadline, YouTube shut down Screen Culture and KH Studio, two of the worst offenders of this trend the outlet previously reported on. Both channels are connected to Screen Culture and have previously made “trailers” for films like Fantastic Four: First Steps and Superman, or popular TV shows like Squid Games. Together, their content had over 2 million subscribers and over a billion views. Go to the individual pages for either, and it’ll say: “This page isn’t available. Sorry about that. Try searching for something else.”
After Deadline first investigated Screen Culture and KH, YouTube began cracking down on both by suspending them from the partner program and eventually paused ads on their videos. The reason for the stopped monetization was their letting major studios like Disney take a cut of their revenue, violating the platform’s rules.
In the months since then, Disney’s been talking out of both sides of its mouth re: generative AI. Last week, it hit Google with a cease-and-desist, claiming the tech company’s AI services infringed on several copyrights—a letter that came just after Disney announced a three-year licensing deal and $1 billion investment into OpenAI to bring over 200 of its characters to ChatGPT and the Sora video platform. So instead of genAI junk infecting YouTube and the movies you like, it’ll soon be hitting Disney+, the platform you or someone you know pays for…hooray.
The Oscars ceremony is moving to YouTube starting in 2029, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced on Wednesday.
ABC, the Oscars’ longtime home, will continue broadcasting the awards ceremony through 2028.
“We are thrilled to enter into a multifaceted global partnership with YouTube to be the future home of the Oscars and our year-round Academy programming,” Academy chief executive Bill Kramer and president Lynette Howell Taylor said. “The Academy is an international organization, and this partnership will allow us to expand access to the work of the Academy to the largest worldwide audience possible — which will be beneficial for our Academy members and the film community.”
In a statement, YouTube CEO Neal Mohan called the Oscars “one of our essential cultural institutions” and said that the partnership “to bring this celebration of art and entertainment to viewers all over the world will inspire a new generation of creativity and film lovers while staying true to the Oscars’ storied legacy.”
The awards ceremony will be available on YouTube for free, the Academy said, and the platform will retain global rights to stream it through 2033. YouTube, which is owned by Google, will also be home to other Oscars events like nominations announcements.
The Oscars’ shift to YouTube marks a major move for awards shows away from broadcast television. The ceremony has aired on ABC since the 1970s.
“ABC has been the proud home to The Oscars for more than half a century,” an ABC Entertainment spokesperson said in a statement after the announcement. “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.”
The Oscars traditionally mark the end of awards season for movies, held after other ceremonies like the Golden Globes, Critics’ Choice Awards and Screen Actors Guild Awards.
Along with being a way to find similar channels, they are great tools for a digital marketer to analyse the competition or to understand what tags and keywords one uses to enhance the visibility of their channel.
The extension will analyse the categories that the channel falls under, and you can search for the same in the search bar.
You can access the channel you want to explore and click on the YouTube icon to view that channel there.
Sometimes the YouTube algorithm works its magic, and you come across a video about a certain niche that you didn’t know would get you hooked instantly. I myself have found channels that I discovered through a random video recommendation on YouTube. Those have become a part of my daily YouTube experience. But the heart always wants more, and the videos a channel can offer are limited. In these situations, a way to find similar channels offering content in the same niche can really help. Let’s explore how we can do that.
Searching Similar YouTube Channels
When you are watching a video, there are suggestions from YouTube in the right side. These are either other videos from the same channel or the latest videos from channels you watch regularly. Though not impossible, it is hard to find other similar creators. Also, you must have noticed that when you subscribe to a new channel, YouTube doesn’t recommend similar channels to you. This is unlike what you can see on Instagram, where you do get suggestions for similar creators or accounts when you follow a new account. We can take the help of third-party sites or extensions that can help us find similar YouTube channels.
Using SimliarChannels.com
As the name suggests, this website helps you find similar channels to the channel you want. This was developed by someone who faced a similar problem and wanted to find similar channels in a certain niche.
2. Scroll down, and you will find the list of similar channels.
3. You can access the channel you want to explore and click on the YouTube icon to view that channel there.
You should note that the database of this website is crowdsourced, so it might not have information about all the channels.
Using Browser Extensions
You can also use browser extensions like SimilarTube, which you can download from the Chrome Web Store.
1. Once you add the extension to your browser, you will be redirected to a signup page. Log in through your email ID on which you use YouTube.
2. Open the channel you want to find similar channels to. From the extensions menu, select SimilarTube.
3. The extension will analyse the categories that the channel falls under, and you can search for the same in the search bar.
4. After analysing for some time, it will give you a list of similar channels that offer content in the same niche. Along with this, it will also display some insights and stats of the channel.
Although it’s free, a paid version of the extension gives you a much more extensive list to choose from.
Using Other Methods to Find Similar Channels and More
Apart from the free options, there are many paid alternatives as well. Websites such as SocialBlade and Channel Crawler not only help you find similar channels but also provide insight about the subscribers, views, revenue, and many other analytics. Along with being a way to find similar channels, they are great tools for a digital marketer to analyse the competition or to understand what tags and keywords one uses to enhance the visibility of their channel.
FAQs
Q. Why does YouTube not show similar channels?
YouTube used to show related channels, but as its layout evolved, this feature was phased out.
Q. Can I use these tools through my phone?
While the websites can be accessed through your phone, the extension would not work as they are not natively supported. So, you would have to use a PC to access that.
Wrapping Up
These tools help you expand your viewing horizon and allow you to discover channels or creators that you might like. They also help channels get discovered if they are underrated in a particular niche. Along with that, users can also use them to analyse other channels in their niche so that they take measures to grow their own channel.
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Google seems to be cracking down on the use of Disney characters in AI-generated videos on YouTube after it was hit with a cease and desist letter. According to reports by and , the company removed dozens of videos featuring Deadpool, Moana, Mickey Mouse, Star Wars characters and other Disney IP as of Friday, just days after of “infringing Disney’s copyrights on a massive scale.” The letter, seen by both publications earlier this week, called out Google not just for hosting these videos on YouTube, but also for using copyrighted works to train models including Veo and Nano Banana.
Prior to this, as well as and — both of which it’s suing — over AI-related copyright infringement. But, that doesn’t mean it’s shunning AI-generated content altogether. The company on Friday that will bring Disney characters to Sora and ChatGPT, and bring AI-generated shorts from Sora to Disney+.
Big Tech continues to tiptoe into crypto. The latest example is a move by YouTube to let creators on the video platform choose to receive payouts in PayPal’s stablecoin. The head of crypto at PayPal, May Zabaneh, confirmed the arrangement to Fortune, adding that the feature is live and, as of now, only applies to users in the U.S.
A spokesperson for Google, which owns YouTube, confirmed the video site has added payouts for creators in PayPal’s stablecoin but declined to comment further.
YouTube is already an existing customer of PayPal’s and uses the fintech giant’s payouts service, which helps large enterprises pay gig workers and contractors.
Early in the third quarter, PayPal added the capability for payment recipients to receive their checks in PayPal’s stablecoin, PYUSD. Afterwards, YouTube decided to give that option to creators, who receive a share of earnings from the content they post on the platform, said Zabaneh.
“The beauty of what we’ve built is that YouTube doesn’t have to touch crypto and so we can help take away that complexity,” she added.
Big Tech eyes stablecoins
YouTube’s interest in stablecoins comes as Google and other Big Tech companies have shown interest in the cryptocurrencies amid a wave of hype in Silicon Valley and beyond.
The tokens, which are pegged to underlying assets like the U.S. dollar, are longtime features of the crypto industry. But over the past year, they’ve exploded into the mainstream, especially after President Donald Trump signed into law a new bill regulating the crypto assets. Proponents say they are an upgrade over existing financial infrastructure, and big fintechs have taken notice, including Stripe. In February, the payments giant closed a blockbuster $1.1 billion purchase of the stablecoin startup Bridge.
PayPal has long been an earlier mover in crypto among large tech firms. In 2020, it let users buy and sell Bitcoin, Ethereum, and a handful of other cryptocurrencies. And, in 2023, it launched the PYSUD stablecoin, which now has a market capitalization of nearly $4 billion, according to CoinGecko.
PayPal has slowly integrated PYUSD throughout its stable of products. Users can hold it in its digital wallet as well as Venmo, another financial app that PayPal also owns. They can use it to pay merchants. And, in February, a PayPal executive said small-to-medium sized merchants will be able to use it to pay vendors.
YouTube’s addition of payouts in PYUSD isn’t the first time Google has experimented with PayPal’s stablecoin. An executive at Google Cloud, the tech giant’s cloud computing arm, previously toldFortune that it had received payments from two of its customers in PYUSD.
Although YouTube Recap can be viewed on any device, the ideal way is to watch it on your phone, as it is designed in a 16.
If you don’t see a prompt, then you can directly visit the You tab in your YouTube app to view it.
If you are still not able to view your YouTube Recap, then chances are that the app is not able to fetch the data properly from the servers.
YouTube has started rolling out YouTube Recap 2025 for all users, offering a quick glimpse at all the content consumed throughout the year. However, many users are complaining that they are not able to see the recap on their account and are facing problems in sharing it on social media. Here’s a quick guide on how you can fix common problems while loading YouTube Recap, and how you can quickly share it with your friends on Instagram, Twitter, and other social media platforms.
Fix YouTube Recap Not Showing
Although YouTube Recap can be viewed on any device, the ideal way is to watch it on your phone, as it is designed in a 16:9 aspect ratio. Follow these easy fixes to troubleshoot if you do not see the option on your device:
Update the YouTube App
If you are using an older version of the YouTube app, then it may not support viewing the annual recap. It’s recommended to update the app to the latest version available on both Android and iOS platforms. However, if you prefer using an older variant for some reason, you can also view the recap by opening YouTube in any web browser and signing in using the same account.
Check the ‘You’ Tab
Normally, YouTube sends a notification or a pop-up on the home page when your recap is ready. However, in some cases, the platform may not notify you, even if the recap is ready. If you don’t see a prompt, then you can directly visit the You tab in your YouTube app to view it. Here’s how you can do it:
1. Open the YouTube app on your device.
2. Tap on the ‘You’ tab visible at the bottom of your screen.
3. Open the ‘Your 2025 Recap is here!’ banner to view your recap.
Use Direct Link
You can also view your recap directly by using the link youtube.com/recap. Type this URL in any web browser (preferably Google Chrome), after which YouTube will redirect you to your recap either in the YouTube app or website. If you are signed in using your account, then the recap will automatically start playing on your device. This works on both phone and desktop.
Clear YouTube App Data
If you are still not able to view your YouTube Recap, then chances are that the app is not able to fetch the data properly from the servers. This can be solved by clearing the app data.
1. Long-press on the YouTube app icon and go to app info.
2. Navigate to the storage section.
3. Tap on Clear Data or Clear App Data. The name of the option may vary depending on your device.
4. If you are an iPhone user, we recommend deleting and reinstalling the YouTube app from the App Store.
Ensure YouTube Watch History Was Enabled
YouTube generates the recap based on your watch history. If you have disabled or paused the watch history on your account, then the platform will not show your recap as it does not have enough viewing data of your habits. Unfortunately, you cannot do anything in such cases. The best solution is to enable watch history now, so that you can view your YouTube Recap next year.
Here’s how you can do it:
1. Open the YouTube app and go to Settings > Your data in YouTube.
2. Scroll down to YouTube Watch History and open it.
3. Toggle the ‘Turn on’ button to enable your YouTube watch history.
Share YouTube Recap on Instagram and Other Apps
Ever since Spotify introduced recaps, the concept has become a fan favourite, enabling people to showcase their taste in music and other art forms with others. In the same way, you can also share your YouTube Recap on social media platforms like Instagram, Facebook, X (formerly Twitter), WhatsApp, etc.
However, the recap includes multiple slides, and there is no direct method to share it entirely. Instead, you can share individual highlights separately.
Using the Share Button Directly
While viewing your YouTube recap, you can use the share button in the centre to share that specific highlight with your friends. Note that this will only share the slide shown on your screen, and not the entire recap. YouTube also adds a quick text prompting users to view their recap when you use this button to share your recap.
Taking a Screenshot
If you are not able to see or access the share button directly, you can take a screenshot to share the recap. However, you need to time your screenshot accurately to capture the exact information, as the slides have a lot of animations in between. This process is not recommended, as it is quite difficult to take proper screen grabs.
Share a Screen Recording
If you want to share your entire YouTube Recap at once, then the best way is to record your screen and upload it directly to other apps. You can use your phone’s built-in screen recorder, as YouTube has no restrictions on it. This process will also capture the background music, which is picked from your most-played music track from your YouTube watch history.
FAQs
Q. Why can’t I watch YouTube Recap 2025?
If you have not updated your YouTube app to the latest version, then updating it can fix the problem. However, if you have disabled watch history on your account, then you won’t be able to watch your YouTube Recap in 2025.
Q. Does everyone get a YouTube Recap?
YouTube needs to have enough data from your watch history between January – October 2025. If there’s not enough viewing history, then you won’t get a recap.
Wrapping Up
YouTube Recap is an excellent way to take a glimpse at your taste in watching videos. It also shows how your interests change over time. The best part is that you can share it with your friends and compare your stats to see who has access to unique and hidden gem channels on the platform.
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You can be sued in a court of law since the avatar has a resemblance to your face or has your voice.
In the Likeness tab, you will see all the videos that already have likeness to your voice or face.
However, you can have the video removed and then issue a formal complaint to both the channel and YouTube authorities.
YouTube is filled with AI-generated content, and a lot of creators are using famous YouTubers’ voices and faces. Creators are even creating AI avatars that have almost the same facial features as those of top YouTube creators. All this to promote shady deals and products. Until YouTube launched thier Likeness Detection feature. This feature will put a hard stop to all the unsolicited AI-generated content on the platform. There is much to share about this particular feature, so stay tuned.
Is it really that bad to have an AI avatar?
Imagine you are using an AI-avatar that looks just like you to promote positivity and interact with your fans or customers. This is all good, but what happens is that the same avatar is created by someone else without your consent. Furthermore, they are using it to promote things that are unlawful or just in bad taste. You can be sued in a court of law since the avatar has a resemblance to your face or has your voice. Actors have filed a petition to protect thier personality rights. This prevents anyone from using thier face, image, and likeness for any unauthorized use.
How does the Likeness Detection Feature actually work?
This feature manages AI-generated content by scanning it for the likeness of other creators’ faces and voices. You will need to register your face, and for that, you have to follow the steps mentioned below.
1. Simply click on the Profile icon on the top right.
2. Then click on Content Detection.
3. You will see a Likeness tab right next to the Copyright tab.
4. In there, you will find a QR code. Scan it with your device, and then consent to data processing and using your
face.
5. Once your face is registered, YouTube will basically scan all the data it has and search for a likeness of your face.
FAQs
Q. How can I request the removal of videos that are using my face or voice?
In the Likeness tab, you will see all the videos that already have likeness to your voice or face. So, below every video, there is an icon that will.
Q. Can I ban the channel from posting AI videos using my face or likeness to my voice?
No, you can not directly ban the channel. However, you can have the video removed and then issue a formal complaint to both the channel and YouTube authorities.
Wrapping Up
This article covers the Likeness detection feature of YouTube that prevents creators from using any AI-generated content that has likeness to the faces and voices of other creators. You can remove these videos and raise a formal complaint and the entire process is fairly simple.
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Social media is an overwhelming part of our lives these days, but the Pew Research Center provided an in-depth look at just how much we rely on these platforms. In a 2025 report that looks at social media usage with American adults, the data-driven think tank revealed some nitty-gritty details like year-to-year changes, age gaps and most importantly, frequency of use.
At the number one spot, YouTube holds a dominant position, with 84 percent of the 5,022 adults surveyed saying they use Alphabet’s video-sharing platform. Meta earns silver and bronze medals since 71 percent of adults said they use Facebook, while 50 percent responded positively when it comes to Instagram use. However, not all of Meta’s social media outlets are doing well. Threads may have hit 400 million monthly active users this summer, but only eight percent of adults surveyed said they use it. Rounding out the bottom of the list, only 21 percent of adults surveyed said they use X, while four percent of adults said they’re on Bluesky and three percent are on Truth Social.
Besides popularity, the Pew Research Center also explored the frequency with which American adults use their preferred social media platforms. In a separate survey with 5,123 adults, the report uncovered that 52 percent of adults go on Facebook daily, with 37 percent of them logging on several times a day. Nearly as frequently, 48 percent of adults use YouTube daily, including 33 percent of that demographic watching videos on the platform several times a day. When looking at frequency through the lens of age gaps, the starkest difference is found with 47 percent of adults between 18 and 29 using TikTok at least once a day, while only five percent of those aged 65 or older use the ByteDance-owned app every day.
When looking at annual trends, YouTube and Facebook have largely maintained stable usage — and even some growth — since 2021. Even though it may feel like Facebook has begun to stagnate, the report shows that it has a loyal user base that’s still growing at a consistent rate. On top of that, Meta is still continuing to update the social media platform, including recently revamping Facebook Marketplace.
YouTube TV’s latest deal highlights the growing tension between richer bundles and rising consumer fatigue. Jonathan Raa/NurPhoto via Getty Images
The two-week standoff between YouTube TV and The Walt Disney Company may be resolved, but the frenemy dynamic between the Mouse House and the Alphabet-owned streamer remains as tangled as ever. YouTube TV is both a key distributor for Disney—helping channels like ESPN reach millions of additional viewers—and a direct competitor to Disney’s Hulu + Live TV bundle—and, for that matter, all Disney-owned networks for screen time.
On Nov. 14, the two parties announced a new multi-year distribution agreement, restoring all Disney-owned channels to YouTube TV after a blackout over carriage fees (the payments a provider like YouTube TV makes to carry another company’s programming). The deal also adds the upcoming ESPN Unlimited package to YouTube TV’s base plan at no extra charge for subscribers through 2026.
That addition is expected to raise YouTube TV’s programming costs, which may ultimately be passed on to consumers. The streamer may also still be feeling the effects of the blackout. To lure back customers who canceled, YouTube TV has reportedly offered targeted $60 welcome-back discounts—dropping some subscribers’ first month to roughly $22.99. It’s a pragmatic concession, but one that makes an eventual price hike even harder to avoid.
For now, YouTube TV is holding steady at $82.99 a month. Any increase would mark its sixth since the service’s 2017 debut at $35 and push its annual cost past $1,000.
Disney, meanwhile, gains more than just restored affiliate revenue. Keeping ESPN and ABC in front of YouTube TV’s sizable audience helps justify soaring sports-rights costs at a time when the traditional pay-TV base continues to erode. The agreement also secures YouTube TV’s ability to sell bundles of Disney+ and Hulu, creating additional pathways to bring viewers into Disney’s broader streaming ecosystem.
How viewers respond to YouTube TV’s integration of ESPN Unlimited could be pivotal. The industry is about to learn whether consumers truly want a single, consolidated TV app—or whether they’ll tolerate juggling multiple apps to avoid a bundle that keeps getting more expensive.
Streaming live sports has become so fragmented that fans may need three or more services just to follow a single team’s season. That patchwork experience forces viewers to juggle multiple apps and logins. ESPN’s own setup illustrates the divide: ESPN Unlimited offers essentially the full breadth of ESPN’s content, while the existing ESPN+ serves as a supplement—a curated add-on with select programming and live events.
According to a recent survey from Hub Entertainment Research, more than 70 percent of sports fans say sports matter more to them than anything else on TV, and nearly as many (65 percent) say they’re frustrated by having to use multiple streaming services to watch games.
Live streaming TV occupies a middle ground between legacy cable and on-demand apps like Netflix. Services like YouTube TV and Hulu + Live TV mimic the traditional bundle—with cloud DVRs and linear channels—but without contracts or set-top boxes. The market remains concentrated: YouTube TV surpassed 10 million subscribers earlier this month, while Hulu + Live TV sits at just over 4 million. It’s still a small slice of the overall streaming piece—Netflix has more than 300 million subscribers globally, and Disney+ has more than 130 million.
Melbourne, Australia — Technology giant Meta on Thursday began sending thousands of young Australians a two-week warning to downland their digital histories and delete their accounts from Facebook, Instagram and Threads before a world-first social media ban on accounts of children younger than 16 takes effect.
The Australian government announced two weeks ago that the three Meta platforms plus Snapchat, TikTok, X and YouTube must take reasonable steps to exclude Australian account holders younger than 16, beginning Dec. 10.
California-based Meta on Thursday became the first of the targeted tech companies to outline how it will comply with the law. Meta contacted thousands of young account holders via SMS and email to warn that suspected children will start to be denied access to the platforms from Dec. 4.
“We will start notifying impacted teens today to give them the opportunity to save their contacts and memories,” Meta said in a statement.
Meta said young users could also use the notice period to update their contact information “so we can get in touch and help them regain access once they turn 16.”
Meta has estimated there are 350,000 Australians aged 13-to-15 on Instagram and 150,000 in that age bracket on Facebook. Australia’s population is 28 million.
Account holders 16-years-old and older who were mistakenly given notice that they would be excluded can contact Yoti Age Verification and verify their age by providing government-issued identity documents or a “video selfie,” Meta said.
Terry Flew, co-director of Sydney University’s Center for AI, Trust and Governance, said such facial-recognition technology had a failure rate of at least 5%.
“In the absence of a government-mandated ID system, we’re always looking at second-best solutions around these things,” Flew told the Australian Broadcasting Corp.
The government has warned platforms that demanding that all account holders prove they are older than 15 would be an unreasonable response to the new age restrictions. The government maintains the platforms already had sufficient data about many account holders to ascertain they were not young children.
Social media companies will face fines of up to 50 million Australian dollars (about $33 million) if they are found to be failing to prevent people under 16 from creating accounts on their platforms.
Meta’s vice president and global head of safety, Antigone Davis, said she would prefer that app stores including Apple App Store and Google Play collect the age information when a user signs up and verifies they are at least 16 year old for app operators such as Facebook and Instagram.
“We believe a better approach is required: a standard, more accurate, and privacy-preserving system, such as OS/app store-level age verification,” Davis said in a statement.
“This combined with our investments in ongoing efforts to assure age … offers a more comprehensive protection for young people online,” she added.
Dany Elachi, founder of the parents’ group Heaps Up Alliance that lobbied for the social media age restriction, said parents should start helping their children plan on how they will spend the hours currently absorbed by social media.
He was critical of the government’s only announcing on the complete list of platforms that will become age-restricted on Nov. 5.
“There are aspects of the legislation that we’re not entirely supportive of, but the principle that children under the age of 16 are better off in the real world, that’s something we advocated for and are in favor of,” Elachi said. “When everybody misses out, nobody misses out. That’s the theory. Certainly we expect that it would play out that way. We hope parents are going to be very positive about this and try to help their children see all the potential possibilities that are now open to them.”
There was significant resistance to the legislation last year, however, including from some children’s advocacy groups.
The CEO of the Save the Children charity Mat Tinkler said in a statement a year ago, when the ban was approved by Australian lawmakers, that while he welcomed the government’s efforts to protect children from harm online, the solution should be regulating social media companies, rather than a blanket ban.
He said the government should “instead use the momentum of this moment to hold the social media giants to account, to demand that they embed safety into their platforms rather than adding it as an afterthought, and to work closely with experts and children and young people themselves to make online spaces safer, as opposed to off-limits.”
The Australian Human Rights Commission, an independent government body, also expressed “serious reservations” over the law before it was approved, saying last year that there were “less restrictive alternatives available that could achieve the aim of protecting children and young people from online harms, but without having such a significant negative impact on other human rights. One example of an alternative response would be to place a legal duty of care on social media companies.”
YouTuber and social media influencer Jack Doherty was arrested for drug possession and other charges in Miami Beach after he was found disrupting traffic to allegedly film social media content, police said.
Miami Beach Police announced that the 22-year-old was taken into custody early Saturday on multiple charges, including possessing amphetamine and marijuana, along with resisting an officer without violence.
“The Miami Beach Police Department remains steadfast in its commitment to maintain public safety and order throughout the city—regardless of celebrity status,” the agency said. “The Department will continue to take proactive enforcement action against behavior that endangers residents, visitors, or officers and will hold all individuals accountable under the law.”
Later Saturday night, Doherty posted a TikTok video showing him bonding out of jail with the caption “I got arrested last night and now I’m free.”
“I’m a free man, baby,” he said in the video, while holding the property bag that held his personal items at the time of his arrest. “Let’s go.”
According to his bio on Delka Talents, his talent agency, Doherty has over 3.2 million YouTube subscribers and over 500 million YouTube views. Doherty is best known for filming “daredevil” stunts and pranks, and his most-watched video has over 18 million views as of March 2018, his bio said.
CBS News Miami has reached out to Doherty’s representatives for comment on his arrest.
An influencer blocks traffic for the sake of “content”
Around 3:12 a.m. Saturday, Miami Beach Police officers were conducting a high-visibility detail along the 700 block of Washington Avenue within the city’s Entertainment District, when a group of individuals entered the roadway from the east sidewalk into the northbound lanes. A man from the group — later identified as Doherty — separated from them and attempted to engage officers to “create video content, positioning himself in the middle of the roadway with passing vehicular traffic and creating a significant safety hazard,” according to arrest documents obtained by CBS News Miami.
Miami Beach Police officers began issuing multiple commands to direct Doherty to exit the roadway, but he refused. Even after his group urged him to comply, he continued refusing officers’ commands.
Officers continued, warning Doherty that failure to comply would result in his arrest. Still, the influencer continued to refuse commands and told them, “Once I’m done with this bet,” the arrest documents said. At this moment, Miami Beach Police safely apprehended Doherty in the middle of the road due to his “deliberate refusal to follow lawful orders and continued to obstruct traffic.”
According to arrest documents, while officers searched Doherty’s person, they found “half of an orange oval-shaped pill with 3 imprinted on it, consistent with a Schedule II amphetamine, as well as a black plastic container holding three hand-rolled suspected cannabis cigarettes weighing approximately 4.0 grams combined.”
After a records check that showed no active warrants, officers took Doherty to Miami Beach Police’s holding facility for booking and contacted an after-hours attorney for charging guidance.
You Tube star Jack Doherty with his new Lamborghini in 2023
Instagram screenshot
A popular YouTube star was arrested on drug charges while trying to film content in the middle of a busy Miami Beach street early Saturday morning, police said.
Plantation resident Jack Doherty, 22 was on the 700 block of Washington Avenue around 3:15 a.m. when officers saw Doherty and a group of people attempting to engage officers as part of video content. Pranks are a recurring theme in his social videos. With Doherty’s 2,000 YouTube videos, he’s amassed 15 million subscribers.
Per police records, Doherty ignored officers’ commands to get out of the street. At one point, Doherty’s associates asked him to listen to police, but cops say he refused.
When police detained Doherty, they discovered he was carrying an amphetamine pill and a black container holding three cannabis cigarettes that altogether weighed four grams.
Doherty was arrested and transported to a Miami Beach Police jail. He faces charges for possession of controlled substances and resisting an officer with violence.
Later Saturday night, Doherty posted a TikTok video showing him bonding out of jail with the caption “I got arrested last night and now I’m free,” CBS News Miami reported.
Contact information regarding Jack Doherty’s representation was not immediately available.
Michael Butler writes about minority business and trends that affect marginalized professionals in South Florida. As a business reporter for the Miami Herald, he tells inclusive stories that reflect South Florida’s diversity. Just like Miami’s diverse population, Butler, a Temple University graduate, has both local roots and a Panamanian heritage.
YouTuber and social media influencer Jack Doherty was arrested for drug possession and other charges in Miami Beach after he was found disrupting traffic to allegedly film social media content, police said.
Miami Beach Police announced that the 22-year-old was taken into custody early Saturday on multiple charges, including possessing amphetamine and marijuana, along with resisting an officer without violence.
“The Miami Beach Police Department remains steadfast in its commitment to maintain public safety and order throughout the city—regardless of celebrity status,” the agency said. “The Department will continue to take proactive enforcement action against behavior that endangers residents, visitors, or officers and will hold all individuals accountable under the law.”
According to his bio on Delka Talents, his talent agency, Doherty has over 3.2 million YouTube subscribers and over 500 million YouTube views. Doherty is best known for filming “daredevil” stunts and pranks, and his most-watched video has over 18 million views as of March 2018, his bio said.
CBS News Miami has reached out to Doherty’s representatives for comment on his arrest.
An influencer blocks traffic for the sake of “content”
Around 3:12 a.m. Saturday, Miami Beach Police officers were conducting a high-visibility detail along the 700 block of Washington Avenue within the city’s Entertainment District, when a group of individuals entered the roadway from the east sidewalk into the northbound lanes. A man from the group — later identified as Doherty — separated from them and attempted to engage officers to “create video content, positioning himself in the middle of the roadway with passing vehicular traffic and creating a significant safety hazard,” according to arrest documents obtained by CBS News Miami.
Miami Beach Police officers began issuing multiple commands to direct Doherty to exit the roadway, but he refused. Even after his group urged him to comply, he continued refusing officers’ commands.
Officers continued, warning Doherty that failure to comply would result in his arrest. Still, the influencer continued to refuse commands and told them, “Once I’m done with this bet,” the arrest documents said. At this moment, Miami Beach Police safely apprehended Doherty in the middle of the road due to his “deliberate refusal to follow lawful orders and continued to obstruct traffic.”
According to arrest documents, while officers searched Doherty’s person, they found “half of an orange oval-shaped pill with 3 imprinted on it, consistent with a Schedule II amphetamine, as well as a black plastic container holding three hand-rolled suspected cannabis cigarettes weighing approximately 4.0 grams combined.”
After a records check that showed no active warrants, officers took Doherty to Miami Beach Police’s holding facility for booking and contacted an after-hours attorney for charging guidance.
Walt Disney Co. executives on Thursday warned that the company’s dispute with YouTube could drag on, leaving subscribers to the Google-owned video platform without access to ABC, ESPN, FX and other programming from the entertainment giant.
Disney channels went dark on YouTube TV on Oct. 30 amid a so-called carriage dispute between the two companies. YouTube said in a blog post last month that Disney had followed through on a threat to pull its networks “as a negotiating tactic to force deal terms that would raise prices on our customers.”
Asked in a Thursday investor call about the ongoing negotiations, Disney Chief Financial Officer Hugh Johnston said that “these discussions could go for a little while,” without providing a timeframe or additional details.
“[W]e care deeply about our consumer,” Disney CEO Robert Iger said in the call. “And our priority has always been to remain on their service without interruption to close a deal on a timely basis so that interruption does not occur. The deal that we have proposed is equal to or better than what other large distributors have already agreed to.”
What are carriage fees?
Providers of pay-TV services like YouTube TV pay carriage fees to network owners, including Disney, for the right to broadcast their channels. Disputes over the fees are common, with content providers often at loggerheads with TV networks over commercial terms when their deals expire.
The conflicts sometimes result in viewers losing access to a company’s channels or content if the negotiations extend beyond the end of a contract.
Disney claimed last month that YouTube TV is refusing to pay fair rates for its channels and has chosen to “deny their subscribers the content they value most,” pointing to its ESPN sports broadcasts and ABC shows such as “High Potential.”
YouTube has countered that Disney “is proposing costly economic terms that would raise prices on YouTube TV customers and give our customers fewer choices,” according to an Oct. 23 blog post.
YouTube, the largest internet TV provider in the U.S. with more than 9 million subscribers, said last month that it would offer a $20 credit if Disney’s content remains unavailable on YouTube TV for “an extended period of time.” The streaming platform costs $82.99 per month.
Google didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment about Johnston’s comment or whether YouTube is currently offering the $20 credit to customers.
Disney on Thursday also reported mixed fourth-quarter results, with weaker growth from cable and the box office somewhat offset by strength in its streaming business and theme parks.
Although the company’s profit topped analyst estimates, Disney’s $22.4 billion in revenue for the quarter fell short of Wall Street forecasts of $22.8 billion. Sales at its Disney Entertainment unit, which includes the company’s movie studios and streaming service, dropped 6%, while revenue for its parks division climbed 6%.
Shares of Disney tumbled $10.83, or 9.3%, to $105.84 in Thursday afternoon trading.
The Disney/YouTube TV saga, now in its second week, is still showing no sign of a resolution. While the blackout is painful for subscribers who have been left without access to over 20 channels, Disney is also feeling the pinch, with reports estimating they’re losing $4.3 million per day during the dispute. The good news for YouTube subscribers is that the platform has finally started issuing $20 credits as consolation for their troubles, but will that be enough to keep their base from jumping ship and finding a new streaming service? As a reminder of how we got here, the Walt Disney Co. pulled its channels from YouTube TV on Oct. 30 after the two companies failed to reach new terms on their latest carriage agreement, and YouTube TV subscribers have gone without NFL, NBA and NCAA games on ABC and ESPN’s suite of channels for two straight weekends. With no agreement in sight, YouTube TV subscribers will be left in the dark for tonight’s NBA games, too.
Tonight’s basketball games between the Orlando Magic vs. New York Knicks and Los Angeles Lakers vs. Oklahoma City Thunder both air on ESPN, so if you want to catch either game (or watch The Golden Bachelor season finale on ABC!), you’ll need to seek out alternative viewing methods. And unfortunately for YouTube TV’s negotiating position, there are plenty of options.
One of the cheapest ways to watch ESPN is with a Sling Day Pass — for just $5/day, you can tune into any and all ESPN programming with no other commitments. If you want a full switch from YouTube TV, there’s Hulu + Live TV, DirecTV, or Fubo, where you can watch all the Disney-owned channels. (Remember, unlike a lot of cable plans, you can easily pause or cancel YouTube TV or any of these alternatives, so long as you have month-to-month subscriptions.) Below, we’ve outlined some of your best options to watch ESPN, the Disney Channel, ABC and more, all pulled from our list of best live TV streaming services to cut cable, as well as a comprehensive list of which channels have been affected, and the biggest sporting events of the week that won’t be available to YouTube TV subscribers.
What games are on ESPN/ABC this week?
If you’re wondering what games you might miss as a result of the YouTube TV/Disney blackout, here’s a list of some upcoming sports you may not want to miss:
NBA
Wednesday, Nov. 12
7 p.m. | Orlando Magic vs. New York Knicks | ESPN
9:35 p.m. | Los Angeles Lakers vs. Oklahoma City Thunder | ESPN
NCAA Football
Thursday, Nov. 13
7:30 p.m. | Troy at Old Dominion | ESPN
Friday, Nov. 14
5:30 p.m. | South Carolina State at North Carolina Central | ESPN2 7:30 p.m. | Clemson at No. 20 Louisville | ESPN
Grab an ESPN bundle so you won’t miss the NFL, NBA or any other games
For $29.99, the ESPN unlimited package includes access to all of ESPN’s linear networks: ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU, SECN, ACCN, ESPNews and ESPN Deportes, plus access to programming on ABC, ESPN+ content, ESPN3, SECN+ and ACCNX. That means fans will get coverage of more than 47,000 live events each year, on-demand replays, original programming and more so you won’t miss a single Monday Night Football game or any weekend college football game on ABC or ESPN’s suite of channels. Plus, you can watch your favorite ABC shows the day after they air.
Right now, for a limited time, you can bundle ESPN unlimited with Disney+ and Hulu and pay $29.99/month for 12 months — that’s like getting those other services free for a year. Even if you’re a current subscriber to Disney+, Hulu or even the bundle, you can still upgrade to this great deal.
Hulu’s live TV tier includes access to live TV channels like ESPN, ABC, NBC, Fox, and access to Disney+ and ESPN select. For a limited time, you can get a hefty discount on the service for 3 months. New and eligible returning subscribers (those who have not been Hulu subscribers in the past month) can sign up for Hulu + Live TV (with ads) for $64.99/month for their first three months. This is an especially great value considering that Hulu and Disney+ increased their prices on Oct. 21.
You’ll also enjoy access to unlimited DVR storage, the ability to stream on multiple devices and more. This special rate ends at 6 p.m. ET/3 p.m. PT on Nov. 18.
After the three-month trial period, your subscription will continue at the regular market rate of $89.99, but if you’re looking for an alternative to YouTube TV, now’s the perfect time to take advantage of this deal. (If the YouTube situation is resolved before the weekend is up, you can also just sign up for a 3-day trial of Hulu + Live TV).
Try Fubo free for a week and get $30 your first month
If you’re looking for a stopgap so you won’t miss any major games or shows this weekend, Fubo is offering a free 7-day trial so you can check out everything the platform has to offer, risk-free, and on top of that, you can get $30 off your first month.
Fubo TV gives you access to ESPN, Fox, ABC, CBS, NFL Network, and 100+ more live channels. At $80/month, the live TV streaming service is definitely a big investment but it’s one of the most comprehensive ways to watch live TV including the new NCAA season, the NFL, MLB and more, and still leaves you with major savings compared to a traditional cable package. Fubo subscribers also get 1,000 hours of cloud DVR storage.
Try DirecTV free for 5 days, and get $30 off your first month
DirecTV offers loads of great live channels, which means you can watch thousands of live sporting events, live TV and more with a regular subscription. And right now, for a limited time, you can get a $20 bill credit off your first month when you sign up, plus at least $10 more off per month for your first 24 months with a DirecTV Choice, Ultimate or Premier package — that’s over $250 in savings. You can find information on every package here.
Right now you can also get a free 5-day trial to test out the platform.
You may have heard that Sling offers day, weekend and week passes to its streaming programming for as little as $5 per day. That is an option if you’re looking for just some of the ESPN channels (the Sling Orange tier), but ABC isn’t included. (If you’re just looking to catch one of this week’s big games, like Monday Night Football on ESPN, it’s a great short-term solution.) If you want a longer-term solution, you can get both ESPN and ABC with Sling’s Orange and Blue package ($30 a month to start, $61 thereafter), but you’ll need to add on the Sports Extra package for ESPNU, which requires an additional charge.
Get your local Disney/ABC programming for free
Need your local ABC programming? Your station may have its own free local streaming news channel (many do), you can see if The Roku Channel carries your local station’s news, or download your local news station app if it’s a Nexstar channel.
The other alternative — if you’re within the broadcast radius of a local ABC affiliate — is to get an over-the-air antenna. You can plug in your ZIP code at antennaweb.org to see what channels are in your area. This off-brand unit has worked very well in our initial testing — it’s under $30, and the channels are truly free.
Which channels are no longer available on YouTube TV?
Every channel that’s owned by The Walt Disney Company is currently blacked out on YouTube TV. Those channels are:
Update Nov. 10 2025, 4:43PM ET: This story has been updated to include news on the $20 rebate for YouTube TV subscribers, as well as to update the list of upcoming football games for the week.
Update Nov. 6 2025, 4:38PM ET: This story has been updated to include viewing info for weekend college football games, as well as the next Monday Night Football.
Update Nov. 5 2025, 12:32PM ET: This story has been updated to include detailed info on tonight’s ESPN NBA games.
Update Nov. 3 2025, 6:36PM ET: This story has been updated to include YouTube TV’s latest response to Disney’s request to restore its channels for just 24 hours.
It’s certainly been a spooky week for the Walt Disney Co. and Google. The two corporations are in the midst of a carriage dispute that has resulted in a blackout of Disney’s networks on Google-owned YouTube TV, leaving viewers unable to access popular channels including ESPN and ABC.
Disney began notifying viewers on October 23 about the dispute and warning that its networks could be removed from the pay-TV streaming platform.
All of that came to a head [last week] as the two parties failed to come to an agreement on a new deal, and YouTube TV began removing Disney’s networks about 30 minutes before the previous carriage deal expired at midnight Eastern time.
One area of contention between the two seems to be around pricing, with Disney asking for rate hikes that Google isn’t agreeing to.
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A number of YouTube TV subscribers complained on social media about having their access cut, with some noting how the situation is reminiscent of the contract battles that have long plagued cable television.
“I’ll never forget how liberating it was in 2018 to cut the cord & subscribe to YouTube TV,” John Martin, a radio host on sports station 92.9 FM ESPN, wrote on X, adding that “Nothing good ever lasts, kids.”
“I wish cable just figured it out,” one X user wrote. “[This] should be the time they try to win others back but basically are like, hold my beer. hah,” another user wrote. Still another said: “I just switched, and now I have to find ANOTHER streaming platform.”
“Last week, Disney used the threat of a blackout on YouTube TV as a negotiating tactic to force deal terms that would raise prices on our customers,” the post on YouTube’s blog read. “They’re now following through on that threat, suspending their content on YouTube TV. This decision directly harms our subscribers while benefiting their own live TV products, including Hulu + Live TV and Fubo.”
The post continued to say that while the situation is a “frustrating and disappointing outcome” for YouTube TV subscribers, the company said it was urging Disney to work “constructively to reach a fair agreement that restores their networks to YouTube TV.”
If an agreement wasn’t reached and the content remained off YouTube TV, Google said it would offer subscribers a $20 credit.
Disney, meanwhile, is pointing the finger at Google, accusing the tech giant of “using its market dominance to eliminate the competition and undercut the industry-standard terms” that it says it has already negotiated with other distributors.
“Unfortunately, Google’s 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,” a Disney spokesperson said. “Without a new agreement in place, their subscribers will not have access to our programming, which includes the best lineup in live sports—anchored by the NFL, NBA, and college football, with 13 of the top 25 college teams playing this weekend.”
On Friday, a memo was shared with Disney Entertainment and ESPN employees from Disney Entertainment co-chairs Dana Walden and Alan Berg and ESPN chairman Jimmy Pitaro, regarding YouTube TV. The memo, obtained by Fast Company, reiterated a similar sentiment as the statement.
The three executives wrote that Google’s actions “make clear how little regard they have for their customers and are consistent with an attitude which has been prevalent throughout our negotiations—YouTube TV and its owner, Google, are not interested in achieving a fair deal with us.
“The bottom line is that our channels are extremely valuable, and we can only continue to program them with the sports and entertainment viewers love most if we stand our ground against tactics that threaten the integrity of our business and the value of our creative work,” the note concluded.
Which channels are being blacked out?
The networks impacted and being removed from YouTube TV include ABC, ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU, ESPNews, Freeform, FX, FXX, FXM, Disney Channel, Disney Junior, Disney XD, SEC Network, Nat Geo, Nat Geo Wild, ABC News Live, ACC Network, and Localish, as well as ESPN Deportes, Baby TV Español, and Nat Geo Mundo for those with the Spanish plan.
This isn’t the first time that corporations have butted heads over the distribution of television content, nor is it the first time that YouTube TV has gotten into disputes with other entertainment giants.
Paramount Global (now Paramount Skydance), Fox Corporation, and NBCUniversal all recently battled with the streaming service, though they were able to eventually reach a deal to avert a blackout.
YouTube TV also previously dropped Univision and other TelevisaUnivision-owned networks in September after the two parties could not come to an agreement.
Meanwhile, Disney and Charter Communications had a public dispute over a renewal in 2023, though the two parties were able to resolve the problem to avert a blackout.
The impact on subscribers
Experts in the industry said those who suffer most from these ongoing carriage renewal disputes are the customers.
Brandon Katz, director of insights and content strategy at Greenlight Analytics, said that while carriage disputes have always been present in the linear pay-TV era, the fragmentation of current at-home entertainment makes the lapses much more noticeable, especially when dealing with sports broadcast rights that are strewn across the small-screen ecosystem.
“When consumers are juggling multiple subscriptions, often directed by access to specific content such as sports channels, their removal causes added friction,” Katz told Fast Company. “That friction often leads to a temporary spike in cancellations and, in this instance, perhaps a short-term bump in ESPN Unlimited and/or Disney Bundle sign-ups. Convenience, cost, and access rule consumer decision-making in the convoluted streaming era.”
YouTube TV is estimated to be the fourth-largest multichannel video programming distributor (MVPD) in the United States, rivaling traditional cable providers with around 10 million subscribers. That means it wields enormous leverage, although Katz did point out that blackouts caused by disputes like this typically don’t last too long.
“Even when these disputes result in a blackout, they don’t usually extend past a couple weeks,” Katz said. “I fully expect YouTube TV and Disney to reach a deal in the near future. However, the increasing frequency of these disputes and the overextended nature of sports rights these days make it particularly frustrating for consumers, who ultimately vote with their wallets.”
By Saleah Blancaflor
This article originally appeared in Inc.’s sister publication, Fast Company.
Fast Company is the world’s leading business media brand, with an editorial focus on innovation in technology, leadership, world changing ideas, creativity, and design. Written for and about the most progressive business leaders, Fast Company inspires readers to think expansively, lead with purpose, embrace change, and shape the future of business.
Reddit won’t escape Australia’s child social media ban. The Guardianreports that Communications Minister Anika Wells announced Reddit’s addition on Wednesday. The nation’s law, which blocks children under 16 from major social media sites, is scheduled to go into effect on December 10.
Alongside Reddit, Wells said Australian streaming site Kick would also be included. They join the previously announced Facebook, X, Snapchat, TikTok, YouTube and Instagram. Australia considers the list to be a starting point for the ban and won’t rule out adding more. Other companies under consideration are Discord, Twitch, GitHub and Roblox.
The ban passed in late 2024. The legislation puts the onus on the platforms, rather than parents, to police underage use. Companies that don’t take reasonable steps to prevent under-16 users from accessing their platforms can face penalties of up to AU$49.5 million (around $32 million).
“There’s a time and place for social media in Australia, but there’s not a place for predatory algorithms, harmful content and toxic popularity [meters] manipulating Australian children,” Wells said. “Online platforms can target children with chilling control. We are mandating they use that sophisticated technology to protect them.”
