LEILA FADEL, HOST:
The Academy Awards is set for a big move from TV to the internet. Starting in 2029, the Academy says when its current TV deal with ABC's parent company, Disney, expires, the Oscars will be livestreamed on YouTube. NPR's Neda Ulaby is here to talk about the future of the biggest night in movies. Hey, Neda.
NEDA ULABY, BYLINE: Hey.
FADEL: OK, so before we talk about the future, I wanted to ask you about the past. How long have the Oscars been broadcast on television?
ULABY: So the Oscars started in 1929, and at first, they were just parties in hotels. The show was broadcast first on the radio during World War II, partly for the benefit of soldiers. And it moved to TV in 1953. You can hear the host, Bob Hope, on NBC in this archival piece of tape. He's joking about the marriage of movies with a brand-new medium.
(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)
BOB HOPE: This is indeed a wedding of two great entertainment mediums with motion pictures and television. And with Oscar 25 years old, it's high time he got married.
(LAUGHTER)
HOPE: While it's true that he has a child bride, it's a comfort to note that the kid is loaded.
(LAUGHTER)
HOPE: In fact, the bride's father is picking up the tab for this wedding reception.
(LAUGHTER)
ULABY: So, ironically, I got that tape from YouTube, from the official Oscars channel. And YouTube is now the new father of the bride.
FADEL: So, Neda, was this announcement a surprise?
ULABY: Yeah. Initially, it was a big surprise. The industry newspaper Variety said the announcement was sending, and I quote, "shock waves throughout Hollywood." And it does feel like a watershed moment.
FADEL: Yeah.
ULABY: The biggest legacy TV award show that's all about the greatness of movies is giving the ultimate and establishment bona fides to a streaming service that only turned 20 this year.
FADEL: I have to ask - how big of a get was the Oscars for YouTube? I mean, how valuable is this piece of broadcast real estate?
ULABY: So the Oscars never got a billion viewers, which is something for a while its hosts like to claim. The most it ever got was 55 million TV viewers in the U.S., and that was when "Titanic" swept up nearly a dozen awards back in 1998. Oscar ratings have suffered for a number of years now. Only about 10 million people watched in 2021. But the Academy has made a bunch of robust efforts to juice up membership, expand the biggest categories. And it has been not unsuccessful. Last year, almost 20 million people tuned in, and the academy said there was more social media chatter or engagements around it than the Super Bowl.
FADEL: In the background of many big corporate deals right now, you have to ask who owns what, and what sort of machinations may be playing out behind the scenes. Is there a backstage drama here?
ULABY: YouTube is owned by Google. ABC is owned by Disney. Disney also owns Hulu, and Hulu livestreamed the Oscars this year to about 200 markets around the world. Right now, Disney and Google are fighting about AI copyright infringement. I don't see that being an Oscar issue yet, but YouTube is the biggest streaming service on the planet. It reaches about 2 billion people, and that's extremely helpful for an award show that publicizes the movies. I doubt that the Oscars will attract even a billion viewers in 2029, but being on YouTube could make the Oscars more interesting. On streaming, the show will no longer be subject to the same FCC guidelines. It will have no need to stick to broadcast TV formats.
FADEL: Interesting.
ULABY: So that means hosts could get spicy, and there might actually be time for people to finish their acceptance speeches.
FADEL: We'll note that Disney, Google and NBC are financial supporters of NPR. Thank you, Neda.
ULABY: Thank you, Leila. And, oh, thanks to my agent. I wouldn't be here without my mom and my editor, Marjorie Falbrin (ph), my editor...
FADEL: OK, OK. We're out of time. Thank you, Neda and Neda's mom.
(SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC) Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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