Score another one for YouTube: Despite what sometimes feels like an ongoing active effort to make it unpleasant to use, the platform that helped make a star out of guys like Pewdiepie, Dr. Disrespect, and Mr. Beast has made a big move into the mainstream media ecosystem with today's announcement that it will soon be the exclusive home for the Academy Awards.
That's right, beginning in 2029 the Oscars, "including red carpet coverage, behind-the-scenes content, Governors Ball access, and more," will be available exclusively on YouTube.
"The partnership also will include worldwide access for film fans to other Academy events and programs exclusively on the Oscars YouTube channel," the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences said. "This will include the Governors Awards, the Oscars Nominations Announcement, the Oscars Nominees Luncheon, the Student Academy Awards, the Scientific and Technical Awards, Academy member and filmmaker interviews, film education programs, podcasts, and more.
"In addition, through this holistic partnership, the Google Arts & Culture initiative will help provide digital access to select Academy Museum exhibitions and programs and help to digitize components of the Academy Collection—the largest film-related collection in the world, with more than 52 million items. It will be a true hub for film fans and will be accessible from around the world."
The Academy Collection is indeed a notable archive of film history, containing everything from Oscar-nominated films to manuscripts, film-related books and periodicals, photos, posters, manuscripts, and more. As far as long-term impact, digitizing those materials might be the most significant outcome of this partnership.
YouTube CEO Neal Mohan said in February that the online video platform had become "the new television," and he seemed correct—in the sense that it's riddled with inescapable ads that everybody hates (but that nonetheless make a ton of money) and appears increasingly concerned with ensuring that nobody under 18 is exposed to anything edgier than old episodes of Three's Company.
Setting aside the exaggeration-for-effect, this deal with the Academy is presumably closer to what Mohan actually meant: That YouTube is no longer the domain of computer nerds looking for old Tech TV clips, but is now running with the big dogs, like ABC—the current-but-soon-former home of the Oscars.
"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 CEO Bill Kramer and Academy President Lynette Howell Taylor said in a joint statement. "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.
"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. We will be able to celebrate cinema, inspire new generations of filmmakers and provide access to our film history on an unprecedented global scale."
It's interesting to see how far YouTube has come in the 20 years since it was launched, but I do have to wonder if there's not a certain risk involved in this—for the Academy, to be clear. I feel like the Oscars are of particular interest to an older demographic who might be less inclined to watch on an unfamiliar or inconvenient platform. Mohan said in February that "TV is now the primary device for YouTube viewing in the US," and I'm sure number-crunchers at both companies have taken pains to ensure the risk to audience numbers is minimal. But I'm also quite certain that I'm going to be hearing angry words about this from my mother, who is already plenty annoyed at having to (partially) figure out Netflix. The odds of her watching the Oscars on YouTube are roughly equal to the odds of her winning one.
For his part, Mohan called the Oscars "one of our essential cultural institutions," and seemed confident that even if he's leaving my mom behind, the opportunity to reach a new audience will be worth it: "Partnering with the Academy 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."
