YouTube TV subscribers may lose CBS, MTV, Nickelodeon, and more as Paramount dispute escalates
Subscribers to YouTube TV might soon be without key Paramount channels such as CBS, MTV, and Nickelodeon. The platform has indicated that current negotiations with Paramount are faltering, and without a new deal by February 13, 2025, these channels could vanish from the service.
The channels endangered in this corporate standoff span a wide array, including BET, CBS Sports Network, Comedy Central, VH1, NewsNation, and the Smithsonian Channel. Moreover, local CBS affiliates in significant markets like New York, Philadelphia, Dallas, and San Francisco are also on the chopping block. This disruption isn’t limited to live programming; DVR recordings from these channels would become unavailable, and add-ons like BET+, Paramount+ with Showtime, and Entertainment Plus would be excised from YouTube TV.
Will streaming services run up that hill to replace big networks?
You may remember a couple of years ago when Kate Bush’s song "Running Up That Hill" peaked at number one on the charts. Not unusual, given somebody always has the top song, but this was different. You see, that particular track was released decades earlier -- 1985 to be precise.
What caused this unexpected resurgence in popularity? In 2022, during the fourth season of the smash-hit Netflix series Stranger Things, the song was featured multiple times, bringing it back into the spotlight.