YouTube TV subscribers affected by the recent removal of Disney-owned channels must now actively claim a $20 credit, rather than having it automatically applied to thier accounts. The requirement, announced by Google, has drawn criticism for adding an extra step to receive compensation for lost service.
The dispute between Google and Disney led to the removal of channels like ESPN and ABC from YouTube TV in September 2023, after contract negotiations failed. Google later announced a $20 credit for each subscriber for the month of September, acknowledging the disruption. However,users are discovering the credit isn’t automatically processed and must be claimed through the YouTube TV settings menu. This impacts millions of YouTube TV customers who experienced the channel outage.
While Google is offering a partial refund for the period without Disney content, the process of requiring customers to initiate the claim has sparked frustration. The company is effectively relying on some subscribers to overlook the notification or be unable to complete the process, retaining the funds as revenue.
Affected users can claim their credit by visiting https://tv.youtube.com/settings/service_updates. Google has not indicated a deadline for claiming the credit, but subscribers are encouraged to do so promptly to receive the full reimbursement owed for the impacted billing cycle.The ongoing negotiation between Google and Disney remains unresolved, leaving the future availability of Disney channels on YouTube TV uncertain.
