Subscribers of YouTube TV in the United States have lost access to Disney-owned channels, including ESPN, ABC, National Geographic, and the Disney Channel, as Google and Disney remain locked in a dispute over a new licensing agreement.

According to Disney, YouTube TV, owned by tech giant Google, “refused to pay fair rates for the content”, which led to the suspension of its channels.

In response, YouTube TV stated that Disney’s proposed deal “disadvantage our members while benefiting Disney’s own live TV products.”

The blackout occurred just before midnight on Thursday, the deadline for the companies to finalize a new contract. The outage impacts nearly 10 million YouTube TV subscribers. The platform has announced that if Disney channels remain unavailable for an extended period, users will receive a $20 credit as compensation.

Both YouTube TV and Disney-owned Hulu are major players in the U.S. streaming TV market. Their current standoff mirrors similar disputes YouTube faced earlier this year with other media companies, which also risked reducing available programming for viewers.

Recently, Google managed to reach last-minute agreements with NBCUniversal, Paramount, and Fox, keeping popular content like “Sunday Night Football” on YouTube TV.

Despite both companies stating that they are working toward a resolution to restore Disney content, the primary conflict continues to revolve around fee structures.

A Disney spokesperson remarked, “With a $3 trillion market cap, Google is using its market dominance to eliminate competition and undercut the industry-standard terms we've successfully negotiated with every other distributor.”

Meanwhile, YouTube TV countered that Disney’s offer involves “costly economic terms” that could drive up prices for customers and limit viewing options, ultimately benefiting Disney’s competing service, Hulu + Live TV.