“Hugh Johnston is ready to go 12 rounds — maybe 15. The Disney CFO said on CNBC Thursday morning that his company, in the midst of a carriage battle with YouTube TV, is “ready to go as long as they want to.” Ding, ding. “We’re in the middle of negotiations right now,” Johnston said”, — write: www.hollywoodreporter.com
The Disney CFO said on CNBC Thursday morning that his company, in the midst of a carriage battle with YouTube TV, is “ready to go as long as they want to.”
Ding, ding.
“We’re in the middle of negotiations right now,” Johnston said on the cable business network shortly after Disney reported fourth-quarter and full-year 2025 financials. “Things are alive, they’re happening … and we’re ready to go as long as they want to.”
The timing for the strong statement is curious as, just yesterday, sources indicated THR that talks between the two media giants — YouTube TV is owned by Alphabet fka Google — had picked up and been more productive in recent days.
On Wednesday, Tom Rogers, who co-founded CNBC, joined the same program to preview Disney’s Q4 earnings. Rogers said the power of legacy media, like Disney, has “lost some of its real punch in terms of marketplace strength.” Johnston was asked to respond.
“I think that’s an exaggeration a bit more than it’s a reality,” Johnston said.
Johnston and Disney CEO Bob Iger will host a conference call at 8:30 am ET/5:30 am PT to discuss the quarter (and year) in greater detail. Surely the ongoing bout with YouTube TV will come up — and probably more than once. We’ll update this story with any new information.
Read Disney’s Q4 results here. The company’s streaming profits grew as Disney+ alone added 3.8 million subscribers. Disney also announced it planned to invest $1 billion more in content in 2026 than it did in 2025.
More to come.
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