The Disney-YouTube TV standoff has officially been going on for so long, polling firms have been able to conduct research into which side the public is blaming.
Suffice it to say, the results do not bode well for Disney.
According to a recent survey conducted by Drive Research that polled 1,107 respondents, a far larger proportion of people are blaming Disney for the carriage dispute that has kept its television networks dark on YouTube TV than are blaming the Google-owned pay TV provider. The survey shows that 58% of respondents believe both networks are equally at fault, 37% blamed Disney, and just 5% blamed YouTube TV.
Drive Research’s findings align with other less-scientific polls conducted after the blackout began. 3,875 people responded to Awful Announcing’s social media poll on the first day of the blackout, and 73% blamed Disney over YouTube TV.
When there is a carriage dispute that causes you to either miss or spend additional time or money to watch sporting events, who do you typically assign more blame to for the inconvenience?
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) October 31, 2025
The Athletic surveyed more than 8,000 fans, and 64% found Disney most at fault, 28% shared the blame equally, and 8% blamed YouTube TV.
Across the board, Disney is receiving more of the blame.
Whether that blame is justified is another story entirely. YouTube TV has proven itself to be a tough negotiator in these circumstances. The service is in its fourth high-profile carriage dispute in three months. Two negotiations, Fox and NBC, went down to the wire but avoided blackouts. The other two, TelevisaUnivision and Disney, still have their networks blacked out on YouTube TV.
Reasonably, both sides are to blame. The declining margins of the pay TV business make it more difficult than ever to turn a profit as broadcast rights for live sports continue to get more expensive while fewer people are subscribing to traditional bundles.
But that doesn’t mean consumers will see it that way. Consumers see Disney demanding higher prices, knowing that YouTube TV will be forced to pass those costs onto subscribers if they capitulate. YouTube TV has also helped itself from a PR standpoint by offering subscribers a $20 credit while Disney remains dark.
At this point, it’s clear that Disney is losing the PR battle to YouTube TV. But whether the bad publicity will compel Disney to strike a deal sooner than they would otherwise remains to be seen.
About Drew Lerner
Drew Lerner is a staff writer for Awful Announcing and an aspiring cable subscriber. He previously covered sports media for Sports Media Watch. Future beat writer for the Oasis reunion tour.