NBCUniversal and YouTube averted a blackout Thursday afternoon by reaching a new multi-year carriage deal that preserves NBCUniversal’s full slate of broadcast and cable networks on YouTube TV.

The agreement followed a brief extension after the original contract expired — a last-minute negotiation tactic that echoed their previous renewal in 2021.

The terms remain undisclosed, but both companies stressed that the agreement extends beyond traditional carriage fees. In addition to long-term access for channels like NBC, Telemundo, Bravo, CNBC, Golf Channel, E!, Oxygen True Crime, MSNBC, USA, Syfy, and Universo, the deal includes expanded digital rights: short-form highlights and shows on YouTube, Universal Pictures films on Google TV and YouTube, and Peacock’s upcoming availability through YouTube Primetime Channels.

The most striking development is the return of NBC Sports Network (NBCSN), four years after its shutdown. Relaunching later this fall, NBCSN will carry NBCUniversal’s extensive sports programming, complementing flagship events that remain on NBC’s broadcast network.

Matt Schnaars, NBCUniversal’s president of content distribution, framed the deal as both a defensive and forward-looking move.

“We’ve secured long-term access to our full portfolio of broadcast and cable networks on YouTube TV, and we’re advancing our Peacock strategy with an upcoming launch on YouTube Primetime Channels and ongoing presence on Google TV,” he said.

For NBCUniversal, reviving NBCSN reverses part of a 2022 strategy that shifted sports rights to Peacock and USA Network to cut costs. Analysts say the decision reflects slowing growth at Peacock, where sports have been central to subscriber acquisition. NBC aims to extract steady carriage fees from distributors, while still driving some viewers to Peacock for exclusive rights by restoring NBCSN to channel bundles like YouTube TV.

Greg Abel, Berkshire Hathaway vice chairman who is slated to succeed Warren Buffett as CEO, praised NBCUniversal’s balancing act in its sports business model, noting it could stabilize revenues across multiple platforms.

This deal underscores a broader trend in the television industry: the uneasy coexistence of streaming ambitions with the financial safety of legacy carriage. Other companies are also impacted by this recalibration.

Disney’s bruising dispute with Charter Communications in 2023 exposed how reliant even the biggest entertainment companies remain on distribution fees, despite the billions poured into direct-to-consumer platforms like Disney+. That standoff ended with Disney agreeing to give Charter’s pay-TV customers free access to Disney+ and ESPN+, a compromise that blended old and new business models much like NBCUniversal’s deal with YouTube.

Similarly, Paramount has leaned on YouTube TV and Hulu Live to maintain exposure for CBS and its cable channels, even as Paramount+ struggles to reach profitability. Carriage negotiations have shifted from simple pricing disputes into battlegrounds over the streaming future, where tech distributors like Google wield increasing leverage.

YouTube TV has grown to more than 8 million subscribers, which means that retaining NBCUniversal was non-negotiable. Losing access to live sports from NBCSN, Golf Channel, and Telemundo — alongside news networks like MSNBC and CNBC — could have triggered a wave of cancellations. Google ensures its platform remains the most comprehensive streaming bundle on the market by securing this deal, competing with Hulu Live, Sling, and Fubo.

Deal highlights:

• Channels: Multi-year carriage of NBC, Telemundo, Bravo, CNBC, Golf Channel, E!, Oxygen True Crime, MSNBC, USA, Syfy, Universo.
• NBCSN relaunch: Returning in fall 2025 as a key part of YouTube TV’s sports offering.
• Peacock integration: Available soon through YouTube Primetime Channels, expanding its reach.
• Digital rights: Short-form clips and highlights on YouTube; Universal films on Google TV, YouTube TV, and YouTube.
• Library content: NBCUniversal Global TV Distribution titles on YouTube Premium (SVOD) and YouTube Free Primetime Content (AVOD).
• Android extension: Peacock to remain available across Google Play and Google TV under a new multi-year extension.

Ultimately, NBCUniversal’s move shows the growing recognition among media giants that the streaming revolution is not enough on its own. While Peacock remains central to NBCU’s future, resuscitating NBCSN and locking in YouTube TV demonstrates that traditional carriage still delivers the stability Wall Street demands.

As the industry recalibrates, the NBCUniversal-YouTube agreement becomes another case study in how legacy media companies are hedging their bets — building out direct-to-consumer offerings while continuing to rely on distributors to keep the cash flowing.

Elon Musk waded deeper into America’s culture wars this week, urging his 195 million followers on X to cancel their Netflix subscriptions over what he described as a “transgender woke agenda.”

His comments have fueled a wave of online backlash, but analysts say the controversy is unlikely to inflict lasting damage on the streaming company’s bottom line.

On Wednesday, Musk reposted an image criticizing Netflix for allegedly promoting transgender content, adding the caption: “Cancel Netflix for the health of your kids.” The uproar centers on Dead End: Paranormal Park, a now-canceled animated show that featured a transgender character. The series ran for two seasons before being scrapped in 2023, but it has since become a target for conservative activists.

Musk’s intervention was prompted by posts circulating among right-wing accounts, including one accusing the show’s creator, Hamish Steele, of mocking the death of conservative activist Charlie Kirk. Steele responded on rival social platform Bluesky, quipping, “It’s probably going to be a very odd day.” He also reshared support from TV writer Jack Bernhardt, who described Dead End as “a brilliant show about kind, wonderful characters.”

While Musk has increasingly used his platform to champion conservative causes, analysts argue his call for a boycott will likely have minimal business consequences for Netflix.

The streaming company, which stopped disclosing subscriber numbers earlier this year, last reported 301.63 million global subscribers in the fourth quarter of 2024. With a market capitalization of around $490 billion and shares up more than 60% over the past year, Netflix remains one of Wall Street’s most resilient media companies.

This week, Netflix stock is down about 4% — but analysts attribute the dip more to broader market movement than to Musk’s criticism.

“Is that going to move the needle necessarily? … You’re going to see people sign up on the back of that to counter it,” CNBC contributor Guy Adami said Wednesday on Fast Money. “I don’t think this is a reason to sell the stock.”

Wedbush Securities analyst Alicia Reese echoed that view, noting Musk’s comments came too late in the third quarter to sway reported subscriber metrics. Any marginal fallout, she added, is likely to be offset by Netflix’s growing advertising business.

“Their numbers should come out just fine,” Reese said. “I think that shares haven’t been hit too hard.”

Tim Seymour of Seymour Asset Management said the controversy may briefly rattle trading but argued that Netflix stock is too expensive and too entrenched to be derailed by “internet backlash.”

“We’ve had these moments in time where, whether it was an ad campaign that went wrong or whether it was some sense that a company was aligned in a particular political channel… I don’t think that that’s going to be the reason to sell Netflix here,” he said.

The backlash has drawn comparisons to the boycott of Anheuser-Busch InBev in 2023, after Bud Light featured transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney in an ad campaign. That boycott led to steep sales declines and billions in lost market value for the brewer. But CNBC contributor Karen Finerman argued Musk’s campaign will be far less damaging.

“I feel like this will be very fleeting,” she said.

Musk’s attack on Netflix fits into a broader pattern of high-profile CEOs inserting themselves into divisive social debates — a move that can rattle brands but often proves temporary in its effect. The latest skirmish may prove little more than a passing storm for Netflix, which has weathered controversies ranging from Cuties in 2020 to Dave Chappelle’s comedy specials.