Disney agrees to $50 million payout over streaming price claims

Disney agreed to pay $50 million to settle claims that its ESPN carriage terms forced YouTube TV and DirecTV Stream customers to pay more for live TV streaming. People who subscribed to YouTube TV or DirecTV Stream between April 1, 2019, and March 31, 2026, can seek a share of the fund, and the DirecTV class also covers DirecTV Now and AT&T TV Now subscribers.

The cash will not be split evenly. Payments will be distributed pro rata, with individual amounts tied to how long each person subscribed and, in some cases, where they lived. The deal also includes non-monetary business-practice changes set to last for three years.

The case, Biddle et al. v. The Walt Disney Company, is pending in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California. Plaintiffs allege Disney’s carriage agreements required streaming providers to place ESPN in base programming packages, a structure they say pushed up monthly prices and violated federal antitrust law and state consumer-protection statutes. Disney denies wrongdoing.

The litigation began in 2022, after consumers challenged Disney’s ESPN bundling arrangements amid rising complaints about the cost of live TV streaming. Claims are due by Sept. 8, 2026, and the court has scheduled a final fairness hearing for Jan. 14, 2027.