If you’re running a streaming service, it’s going to be all about the content that you can secure for your audience. And over the past year, we’ve seen YouTube TV run into some trouble with some of its providers, with negotiations getting down to the wire.
For the most part, it was able to secure new deals with broadcasters, ensuring the content folks love continues to stream on YouTube TV. Unfortunately, it looks like the brand did miss out on a pretty big one though, as Formula 1 moves to a competitor’s service.
Now exclusive to Apple TV
The news comes from 9to5Google, sharing that YouTube is losing the sport, as it heads to Apple TV. The broadcast of events will be exclusive to Apple TV going forward, as Apple has managed to lock up an exclusive contract for the broadcast rights. This will start in the 2026 season, and will continue for the next five years.
As far as the details go, it cost Apple a pretty big chunk, with the BBC reporting that the contract could be worth around $750 million. This shouldn’t come as a complete shock, since F1 is pretty popular globally. Furthermore, the brand also struck gold with its F1 movie that made its debut in 2025, becoming one of its most successful projects to date.
The good news is that if you’re an Apple TV subscriber, you’ll get to watch upcoming F1 broadcasts at no extra charge. So if you’re a true F1 fan, you might find yourself signing up for another streaming service starting next year. Most recently, YouTube TV was able to secure a new deal with NBCUniversal.
The streaming service was also able to reach a new agreement with Fox during the summer. These contract negotiations will continue so long as YouTube TV stays in business. The problem with not owning your own content is that you have to obtain the rights from someone else. As YouTube TV becomes a bigger player, it needs to try and leverage that in order to get better deals on content.
We’ve seen streaming service prices rise over the past few years, and YouTube TV is no different. Of course, there’s a tipping point with membership fees, so it’s important for the brand to provide the most value that it can for its subscribers. And securing these new deals is the way to do it.
We don’t know if YouTube TV can remain as an option, but what we can be sure of is that this isn’t the last time you’ll hear about YouTube TV missing out on some content.
