Copyright Variety
Google’s YouTube TV is adding two channels from Bloomberg Media to its lineup, one with live 24-hour news and the other with the media company’s original series and documentaries. It’s the first distribution deal between Bloomberg Media and YouTube TV. The news comes as Google and Disney remain locked in a dispute over the terms of a renewal for YouTube TV, which led Disney last week to begin alerting viewers that the streaming service may drop ESPN, ABC and other networks. YouTube TV on Oct. 28 is launching Bloomberg TV+, which has live coverage of breaking business and financial news, and Bloomberg Originals, featuring a slate of original series and documentaries. Both are set to go live at about 1 p.m. ET Tuesday. Both channels will be available as part of the YouTube TV base plan. Bloomberg TV+ will be the first 24-hour news channel on YouTube TV delivered in 4K UHD. YouTube TV is priced at $82.99 monthly for the baseline package with live and on-demand TV from over 100 channels. It’s the largest internet-delivered pay TV service in the U.S., estimated to have more than 10 million subscribers. “More than 60 million people on average watch Bloomberg programming monthly, and adding YouTube TV’s subscribers to our audience of business leaders is a big step toward continued growth,” Bloomberg Media chief information officer Roman Mackiewicz said. “Viewers are navigating the rapid shifts in markets, geopolitics and technology every day, and this agreement helps us reach them on another innovative platform, to guide their most important work and personal wealth decisions.” YouTube’s Paul Snow, head of media partnerships, added, “We are proud to welcome Bloomberg to YouTube TV, building on our commitment to bring subscribers essential news, sports and entertainment across our vast lineup of channels. Through this partnership, YouTube TV subscribers now have access to Bloomberg TV’s high-quality business coverage to help them stay up to date and informed.” Bloomberg TV+ features daily flagship news shows including including “Surveillance,” “Open Interest,” recently relaunched tech show “Balance of Power,” “The Close,” “Horizons: Middle East and Africa,” “Insight With Haslinda Amin,” “The Pulse With Francine Lacqua,” “The China Show” and “Wall Street Week.” Select news content from Bloomberg Live Events, including the upcoming Bloomberg New Economy Forum in Singapore (Nov. 19-21), will be available on BTV+. Since the launch of its Bloomberg Originals content studio and dedicated stream in January 2023, the brand has developed and hosted 26 original series and feature-length documentaries covering business through the lens of technology, climate, culture and sports. Those include “An Optimist’s Guide to the Planet” with actor Nikolaj Coster-Waldau (known for “Game of Thrones”), which debuted its second season on Oct. 22. The show follows Coster-Waldau’s globe-trotting travels to meet with people “who are helping drive humanity toward a brighter, more sustainable future,” per the series logline. Other originals include “The Deal With Alex Rodriguez and Jason Kelly” and “The Circuit With Emily Chang,” both in their third seasons; “Can’t Look Away,” based on the investigative reporting of Bloomberg News journalist Olivia Carville; and “The Future with Hannah Fry,” which in June won Bloomberg’s first News and Documentary Emmy in the science and technology category. Bloomberg Media operates bureaus and facilities in markets including New York, London, Dubai, Tokyo and Johannesburg. It recently opened new studios in Seoul and Mumbai, with another opening in Doha soon. Pictured above: Bloomberg’s “An Optimist’s Guide to the Planet” with Nikolaj Coster-Waldau
