Despite ongoing negotiations, Disney even wanted YouTube to restore access to ABC for Election Day coverage, but YouTube refused, saying this would cause “more confusion.” With all this back and forth, it’s really the customers who lose. But things have now escalated even further as Google has withdrawn Movies Anywhere support from Play Movies and YouTube.
Less than ideal for everyone involved
The news comes from 9to5Googleimmediately Movies Anywhere support page stating that “Google Play/YouTube will no longer participate in the Movies Anywhere program.” This change took place on October 31, 2025, and as you can imagine, this is a pretty big deal. This service allows users to sync and access movies and TV shows across a number of different platforms.
Although no reason is mentioned on the support page, Movies Anywhere is a Disney-owned service. So either the timing is suspiciously convenient, or YouTube simply doesn’t want to contribute to Disney services in any way. As mentioned before, it’s a bit of a shame when things like this happen, because it’s the customers who really feel the impact.
9to5Google has confirmed that any media you linked before this change will remain as is, but any new media you purchase from Google services will not be synced. For the most part, this will be a waiting game to see if things will return to normal once Google and Disney reach an agreement.
Of course, it is impossible to say what will happen, because these types of negotiations can be complicated. This is an issue that is not unique to live streaming, but also affects traditional streaming services. To prevent content from disappearing or having to pay more upon renewal, companies have started producing their own exclusive content.
We don’t know when or if this issue will be fixed, but if it’s bothering you, YouTube is compensating subscribers with a $10 credit per month. The credit is provided for up to six months and although it should be applied automatically, you can always check if it has been credited to your account by going to the Membership section.
If not, please contact YouTube to see what can be done. There are reports that the credit may not apply to all users, but we think it’s still worth contacting YouTube support to see if you qualify. That said, we hope that YouTube and Disney can resolve this issue soon, and we might even see support for Movies Anywhere return as well once the dust settles.
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