If you have used DirecTV Stream or YouTube TV in the past seven years, Disney could owe you money.
Subscribers to either of these services may be eligible to receive a cash payment from a settlement from an antitrust class action lawsuit against the Walt Disney Company.
Disney agreed to pay $50 million to settle claims that it forced YouTube TV and DirecTV Stream to raise their subscription prices in order to keep stations they own—including local news broadcasts on those stations. For reference, Disney owns ABC, ESPN, Freeform, FX, National Geographic, A & E, The History Channel, Lifetime, and the various Disney Channels.
The lawsuit alleges this violated federal and state antitrust and consumer protection laws. Disney denies any wrongdoing.
Plaintiffs allege Disney required streaming live pay TV providers to carry a bundle of Disney networks, including ESPN channels, as a condition of offering Disney programming. The Disney antitrust lawsuit claims these agreements prevented streaming services from offering lower-cost packages that excluded ESPN channels.
Subscribers argued that Disney’s conduct restricted competition in the streaming live pay television market and caused consumers to pay inflated prices for their subscriptions.
Back in October 2025, Disney blacked out all affiliated channels on YouTube TV following the failure of the streaming service to agree to their terms, most notably a demand to raise prices. Disney believed that their content was worth more than the already exorbitant prices that were being charged to customers by way of streaming package add-ons through streaming services such as YouTube TV.
Furthermore, Disney deciding to black out their channels until an agreement was reached, caused a Disney friendly and ultimately consumer harming monopoly. With the only large-scale streaming services offering the networks being owned by the Walt Disney Corporation—Hulu and Fubo—during the blackout time frame.
Likewise, in September 2024, DirecTV and Disney failed to reach an agreement which caused a two-week blackout of all Disney owned stations.
In addition to monetary relief, the proposed settlement includes injunctive provisions intended to address the alleged anticompetitive practices.
Under the agreement, Disney would be required to consider proposals from streaming live pay TV providers that allow them to offer subscription packages with fewer Disney networks. These packages could potentially exclude ESPN channels, allowing streaming services greater flexibility when negotiating carriage agreements.
Anyone who had a YouTube TV or DirecTV Stream subscription between April 1, 2019, and March 31, 2026, is eligible for the settlement.
Class members are divided into two groups: “Repealer Jurisdictions” and “Non-Repealer Jurisdictions.” Though, applicants in non-repealer jurisdictions are not necessarily omitted from receiving payment. 10% of the funds have been set aside for Settlement Class members in Non-Repealer Jurisdictions. These individuals are eligible to submit a claim and receive a pro-rate cash payment based on the length of time they have had their subscription.
Repealer Jurisdictions: Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Guam, Hawaii, Iowa, Kansas, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Oregon, Puerto Rico, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Utah, Vermont, West Virginia, and Wisconsin.
Non-Repealer Jurisdictions: Alaska, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Texas, Virginia, Washington and Wyoming.
Claim forms must be submitted online or postmarked by Sept. 8, 2026, and can be found on the Online TV Settlement website.
Individuals who want to exclude themselves from the settlement must do so by Sept. 8, 2026.
A request must be mailed to the settlement administrator at the following address:
Biddle v. Disney, Settlement Administrator, P.O. Box 4720, Portland, OR 97208-4720.
A final hearing is scheduled for Jan. 14, 2027, where a judge will decide whether to approve the settlement. If approved, payments would be distributed after that date.
Photo courtesy of Unsplash
