Overview
- The Walt Disney Company agreed in late June 2026 to pay $50 million to settle Biddle et al. v. The Walt Disney Company, a 2022 federal class action that alleged Disney forced ESPN into base streaming packages and helped raise subscription prices.
- Anyone who held a YouTube TV or DirecTV Stream subscription from April 1, 2019 through March 31, 2026 is eligible to file a claim and must submit it by Sept. 8, 2026.
- Individual payouts have not been set and will be calculated on a pro rata basis based on subscription length and the number of valid claims.
- The settlement denies Disney liability and will not be paid out until a federal court reviews the deal at a final approval hearing on Jan. 14, 2027.
- The case sits inside wider industry fights over bundling and carriage fees and could influence how programmers and streaming services negotiate channel packages in the future.