The Oscars no longer have a home in the U.K., with Sky ending its 20-year partnership to broadcast the awards, The Hollywood Reporter has confirmed.
The Comcast-owned, pay-TV giant has given up the rights to the ceremony, which it first claimed from the BBC in 2004. In recent years, Sky has aired the Oscars on a dedicated channel, Sky Cinema Oscars, as well as its streaming service Now TV. This year also saw it broadcast on its free-to-air channels of Sky Arts and Sky News.
Disney — which owns the rights — will now be looking for another buyer in the U.K. While Sky wouldn’t offer a comment on its reasoning, the move comes as the U.K. media industry has been hit by severe economic pressure, including high inflation and a cost-of-living crisis, and where belt-tightening has already begun among broadcasters.
The ceremony, which like in the U.S. has seen dwindling live viewership figures (not helped by an unpalatable time slot; the ceremony usually starts at around 1 a.m.), may not be as attractive of an offering as it once was, despite the recent prevalence of British stars among the nominees.
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