CALIFORNIA — The Walt Disney Company has agreed to a $50 million settlement in a class action lawsuit filed in 2022 titled Biddle v. Disney. Claims for this settlement must be submitted online or postmarked by September 8, 2026, with a final court approval hearing scheduled for 9 a.m. local time on January 14, 2027.

The lawsuit alleged that Disney violated federal antitrust and consumer protection laws by using its ownership of Hulu and ESPN to inflate prices in the streaming live pay television market. Plaintiffs claimed Disney's carriage agreements required streaming platforms to include ESPN in their basic channel packages, limiting competitors' ability to offer lower-cost alternatives. Disney denied the allegations of wrongdoing but agreed to settle the case without admitting liability.

U.S. District Judge Edward J. Davila is overseeing the class action in California. The settlement requires final court approval from the judge at the scheduled hearing.

Individuals who purchased a YouTube TV subscription or subscribed to DirecTV's streaming live pay TV services between April 1, 2019, and March 31, 2026, are eligible to submit a claim. Eligible DirecTV services include DirecTV Stream, DirecTV Now, and AT&T TV Now. Eligible claimants will receive a pro rata cash payment based on the length of their YouTube TV and/or DirecTV streaming subscription. Claimants must confirm the start and end dates of a subscription under penalty of perjury.

Paper claim forms can be mailed to Settlement Administrator, P.O. Box 4720, Portland, OR 97208-4720. Individuals who maintained both a YouTube TV subscription and a DirecTV streaming subscription may submit a single claim form for both. Attorney's fees will be subtracted from the settlement fund before payments are made.

Certain individuals are not eligible to make a claim, including Disney employees, officers, directors, legal representatives, heirs, successors, subsidiaries, affiliates, counsel, judicial officers, their immediate family members, and court staff. Class members can contact the settlement administrator at info@OnlineTVSettlement.com for assistance if they did not receive a notice or call 1-877-704-2517 for more information. To exclude oneself from the settlement, a written request must be mailed to the settlement administrator by September 8, 2026.