Survey points to aggregation as YouTube’s next major streaming move

Nearly three-quarters of media and streaming executives surveyed said the Peacock–YouTube Premium deal was very significant or game-changing for the future of streaming distribution.

Looper Insights reported the finding in “YouTube’s Path to TV Dominance: The Five Moves That Got It There,” which examined how YouTube’s agreement to bundle Peacock Premium with YouTube Premium could serve as a model for future streaming distribution partnerships.

NBCUniversal and YouTube announced the multiyear partnership July 27, with Peacock Premium set to be included with YouTube Premium at no additional charge beginning in early 2027. The report said the agreement also expanded the companies’ existing YouTube TV relationship, added NBC Sports as a production partner for live sports on YouTube and included international distribution of Universal+ and Hayu in select markets.

Looper Insights surveyed 26 C-suite executives from streaming services, broadcasters, media agencies and connected TV platforms. Of those respondents, 73% rated the deal as either very significant or extremely significant or game-changing, while none rated it as not at all significant.

When asked what YouTube’s most significant next move in streaming would be, 46% selected additional bundle agreements with major streaming services. Another 27% expected YouTube to emerge as a universal streaming super-aggregator, while 19% anticipated another major sports rights agreement beyond the NFL.

Only 8% expected YouTube to launch its own original scripted content commissioning, which Looper Insights interpreted as evidence that industry executives view YouTube’s strategy as focused more on distribution and aggregation than original programming.

The report identified five developments behind that strategy: YouTube’s acquisition of NFL Sunday Ticket, its growth in U.S. television viewing, the introduction of genre-based YouTube TV plans, the expansion of Primetime Channels and the Peacock agreement.

Looper Insights said YouTube accounted for 13.8% of U.S. television viewing in May 2026, citing Nielsen data. The report also estimated YouTube TV had more than 9.4 million subscribers.

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The report placed particular emphasis on the growing commercial importance of connected TV interfaces as streaming services compete for prominent placement on home screens. It argued that rows, shelves and other interface positions could become increasingly important parts of distribution agreements as aggregation expands.

Alongside the report, Looper Insights launched an interactive forecasting tool allowing industry participants to estimate how connected TV home-screen value could be divided among streaming services by the end of 2027.

The tool uses the company’s Dollar Media Placement Value framework and covers 13 connected TV home screens and seven major streaming services. Participants can submit projections and compare them with aggregated predictions from other users.