Hulu, home of NBC and Fox shows, has a new partner. Disney has joined the online video service, and brought ABC along with it. The Big 3 now each own 27% of Hulu, according to TechCrunch.
While I’m thrilled that Hannah Montana and Kim Possible will soon find their way to Hulu, I have to wonder – where is CBS? When I want to watch two of my favorite shows online – CSI and How I met Your Mother – I still have to do it through the limited and annoying CBS.com site. I have to wonder what is keeping them? After all, everyone is finding a way to put their content online in an easily accessible manner. Last week, Sony announced a partnership with YouTube to distribute limited, ad-supported content. So, come on CBS!
Hulu is the #3 video site right now, although it is quickly gaining on #2 Fox Video and #1 YouTube. Many writers are calling for YouTube to either get some real content or get out of the way. Meanwhile, I’d rather speculate on the future of Hulu. With its star rising fast and content seeking out the site, I have to wonder if a premium or subscription model isn’t in the future. What about pay-cable shows? Would you pay a fee to see premium content from channels like HBO or Showtime? You can take that further and ask, what would that do to cable TV?
I don’t how far in the future we’ll be using our laptops for televised entertainment all the time instead of the behemoth monitors in our living rooms. I do know that the time people spent watching TV online jumped 40% in one year and stands to grow even faster as more content becomes available. What do you think?
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