At last, the wait is over, and I have finally
received my
chance to test out Hulu.
Hulu is the video service that had me scratching my
head when it was first announced and released just
a few short months ago.
Early on in the development process of Hulu, there seemed to
be no
clear focus on what exactly the service would provide or even what name
it would assume upon launch, which left more
than a few journalists
and bloggers wary of what NBC
Universal and News
Corp. might deliver after multiple delays.
Now, I must admit that although I didn’t
see much chance for this service to survive after it was
announced earlier
this year, it appears to have been well worth the wait and
fully capable of quieting the negative talk into watchful eyes.
More Appealing Than Originally Expected
Immediately upon my first look at the service, after
registering and
logging in, I was able to tell that Hulu would be more appealing than
originally expected.
The layout is very plain (not really having any
color or style other than the hulu logo), yet elegant and easy to
browse. The lack of sidebars, which now seem to be present at nearly
every online video service, also helps to make for more white space.
The video database has been very well stocked with all kinds
of
video including television programming currently on the air (The
Office, Heroes, Family Guy), classic programming (Cops, Miami Vice,
Kojak), and even the full-length version of
Bulworth
(starring Warren Beatty), although the persistent beeps and pauses in
audio over foul words and cursing is annoying and seems like overkill.
Custom Video Player
My favorite aspect of Hulu is the custom video player and its
stylish interface which offer several options to video watchers in an
innovative display format.
When the mouse is moved over the video,
icons appear to the left and the right, providing quick access to
features such as full screen video, share/embed tools, and ‘Lower
Lights’ which dims everything surrounding the video in the browser
window.
Additionally, the video player can be popped out into its own
windows and resized or repositioned.
Smooth And Without Interruption
Amazingly, possibly for the first time ever, I have used a
service
that plays video smoothly and with pauses or interruptions in playback.
Slow load times have plagued my experiences with VeohTV,
Joost, and even on
the episode player in use on NBC’s
website.
I don’t know how they did it, but watching a television show
on Hulu
was almost as close as watching it on television, except for the
shorter commercial break of 30 seconds on Hulu, which is an advantage
over traditional TV.
The selection of content available to viewers can be browsed
by On
Air status, Network/Station, alphabetical order, and by popularity,
leaving users with plenty of ways to organize what is
available.
Each
user is given a profile, which displays the usual descriptive
information and keeps track of a user’s playlists and video history
(both of which have an easily accessible RSS feed, unlike YouTube.
Hulu has definitely made a lot of progress since March and,
despite
delays, has introduced a great, new service to the growing crowd of
online television viewers.
Make It Public!
Other networks should be able to learn a
thing or two about offering programming online, because the demand is
there. To Hulu execs, I say get rid of the private beta and make Hulu a
public service already.
If my experience shows anything, it is that
this service is far less buggy than just about any other video service
I have tried, which is quite a few.
Now, maybe some of those Hollywood bigwigs should pay
attention to the writers strike (possibly expected to continue
into 2008), before they run out of new
shows to add to Hulu and force America onto a strictly
reality television diet.
Michael Garrett is a contributing author discussing the social networking world, his work can be found on Profy.com
