Hulu is already a huge player in the burgeoning Web video market but things could be about to get even better for the NBC/Fox site. Global expansion and becoming the new home for music videos is now on the cards.
Hulu Already On The Up
Hulu is a brilliant video-sharing site on the Internet. The joint venture between NBC Universal and News Corp’s Fox has come from nowhere to be the sixth most-viewed online video site in a little over a year. And it’s profitable with it. But things can always improve.
Territorial Licensing
I have long had a bee in my bonnet about the stupid territorial restrictions that most video sites are subject to. Joost and YouTube are fine in the main but Hulu is purely for Americans and the BBC iPlayer is purely for Brits.
This is fine on paper and I can see the reasons behind the limitations placed on international viewers, but that doesn’t make it any less frustrating. These limitations are also going to severely impact on Web video’s chance to reach the level of popularity it should do.
Going Global?
We’ve already heard from the BBC about possibly going global in the future and now Hulu is making similar noises in that direction. In a wide-ranging interview with MediaPost, Hulu CEO Jason Kilar stated:
“The concept of Hulu is predicated on being a global business. Our mission statement describes us helping people to find and enjoy the world’s premium content wherever and however they want.”
“That will be predicated on finding the right partners and having a business model that enables us to create value for advertisers, content partners and our shareholders.”
“We are able to measure on a daily basis (mostly geo-filtered access logs) what the latent demand might be for content all over the world for a Hulu service overseas. We are obsessed about it.”
No timeline for this move is given but it seems the Hulu top brass are at least aware of how good for business a global expansion could be. The idea of a Hulu I could watch without having to employ the use of a proxy server fills me with joy.
Hulu Home For Music Videos
And there could soon be another reason to want, or need, Hulu. There are reports emerging that the big four record labels are looking at a deal with Hulu that could turn the site into the new home for music videos.
A new home looks increasingly likely after the breakdown of communication between Warner Music and Google saw all of Warner’s music videos removed from the video sharing market leader.
Ad-Supported Video Portal
The Financial Times claims that the music industry is looking at a number of different options of where to go next. One option is Hulu, another is a new online portal just for music videos, and yet another is launching a premium service on YouTube.
Quite what a “premium service” would mean isn’t yet clear but I can’t see anyone paying for the privilege of watching music videos. An online video portal supported by advertising seems a much more workable solution. And that already exists in the form of Hulu.
