LOS ANGELES (AP) — Stephen King’s time-travel novel about the Kennedy assassination is being adapted as a small-screen miniseries. Streaming service Hulu said Monday that the nine-hour series, titled “11/22/63” […]
Exclusives
There is a glimmer of hope that there could be a sixth season of cult comedy series Community. Hulu is in talks with Community producer Sony Pictures TV for more original installments of the show, which was canceled by NBC earlier this month. Sources stress that conversations are preliminary and it is unclear whether they will lead to a deal.
Hulu is padding its growing list of exclusive SVOD rights to primetime series. The streaming service announced Tuesday that previous seasons of Fox series The Mindy Project and Brooklyn Nine-Nine will be available only on Hulu Plus (and not rivals Netflix or Amazon Prime). In addition, a slew of series from NBC Universal-owned cable channels Bravo and E! will make backlogs of previous episodes from long-running series available only on Hulu Plus as well.
Hulu is making a statement in the original content arena with the hire of seasoned TV development executive Craig Erwich. Erwich, who recently exited his post as president of Warner Horizon, has been tapped as SVP and head of content for Hulu to lead the content and programming strategy for Hulu and Hulu Plus.
The multi-year licensing deal will give Hulu Plus subscribers access to more than 5,300 episodes of CBS shows.
Starting Jan. 6 the network will restrict next-day access to new episodes of TV shows to subscribers of participating pay TV affiliates and Hulu Plus. Whereas previously ABC shows were available to anyone for free, under the new system only paying subs will have next-day access. The shows will be free without a subscription after one week.
Handing Hulu a defeat, a judge ruled on Friday that users don’t need to show they sustained a financial loss in order to proceed with a privacy lawsuit against the company. The lawsuit centers on allegations that the streaming service wrongly shared data about users with comScore and Facebook, in violation of the Video Privacy Protection Act.
Hulu expects to post $1 billion in revenue in 2013, up from $695 million a year ago, the streaming media enterprise’s new CEO said in a blog post on Wednesday. Chief executive Mike Hopkins also said that Hulu will double its efforts to obtain original content.
Consumers who are suing Hulu for allegedly sharing data about them say they should be allowed to proceed in court regardless of whether they suffered any economic losses. The consumers say that third parties can figure out people’s identities from their User IDs, while Hulu counters that people can’t recover money unless they have been injured as a result of disclosures.
In announcing that it struck a deal with Netflix for four new series based on Marvel Entertainment characters, Disney not only bypassed its broadcast and cable properties, but also Hulu, its co-owned online streaming service that is struggling to compete with Netflix.
Mike Hopkins, a Hulu board director since 2011 and Fox executive since 2008, was named CEO of the online video venture. Hopkins will succeed Andy Forssell, who had been acting CEO since Jason Kilar left the company in March.
Hulu is close to naming Fox executive Mike Hopkins as its chief executive officer, two people with knowledge of the matter said. The appointment is expected to be announced shortly, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the deliberations are private. Hopkins, president of distribution for Fox Networks, would succeed Andy Forssell, acting CEO of the Internet service.
Hulu argues in new court papers that a class-action lawsuit accusing it of violating a federal video privacy law should be dismissed on the grounds that the Web users who filed suit didn’t suffer any injuries.
Nearly half of all TV homes today have the technology to take advantage of Netflix, Amazon, Hulu and other over-the-top video-on-demand platforms. TV networks are now challeneged to figure out how to exploit those platforms.
Hulu has signed a deal with BBC Worldwide North America that will add 144 titles to the streaming service’s roster, including doctor Who, Torchwood, Sherlock and Luther, among others. The content will mostly be available on the $7.99-per-month Hulu Plus service.
ABC is streaming pilots for its three new fall comedies — The Goldbergs, Trophy Wife and Back in the Game — for free via WatchABC.com, the Watch ABC mobile app and Hulu three weeks ahead of their premieres.
Hulu has ordered 10 episodes of a new scripted supernatural comedy called Deadbeat from Lionsgate, with all episodes directed and exec produced by TV producing vet Troy Miller (credits include Netflix’s reboot of Arrested Development, Brand X With Russell Brand and others).
Google’s Chromecast will enjoy wider support from some of the most popular mobile video apps, including Hulu, HBO and Pandora. An interesting battle is taking shape between the search giant and Apple over the mobile-to-TV ecosystem.
The owners of video streaming site Hulu called off talks with Time Warner Cable over the cable operator’s plan to take a 25% stake after failing to agree on a price, according to two people with knowledge of the negotiations.
With a sale averted, Hulu executives can now focus on more important matters — promoting the site’s highly anticipated original animated series The Awesomes, which will make its debut Aug. 1.
Now that Hulu isn’t getting sold, and its broadcast net parents are pledging to invest $750 million in the video site, the talk is that Hulu will focus on its subscription business and competing with buzzy Netflix as well as programming newbie Amazon. And that means investing in shows—original shows that will make paying for Hulu Plus compelling (especially if Hulu loses some of the exclusive TV rights it has enjoyed).
Fox, Disney and NBCUniversal have called off their planned sale of Hulu and will invest $750 million in the online video company, they announced today. The owners had been exploring a sale for the past several months, accepting offers from as many as seven different companies. Everyone from Yahoo to private equity firm Silver Lake Partners to DirecTV made an offer, but the number of interested bidders diminished as the owners insisted on receiving at least $1 billion for the company.
Hulu Sale Casting Shadow Over Sun Valley
The auction for the Web video hub is starting to rankle bidders, with suitors wondering what program rights are included in the hefty billion-dollar price tag and whether the owners are truly committed to a sale, sources say. “There’s a lot of frustration on all sides,” one source says. “This industry just can’t work together.”
Sun Valley, the annual mogul get-together hosted by Allen & Company which kicks off Tuesday evening, will have golf, creek-side cocktails and the King of Jordan. But what about the deals? Anything can happen between rounds of golf and closed-door panels — but it’ll probably be consolidation.
Several companies put in initial bids to buy the video streaming service, and now it’s looking like both DirecTV and Time Warner also made follow-up offers.
