Hulu will not be a part of Apple's video streaming service, report says
Although Apple's streaming video platform should offer an assortment of third-party services at launch, Hulu reportedly won't be one of them.
Services that will "likely" be onboard include Starz, Showtime, CBS All Access, Noggin and HBO, CNBC sources said. The people didn't say why Hulu would be excluded, but echoed previous reports saying that Netflix is also not participating.
Those two services are popular enough that they may feel they don't need to sell through the new platform, due to be announced March 25. Netflix helped pioneer streaming video, and Hulu is a joint venture between Disney, Comcast/NBCUniversal and AT&T/WarnerMedia.
Apple is allegedly aiming to take 30 percent of the revenue for subscriptions enabled through its "TV" app. If so, the exposure may not be considered worth it. Video watched in Hulu appears in the TV app regardless.
Hulu also offers subscriptions to outside services on its own, and might not want to jeopardize that business.
Apple is preparing a barrage of original shows costing over $1 billion. At least some of these will likely be free to watch for Apple device owners -- it's not yet clear if the service will be accessible via Android or Windows.
Services that will "likely" be onboard include Starz, Showtime, CBS All Access, Noggin and HBO, CNBC sources said. The people didn't say why Hulu would be excluded, but echoed previous reports saying that Netflix is also not participating.
Those two services are popular enough that they may feel they don't need to sell through the new platform, due to be announced March 25. Netflix helped pioneer streaming video, and Hulu is a joint venture between Disney, Comcast/NBCUniversal and AT&T/WarnerMedia.
Apple is allegedly aiming to take 30 percent of the revenue for subscriptions enabled through its "TV" app. If so, the exposure may not be considered worth it. Video watched in Hulu appears in the TV app regardless.
Hulu also offers subscriptions to outside services on its own, and might not want to jeopardize that business.
Apple is preparing a barrage of original shows costing over $1 billion. At least some of these will likely be free to watch for Apple device owners -- it's not yet clear if the service will be accessible via Android or Windows.
Comments
I'm looking forward to seeing what Apple does. In an ideal world, Apple make all the 3rd party services happy to participate, and I just deal with one bill instead of the multitude I pay for all the different streaming services.
The problems with Hulu are the companies involved. Comcast should never have been able to grab NBC/Universal.
Apple Vision
The leaks/rumors so far haven't been encouraging. I really hope Apple does something different. I'd gladly pay a monthly subscription if they turn iTunes Movies and TV shows into an on-demand, all-you-can-eat service like Apple Music. I don't care if they let me subscribe to other services or "channels". If I could pick individual shows from across many different services and build my own custom "channel", that would make me very interested.