Media Wonk

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Hulu protects its rear - October 29, 2007

Media Wonk's invitation to join Hulu's private has, um, not yet arrived, so he can't report any first hand impressions. Elsewhere, however, the News Corp./NBC Universal joint venture is getting high marks for its user interface and the mix of content available (supplemented on the eve of the beta launch by deals with Sony Pictures Television and MGM.

As with so much of the major media companies' effort to embrace the Web, from the details that have emerged so far it appears that News Corp.'s and NBC's strategy with Hulu is still very much deal-driven, rather than user-driven.

• The shows are ad-supported and free to the consumer, which is a step in the right direction. But the site does not support user-generated content. You can share and embed the videos (which will travel with ads intact) but no mash-ups at Hulu. You're a viewer, not a user.
• New episodes appear quickly after their initial broadcast, but generally only stay on the site for five weeks, at which point, presumably they disappear. Some have seen that as a relapse into traditional schedule-driven programmer-think. But it's more likely an effort to protect the DVD window. Full seasons--or even six-episode half seasons--won't be archived on Hulu where they could they could compete with the DVD boxed-set.
• Hulu is a streaming site. No electronic sell-through, at least for now. That also smacks of an effort to protect DVD sales.
• For now at least, the streamed videos cannot be accessed outside the U.S. (a decision that drew immediate complaints on Hulu's official blog). Clearly, the partners feel compelled to protect the international broadcast window, which generally lags the U.S. network premiere.

Some of the initial policies may change over time, of course, as content providers accumulate more data on Hulu's overall success and its impact on other distribution channels. But basing a strategy on what you're trying to prevent rather than what you're trying to accomplish risks achieving neither.

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