Hulu’s reach may get its hand cut off

I’m enormously skeptical of Hulu’s aspirations to be bundled with pay TV services for a number of reasons:

First, with channels like HBO, AMC and others making such strong inroads into original programming it’s hard to imagine them not throwing a fit at Hulu getting in their soup when original content is emerging as core to Hulu’s future success.

Second, Hulu plus would seem to compete with the VOD offerings available from the cable providers, who are going to throw their own fit over additional competition. Both are ways to watch older episodes of classic shows so I can’t imagine the providers sitting still while a subscription-based all-you-can-eat model competes with their fee-per-episode one.

Hulu seems to be trying to walk the line by saying it’s an “online” option for on-demand viewing, but that’s a distinction that’s not going to matter a whit to the audience, who will just see it as another option that’s available at a more competitive price point.

By Chris Thilk

Chris Thilk is a freelance writer and content strategist with over 15 years of experience in online strategy and content marketing. He lives in the Chicago suburbs.