Hulu Might Start Charging

Chase Carey: Hulu to Charge in 2010 - ADverse: Atkinson on Advertising | Blog on Broadcasting & Cable

Article highlights:
News Corp's C.O.O. Chase Carey announces his belief that Hulu needs to start charging for content.

Important facts:
Hulu is a joint venture by NBC Universal and News Corp. [Link]

Analysis:
Hulu has always struck me as too good to be true and there are ways of thwarting the embedded adds. I discovered this accidentally when I started using Playon from Mediamall to stream Hulu to my PS3 Slim. In short, you can simply fast forward through the commercials.

Considering that the embedded commercials are what make Hulu free, being able to fast forward effectively nullifies Hulu's income.

Further, while I am always a proponent of good stuff that I don't have to pay for, I am curious to see how Hulu will make paying for stuff seem attractive. Could this be similar to Comcast's "Fancast" (on demand, online tv)? I.e. providing instant online access to the shows without a delay?

After all, Hulu will have a tough time making a sale to a growing public who have come to love and depend on a free Hulu. In fact, many Hulu users utilize it as a free cable substitute. In other words, Hulu users don't like paying for stuff and Hulu knows this; thats why they created Hulu in the first place.

Even though charging for stuff is going to be initially off putting, Mr. Carey's statements that the model of choice would allow users to "appreciate the value" suggest to me that the paid Hulu subscription could provide a premium service that makes it worth the money.

I know its too early to know for sure, but this could be how "a la cart" cable becomes a reality. To date Hulu has provided a great service, but for me its not been quite good enough to totally ditch the cable. If my suspicions are right and Hulu becomes a virtual cable company, it might provide a very compelling alternative, especially if they offer an a la carte option.

We'll see!

- Konrad