Hulu paying $40-50 million to get Colbert, Stewart back
updated 11:45 am EST, Thu February 3, 2011
Hulu to pay at least $40 million for Viacom shows
Getting two of its more popular shows back will cost Hulu between $40 and $50 million, parties behind the deal told AllThingsD. That amount will also buy content other than The Daily Show and The Colbert Report from cable company Viacom, including Jersey Shore and Tosh.0, among others. The payout could get even large depending on how well the show is doing, according to the tips.
The full length of deal, which Viacom only said would last into 2012, isn't revealed, though it's likely to be the usual two years. Hulu has such contracts with Fox, ABC and NBC. Both The Daily Show and The Colbert Report will be available to Hulu site visitors one day after they air for free. Shows such as Jersey Shore and Tosh.0 will only be available to paid Hulu plus subscribers 21 days after they originally air.
Viacom had put The Daily Show on Hulu early on but pulled it in hopes of steering customers back to its main website. While it did see an increase in traffic, the move was widely regarded as a mistake since it reduced exposure and might have temporarily hurt the show's growth. Hulu also missed out on a major driver of traffic that could now be more important with the rise of Hulu Plus and the wider adoption of web-based TV streaming.
