Leak: Hulu's content staying exclusive post-sale, CEO eager
updated 06:25 pm EDT, Mon June 27, 2011
Hulu content to stay exclusive after sale, more
More details regarding the upcoming and expected sale of Hulu have been dug up by AllThingsD. Hulu's content partners, including known deals for Disney and Fox, have extended their licenses and these will stay in place after a sale of the video streaming company. Comcast/NBCUniversal will be forced to follow these partners, and the content from the three will be mainly exclusive to Hulu.
The three partners do have the right to put up the shows on corporate-owned sites, however. All of these would boost Hulu's value with any prospective buyers.
One planned aspect that won't contribute to the perceived value of the company includes increasing the amount of time TV shows will be available online after they initially air. The content partners want users to wait as much as eight days after the initial air date unless they can prove they are cable subscribers. A system that would police this hasn't yet been developed, however.
At the same time, Hulu CEO Jason Kilar has it in his best interests to see a sale of the company. His contract expires in July and a sale would allow him to cash out his equity stakes.
