Hulu

Hulu
Logo used since 2018
Type of businessSubsidiary
Type of site
OTT video streaming platform
Headquarters,
U.S.
Area servedUnited States
OwnerThe Walt Disney Company
Key peopleJoe Earley (President)
ParentDisney Streaming
URLhulu.com
AdvertisingYes
RegistrationRequired
UsersIncrease 49.7 million (as of December 30, 2023)[1]
LaunchedOctober 29, 2007 (2007-10-29)
Current statusActive

Hulu (/ˈhl/) is an American subscription streaming media and content hub within the Disney+ streaming service owned by The Walt Disney Company. It was launched on October 29, 2007.

Hulu was initially established as a joint venture between News Corporation and NBCUniversal, Providence Equity, and later The Walt Disney Company, serving as an aggregation of recent episodes of television series from their respective television broadcasting. In 2010, Hulu launched a subscription service, initially branded as "Hulu Plus", which featured full seasons of programs from the companies and other partners, and un-delayed access to new episodes. In 2017, the company launched Hulu with Live TV—an over-the-top live TV service featuring broadcast programming channels.

In 2011, Hulu launched its services in Japan, marking its first and only international expansion. Three years later in 2014, Hulu Japan was acquired by Nippon TV and spun off from its American counterpart.[2]

A beta hub of Hulu launched on Disney+ in the United States on December 6, 2023,[3] with a full release later followed on March 27, 2024.[4] The hub shares similarities with the Star hub that was previously launched on Disney+ in February 2021 outside the U.S. as a substitute to Hulu.

  1. ^ "THE WALT DISNEY COMPANY REPORTS FIRST QUARTER EARNINGS FOR FISCAL 2024" (PDF). The Walt Disney Company. Retrieved February 8, 2024.
  2. ^ "Nippon TV Acquires Hulu Service in Japan". www.businesswire.com. February 28, 2014. Archived from the original on March 21, 2023. Retrieved March 21, 2023.
  3. ^ Weprin, Alex (December 6, 2023). "Disney+ Launches Hulu Hub in Bid to Boost In-House Bundle". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved December 7, 2023.
  4. ^ "The Disney Plus-Hulu merger is way more than a streaming bundle". The Verge. March 27, 2024. Retrieved March 27, 2024.