Hulu Launching U.K. Service in September

It’s a moment many have been waiting for: Hulu in Europe. Starting with the U.K., Hulu will travel across the Atlantic this September, according to Variety. This would apply to many Cinetic titles, but obviously not all of the studio and TV network shows that Americans have come to expect:

While premium fare like “The Simpsons” and “Heroes” are unlikely to be available to British users of Hulu, some 3,000 hours of other U.S. shows are expected to be featured once rights issues are resolved. The launch of Hulu U.K. is being watched with keen interest by British webheads, who so far have been frustrated by regulators in their attempts to launch a commercial online video offering.

The success of the BBC iPlayer suggests there is a potential goldmine waiting for the first to successfully tap this market. Earlier this year the proposed online service Kangaroo, backed by the BBC, ITV and Channel 4, was ambushed by the Competition Commission. Now another online video offering, Canvas, bankrolled by ITV, the BBC and telco British Telecom, is waiting to be greenlit by the BBC Trust.

Earlier this week, Five topper Dawn Airey warned that unless the Brits get their act together on online video and act collaboratively, a U.S. outfit would strike first.

mattdentler posted on July 2, 2009 | Permalink | Comments (0)

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