hulu

Hulu tries to one-up Netflix with CW deal

Hulu has signed a licensing deal with CW Network that will give the online-video service something that its archrival Netflix doesn't have.

Two weeks ago, Netflix announced its own deal with the network operated by Time Warner and CBS, parent company of CNET. But in that deal, Netflix customers will get only previous seasons of current CW shows, such as "Gossip Girl" and "The Vampire Diaries."

Hulu said in a press release today that under the five-year agreement, it will "offer next-day access to the most recent five current prime-time episodes [at Hulu Plus, … Read more

Hulu Plus making its way to 3DS, Wii

Hulu Plus will be arriving on the Nintendo Wii and 3DS by the end of the year, the game company announced today.

As with other Hulu Plus integrations, Wii and 3DS owners will be able to access the streaming company's entire library of movies and television shows, including "Modern Family" and "Battlestar Galactica." In order to watch Hulu Plus content from the devices, users will need to pay the $7.99-per-month fee required to access the service.

The addition of Hulu Plus to the 3DS comes just a few months after Nintendo announced that Netflix's streaming service would be made available to the portable's owners. Both integrations are part of a broader strategy on Nintendo's part to bring more consumers into the 3DS fold.… Read more

The 404 929: Where we hail to the chief (podcast)

It's a busy job being president of CBS Interactive, but Jim Lanzone takes an hour to sit down with CNET's The 404 Podcast to talk shop, so we're minding our Ps and Qs, our Fs....Ss....Bs....and Ds.

Jim kicks off the conversation and tells us about his experience in the start-up world with eTour, Clicker, and Ask.com, then we explore his ideas about the future of television and how Web programming will compete with DVRs.

We'll also chat about GameSpot and EA teaming up for The Controller, a competition reality show where the best pro-gamers from around the country battle in a high-stakes competition without ever touching the controller.

Finally, we're taking questions from the live chat room and talking with Jim about today's tech news headlines, like the new Lytro camera that captures light in every direction in every point in space (whoa), the most annoying tech words in Web 2.0, and a reminder to turn off Siri access in your iPhone 4S's lock screen!… Read more

Hulu owners call off sale

Hulu's owners have decided to take the online video service off the auction block.

The owners--Walt Disney, News Corp., Comcast, and equity firm Providence Equity Partners--announced today that they decided to terminate the sales process.

"Since Hulu holds a unique and compelling strategic value to each of its owners, we have terminated the sale process and look forward to working together to continue mapping out its path to even greater success," Hulu owners said in a statement. "Our focus now rests solely on ensuring that our efforts as owners contribute in a meaningful way to the … Read more

Get a 3D-ready Samsung Blu-ray player for $69.99

I have mixed feelings about 3D. Much as I enjoyed "Avatar" and "Despicable Me" on the big screen, I'm not exactly dying to bring the 3D experience into my home.

On the other hand, why not give myself the option? All I need is a 3D-ready TV (or projector) and Blu-ray player. Today only, and while supplies last, DailySteals has a killer deal on the latter: a refurbished Samsung BD-D5500C 3D-capable Blu-ray player for $69.99, plus $4.99 for shipping.

That price rivals, and even exceeds, most of the non-3D Blu-ray players I'… Read more

Qwikster no more

iPhone 4S pre-orders top 1 million units, Yahoo pulls out of its bid for Hulu, and Netflix announces the cancellation of Qwikster in a brief blog post.

Links from Monday's episode of Loaded:

Netflix cancels Qwikster iPhone 4S gets more than one million orders on first day Google targets JavaScript with Dart Bidding for Hulu Barnes & Noble puts freeze on DC Comics Subscribe:  iTunes (MP3)iTunes (320x180)iTunes (HD)RSS (MP3)RSS (320x180)RSS HD

Yahoo out as Hulu mulls other bids, report says

As Hulu executives determine the proper direction for the future of their company, the firm that was first to show interest in acquiring the streaming-video provider has withdrawn from the race, a new report claims.

Currently, Hulu's board of directors is mulling bids from Dish Network, Amazon, and Google, The Wall Street Journal is reporting, citing anonymous sources. However, Yahoo, which first met with Hulu to discuss a possible acquisition, has backed out of trying to acquire the firm as it prepares to potentially sell off its own company.

With Yahoo out of the way, it appears Dish Network … Read more

Is Netflix even worth it anymore? (Ask Maggie)

As Netflix hikes prices and tweaks its content to add more TV programming, some avid fans are wondering if they should cancel their subscriptions.

Netflix has already lost some customers due to the abrupt price hike in July. The newly announced plan to separate the streaming service from the DVD-by-mail service may also cause other customers to flee. And then there was more disruptive news this week, as a company executive acknowledged that movie content, the bread and butter of the Netflix offering, is getting too expensive for streaming. Instead the company will focus more attention on getting rights to … Read more

Facebook partners for easy song, film sharing--report

Following reports yesterday that suggested Facebook would use its upcoming F8 developers conference to announce some sort of music and/or video service, The New York Times says it has confirmed the service with anonymous industry sources, and the paper has provided some details on how the new service will look.

Yesterday, Dutch entrepreneur and developer Yvo Schaap spied a clue in the HTML for the Web sites of Spotify, Rhapsody, and several other major music services that pointed to some type of custom Facebook format. Meanwhile, The New York Post reported that Hulu and Facebook would announce at this … Read more

Facebook, Hulu to strengthen ties, report says

Facebook is set to announce stronger ties to Hulu next week at its F8 developer conference, according to a report in the New York Post.

Citing anonymous sources, the Post offered little detail, saying only that the social-networking giant would announce deeper integration between the two companies--integration, the Post said, that could lead to "the potential for users to see what their friends are watching on Hulu and share video content between their personal networks."

The Post also reported that other video providers could be involved, and mentioned that Netflix is "also very close" to Facebook.… Read more