hulu

Hulu chief asks bosses for $200M in funding -- WSJ

Hulu CEO Jason Kilar has asked his corporate overlords for twice as much cash as last year to fund the company's growth strategy, a new report claims.

Kilar has petitioned Hulu owners Walt Disney, Comcast, and News Corp. for $200 million for 2013 to be used for acquiring more programming and expanding the company's reach around the world, the Wall Street Journal is reporting today, citing people who claim to have knowledge of the talks. Last year, Kilar asked for about half of that figure.

According to the Journal's sources, a decision hasn't been made yet … Read more

If Hulu's still up for sale, the price of any deal just went up

Remember all those "who is going to buy Hulu" rumors that made the rounds? So far, they're just industry gossip. But in his annual state-of-the-state message, Hulu's chief executive made sure to leave any would-be acquirers with a case of remorse for not having the trigger on a deal.

Hulu is going to finish 2012 with about $695 million in sales and more than 3 million paying subscribers, according to CEO Jason Kilar, who today disclosed the news in a blog post. He also said that Hulu's revenue had grown 65 percent from 2011, without … Read more

Hulu Plus for Android rolls out children's section

Watching "SpongeBob SquarePants" and "Caillou" on Android devices just got a little easier today.

Hulu Plus announced that it updated its Android app with Hulu Kids integration. With this new feature, parents are able to make sure their children don't stray from their kid's shows by using a "Lock For Kids" button. Parents can also search Hulu Kids to find popular shows from different networks and age groups.

Hulu Kids launched in November featuring dozens of children's TV shows from Nickelodeon, PBS, Lionsgate, and more. The kid's feature has its … Read more

Could Yahoo's move away from media be AOL's big chance?

NEW YORK--Yahoo's new direction under CEO Marissa Mayer could be the big chance for AOL, a couple of former tech execs said today.

Ross Levinsohn, who served as interim Yahoo chief executive before Mayer's appointment, and Jon Miller, AOL's former CEO, said during a Business Insider conference in New York that Yahoo's shift away from becoming a media company in favor of focusing on its core tech offerings could be really lucky for AOL.

"It creates an opportunity for AOL I haven't seen for them in a number of years," said Miller, who … Read more

Hulu Plus swings onto Wii U for dual-screen boost

Hulu Plus is now available on the Wii U.

The company launched its service on Nintendo's new console yesterday. Hulu Plus users will find that as they watch shows on their television, the GamePad will play an integral role in the viewing experience. While watching a show on the big screen, the Wii U's GamePad displays information on a host of topics, including the current show or episode. Users can also queue up another episode to watch on the big screen.

Hulu didn't just stop there. According to the company, users can also watch the show they … Read more

Wii U to ship incomplete, missing Nintendo TVii service and more

Just like the 3DS before it, Nintendo's Wii U console will ship with limited functionality, falling short of what the company promised would be available on launch day this Sunday, according to a Nintendo press release.

Most notable from the release is the absence of the Nintendo TVii service, the free program the company had said would be available from day one. TVii will be activated for the Wii U sometime in December. As you may recall, TVii is the live TV, TiVo DVR, and streaming service integration that aims to become the jumping-off point for your living-room entertainment. … Read more

Hollywood bigwig Peter Chernin joins Twitter's board

Welcome, @peterchernin, to Twitter's board.

— Twitter (@twitter) November 16, 2012

Twitter said this afternoon that former News Corp. executive Peter Chernin has become the newest member of its board of directors.

Well known in Hollywood, Chernin helped launch Hulu and is on Pandora's board. The move was expected, with All Things D reporting earlier in the day that Twitter was "poised" to name Chernin.

Rumors about who would be the newest Twitter director have been flying for months, with Chernin's name prominently mentioned.

Twitter's current board members are CEO Dick Costolo, co-founder Evan Williams, … Read more

Report: Hollywood big shot Peter Chernin set to join Twitter's board

As Twitter becomes more and more mainstream, it may also be trying to become more Hollywood.

According to AllThingsD, Twitter plans to name Peter Chernin, a well-known Hollywood executive, to its board of directors. Chernin would take the spot on the board vacated by Flipboard CEO Mike McCue.

Rumors have been flying for months that Chernin, who has held top slots at News Corp., and who helped start Hulu and is on Pandora's board, would become a Twitter director.

Twitter's current board members are CEO Dick Costolo, co-founder Evan Williams, Fred Wilson of Union Square Ventures, co-founder and … Read more

CNET Exclusive: Thirty-three percent off Roku Bundle

I love my Roku. I want to start with that so there is no confusion. I've been the proud owner of a Roku since 2010 (thanks Uncle Mike) and just upgraded to the Roku 2 XD. And today we've teamed up with the wonderful people at Roku to bring the CNET Exclusives' audience an unbeatable deal on a Roku bundle.

The Roku is a fantastic streaming media device that allows you watch content from Netflix, Amazon, Hulu Plus, Crackle, Pandora, and the list goes on and on. With an assortment of free and paid services, the Roku 2 … Read more

Return of the $79.99 Roku-Hulu Plus combo deal

This is an update of a deal I first wrote about back in June. With the holidays upon us, it's the perfect time for this "rerun."

Through the end of next week, and while supplies last, Roku is bundling the Roku HD box, a six-month Hulu Plus subscription, and an HDMI cable for $79.99 shipped. Those items would normally cost you around $128 if purchased separately.

A brief personal story: we're having a bit of trouble with our cable service. For some reason, the signal from ABC has degraded in the last couple weeks, leaving … Read more