Type of business | Subsidiary |
---|---|
Type of site | OTT video streaming platform |
Headquarters | , U.S. |
Area served | United States |
Key people | Joe Earley (President) |
Parent | Disney Streaming |
URL | hulu.com |
Advertising | Yes |
Registration | Required |
Users | 51.1 million (as of August 20, 2024[update])[1] |
Launched | October 29, 2007 |
Current status | Active |
Hulu (/ˈhuːluː/, HOO-loo) (stylized as "hulu") is an American subscription streaming media service owned by Disney Streaming, a subsidiary of the Disney Entertainment segment of the Walt Disney Company.
It was launched on October 29, 2007, initially as a joint venture between News Corporation (later 21st Century Fox) and NBC Universal (later bought by Comcast), 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 streaming television service offering access to broadcast television 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] Since February 2021, Hulu's original content has since been distributed outside of the U.S. via Disney+ under the Star brand. In 2019, Disney acquired Fox's stake in Hulu as part of its acquisition of 21st Century Fox, gaining a majority stake in the service, and subsequently acquired the remaining stake held by Comcast in 2023, giving it full ownership. After the acquisition, Disney soft launched an integration of Hulu into Disney+ as a content hub in December 2023, allowing subscribers to both services to access Hulu content from within the Disney+ apps.