Hulu in talks with ITV for UK start

Hulu, the US video-on-demand venture, has begun talks with British broadcasters including ITV as it gears up for a UK launch later this year.

By Amanda Andrews

Published: 9:59PM BST 25 Jul 2009

A launch in the UK has been much anticipated following the website's huge success in the US, where it has attracted more than 24 million users a month. Hulu users can watch episodes and clips of popular TV programmes and films from a range of broadcasters via the internet.

Following the failed attempt at getting Project Kangaroo – the video-on-demand (VOD) venture planned by broadcasters including ITV and Channel 4 –past regulators, Hulu has recognised that there is a gap in the market for an ad-funded on-demand offering which brings together content from major broadcasters.

A UK Hulu site is also likely to include a significant amount of US content and would provide a one-stop shop for VOD content.

Hulu was thought to have had some reservations about entering the UK market because of concern about a stringent regulatory environment.

However, the talks suggest they are keen to move quickly. An ITV source confirmed that talks had begun with Hulu.

Project Kangaroo, a venture also involving BBC Worldwide, was blocked by the Competition Commission earlier this year on the grounds it posed too much of a threat to the development of a new market.

"The case is essentially about the control of UK-originated TV content," the commission said at the time.

The ruling was a blow to ITV and Channel 4, which had hoped an internet TV service would provide a new revenue stream, as the recession hits already-dwindling advertising income.

Arqiva, a broadcasting transmission company, bought the assets of Project Kangaroo last week, including software technology and intellectual property last week. The company plans to start its own video-on-demand service in the coming months.

Project Kangaroo cost BBC Worldwide, the commercial arm of the broadcaster, £9.1m and ITV has said its costs relating to the venture would be around £12m.

The BBC's director general has suggested other broadcasters could share its iPlayer VOD service, which allows viewers to watch BBC shows online at a time of their choosing.

From Telegraph.co.uk

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Comment: If Hulu launches in the UK it could well be game over for Blinkx. Maybe if Blinkx hadn't wasted so much time - for example on the complete fiasco of the Miva 'bid' - they'd be further down the road and Hulu would be less of a threat.

Still, maybe Hulu will make an offer for Blinkx, to add Blinkx's 35m+ hours of indexed video to Hulu's own content indexes? Hulu could probably get Blinkx for 70-100p a share, and become by far the largest internet video site in terms of indexed content.

Interesting thought...