ABC Joins NBC and Fox at Hulu, CBS Stays in the Cold
Smart Networks, Smart Choice
I have no idea what CBS’ snob problem is, but thankfully ABC owner the Walt Disney Company has finally made the savvy decision to offer numerous of its television shows via fabulous video streaming website Hulu.
A recently negotiated transaction will make Disney an equity partner in Hulu, along with current founding partners NBC Universal, News Corp., and Providence Equity Partners. This development means that soon, Hulu devotees like me will be able to watch a host of shows from ABC, ABC Family, and the Disney Channel with Hulu’s far superior player.
Series to look out for include: ABC’s Desperate Housewives, General Hospital, Grey’s Anatomy, Lost, Private Practice, Scrubs, and Ugly Betty; ABC Family’s Greek and The Secret Life of the American Teenager; and Disney Channel’s Wizards of Waverly Place.
As for lone holdout CBS, and by extension its sister network The CW, it refuses to join in the movement for progress, apparently because it fears losing the ability to control the rights for its television content. Broadcasting & Cable provides the following relevant quote from a CBS press release:
CBS has long employed open, non-exclusive content partnerships that allow fans across the internet to engage with our programming in such a way that we control our distribution, sales and profit. We continue to discuss similar arrangements with additional partners as we grow our online audience based on the strength of our content, and the passion of the communities it creates. The company also believes that controlling our own rights for that content — in all media — preserves its value in a multi-platform business system.
Yada, yada, yada. If CBS wants to remain in the Stone Ages of television, whatever. That network’s loss is all of the other forward-thinking networks’ gain. May the latter’s wisdom contribute to increased ratings for their shows when aired on TV.
Greek photo courtesy of ABC Family
