On Monday, Disney agreed to pay Comcast’s NBCUniversal nearly $439 million to complete its full ownership of Hulu—a goal that’s been in the works ever since Disney bought 20th Century Fox in 2019 and became the majority owner of the streaming service. Now that Disney is 100% in charge, Hulu fans can expect to see some changes in their favorite streaming service, experts say.
Hulu, which started in 2007 and launched publicly in March 2008, has over 55 million subscribers and streams thousands of TV shows and movies. Disney’s chief executive Robert A. Iger said in a statement on Monday that complete control of Hulu will now open the doors for “a deeper and more seamless integration of Hulu’s general entertainment content with Disney+” (Disney’s own streaming service). But, that’s not the only benefit you can expect. Here are 5 changes you can expect as a Hulu subscriber and how they’ll affect your viewing.
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1 | More group deals with other streaming apps
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As Iger said, Disney’s big plans for Hulu are focused on creating a more integrated experience for customers who want to use multiple streaming services and apps.
Disney will now have more flexibility in bundling Hulu with Disney+, since it owns both platforms.
What’s more, it also has plans to launch a direct-to-consumer service for ESPN, called ESPN+, which will be included in this new bundling.
Disney hopes that this move will improve the streaming experience for current users by giving them more options under one single subscription. Plus, it may draw in new customers—and keep them watching year after year.
2 | More content within Hulu
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Current Hulu subscribers may also start to notice a lot more TV shows and movies at their disposal.
That’s because Disney will likely make it easier to access Disney+ content through Hulu and vice versa, experts say. That means if you’re a user of either app. you may start seeing the same content on both—meaning you don’t have to switch between services (and log-ins) to find your favorite shows and movies.
So, if you’re a fan of Disney movies and franchises, don’t be surprised if more of these start popping up in your Hulu app.
Of course, these plans have already been in the works since last year, but now that Disney is fully in the driver’s seat of both apps, there’s nothing holding them back.
3 | More live sporting events
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Disney’s new dominance in streaming means you may soon be able to watch more live sporting events at home.
The launch of ESPN+, for instance, is expected to drop at the start of college football season this fall.
The new service will provide access to all of ESPN’s current TV networks (ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU, ESPN Deportes, ESPN News, NFL Network), plus more live events, studio programming (like SportsCenter, First Take, and Pardon the Interruption), and original shows.
Disney is also promising that this new service for sports fans will offer new and unique features like betting, statistical analysis, and a more personalized SportsCenter on mobile and connected TVs.
Current Hulu subscribers will be able to access ESPN+ in a new bundle.
4 | More original shows and movies
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Now that Hulu has Disney’s full backing, it’s an even bigger player in the streaming wars. That means that you may be able to expect more original programming, like fresh TV shows and movies.
“Disney’s move to fully own Hulu makes the competition with Netflix, Prime Video, and Max even fiercer,” writes Bryan Tropeano at NewsWatch.
To win over subscribers, Disney may put up a renewed fight with more exclusive content—which could be a fun benefit for you if you’re a Hulu subscriber.
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5 | One potential “mega app”
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Imagine this: You no longer have a dozen streaming services and apps to sift through when you want some cozy couch time. Instead, you only have one.
While it doesn’t seem likely anytime soon, some experts are predicting that Disney’s full ownership of Hulu, Disney+, and ESPN+ could one day morph into one singular app that rules them all.
We’ll have to wait and see if this potential benefit plays out, but for now, get your remote ready, because streaming is about to get a lot more interesting—and competitive.
Content shared from bestlifeonline.com.