The Hulu app isn’t long for this world, according to Disney. While the standalone app is being phased out, however, the brand that Disney now owns in full is set for international expansion.
Hulu started in 2007 as a joint venture between FOX and NBC before attracting more stakeholders including Disney (which owns ABC). As of this year, however, Hulu is entirely owned by Disney.
As part of its quarterly earnings results announcement today, Disney shared plans to phase out the standalone version of the Hulu app that has existed for more than 15 years.
Instead, Hulu content will be fully integrated into the flagship Disney+ app. Disney already includes Hulu content in the Disney+ app as part of a separate subscription, but a new integrated experience is being readied for next year.
Via Variety:
“Today we are announcing a major step forward in strengthening our streaming offering by fully integrating Hulu into Disney+,” CEO Bob Iger and CFO Hugh Johnston said in their prepared remarks on the quarterly earnings. “This will create an impressive package of entertainment, pairing the highest-caliber brands and franchises, great general entertainment, family programming, news, and industry-leading live sports content in a single app.”
Meanwhile, Hulu is going international this fall as Disney repurposes the brand to replace the Star tab in the Disney+ app, replacing the latter brand with Hulu going forward.
Separately, Disney says it will no longer report subscriber numbers for its streaming services, something that Apple and Netflix already avoid.
Later this month, Disney will launch a standalone version of ESPN, offering the full live sports viewing experience without cable for the first time. FOX is similarly launching its own standalone subscription service this month with all of its content as well.
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