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Hands-on with Hulu Plus: is it worth $10/month?

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11–20 of 43 posts

Re: Hands-on with Hulu Plus: is it worth $10/month?

#11

If they want it to be worth $10 (or more), there's one big thing they'd need to do: live streaming (or, at least upload shows right when the episode ends). Like Dustin Curtis said, "Netflix killed Blockbuster, but Hulu is going to kill Netflix. So much death, and I still can't watch fucking live TV on the internet."

That's an awesome quote, hadn't seen it before! Pretty much sums it all up, doesn't it?

Re: Hands-on with Hulu Plus: is it worth $10/month?

#12
post #7
post #4

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Actually if your primary interest is online streaming netflix offers unlimited streaming in their 8.99 a month plan, a bit less than hulu.

It's even further cheaper when you place a value on your time spent watching Hulu's commercials. Not to mention the decreased entertainment experience from the commercial interruptions.

Hulu ads aren't bad. Mute the computer and switch to another tab for thirty seconds. Far better than ads on actual television, since you know exactly when they're going to end, and even if you miss it you can always rewind.

Re: Hands-on with Hulu Plus: is it worth $10/month?

#13

If they want it to be worth $10 (or more), there's one big thing they'd need to do: live streaming (or, at least upload shows right when the episode ends). Like Dustin Curtis said, "Netflix killed Blockbuster, but Hulu is going to kill Netflix. So much death, and I still can't watch fucking live TV on the internet."

I totally agree. Most TV shows appear on BitTorrent networks within an hour of airing. Why can't hulu beat those delivery times when they have a partnership with the content producers?

Re: Hands-on with Hulu Plus: is it worth $10/month?

#14

If they want it to be worth $10 (or more), there's one big thing they'd need to do: live streaming (or, at least upload shows right when the episode ends). Like Dustin Curtis said, "Netflix killed Blockbuster, but Hulu is going to kill Netflix. So much death, and I still can't watch fucking live TV on the internet."

Wait, why would I want to pay to watch whatever's on right now? I have a TV and an antenna for that.

Re: Hands-on with Hulu Plus: is it worth $10/month?

#15
post #3

The letdown of Hulu Plus and the horrendous monstrosity that is Netflix (and its even worse iPad app) are at least movements in the right direction. I find solace in the mere idea that one day I might be able to go to a website, select an episode, and watch television content on my computer screen. I don't know why this is so hard. I am willing to pay money for it! I will open my wallet and pay money to watch TV on m…

I do not know how Hulu Plus is steaming data to the iP(ad)hone, but there has to be some sort of encryption. The reason so many streaming sites use Adobe Flash and/or Microsoft SilverLight is because they offer it. Youtube wrote a blog post about HTML5 and included some insight on this[1].

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Content Protection :: YouTube doesn't own the videos that you watch - they're owned by their respective creators, who control how those videos are distributed through YouTube. For YouTube Rentals, video owners require us to use secure streaming technology, such as the Flash Platform's RTMPE protocol, to ensure their videos are not redistributed. Without content protection, we would not be able to offer videos like this.

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[1] http://apiblog.youtube.com/2010/06/flash-and-html5-tag.html

Re: Hands-on with Hulu Plus: is it worth $10/month?

#16
post #3

The letdown of Hulu Plus and the horrendous monstrosity that is Netflix (and its even worse iPad app) are at least movements in the right direction. I find solace in the mere idea that one day I might be able to go to a website, select an episode, and watch television content on my computer screen. I don't know why this is so hard. I am willing to pay money for it! I will open my wallet and pay money to watch TV on m…

As a paying customer, the last thing I should have to sit through is ads. Let's not encourage a continuation of that practice.

Re: Hands-on with Hulu Plus: is it worth $10/month?

#17
post #10
post #5

I'm looking at it as a way to replace cable tv for first run network shows (30 rock, modern family, etc.). They say they will stream that stuff at 720p. I'd love to know how that compared to comcast. I would watch with a Mac mini attached to the tv.

Get an antenna.

Yep, I have a HD antenna and watch network TV in 1080p. Sadly I think most people are conditioned to believe that you cant get these channels without cable.

Re: Hands-on with Hulu Plus: is it worth $10/month?

#18
post #6
post #3

The letdown of Hulu Plus and the horrendous monstrosity that is Netflix (and its even worse iPad app) are at least movements in the right direction. I find solace in the mere idea that one day I might be able to go to a website, select an episode, and watch television content on my computer screen. I don't know why this is so hard. I am willing to pay money for it! I will open my wallet and pay money to watch TV on m…

> horrendous monstrosity that is Netflix What is wrong with Netflix (besides silverlight)? I used the service for a very long time to satisfy almost all of my TV viewing needs.

I love netflix. I usually watch on a big ass TV via PS3 - bluray discs, regular DVD, and streaming.

Re: Hands-on with Hulu Plus: is it worth $10/month?

#19
post #6
post #3

The letdown of Hulu Plus and the horrendous monstrosity that is Netflix (and its even worse iPad app) are at least movements in the right direction. I find solace in the mere idea that one day I might be able to go to a website, select an episode, and watch television content on my computer screen. I don't know why this is so hard. I am willing to pay money for it! I will open my wallet and pay money to watch TV on m…

> horrendous monstrosity that is Netflix What is wrong with Netflix (besides silverlight)? I used the service for a very long time to satisfy almost all of my TV viewing needs.

Agreed. I find Netflix "Watch Instantly" to be fantastic. The iPad app is prone to problems, and the content isn't quite there, but it's still unbelievably amazing.

For $10/mo I have unlimited viewing of thousands of movies/shows. For anyone that grew up with VHS tapes that's just staggering.

I have only two requests: Even more content (I'd pay $20/mo for 5 times more content), and a more solid iPad app.

Re: Hands-on with Hulu Plus: is it worth $10/month?

#20
post #7
post #4

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Actually if your primary interest is online streaming netflix offers unlimited streaming in their 8.99 a month plan, a bit less than hulu.

It's even further cheaper when you place a value on your time spent watching Hulu's commercials. Not to mention the decreased entertainment experience from the commercial interruptions.

They insert ads into movies? That is a dealbreaker.
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