Hulu Teams With Univision To Showcase Spanish-Language Shows

Univision

Although Hulu's future remains uncertain, that has not kept the video venture from forging new partnerships.

Indeed, on the heels of a deal with Miramax, the jointly owned site just entered into a broad licensing agreement with Univision, which it expects to equal hundreds of hours of Spanish-language telenovelas, variety shows, comedies, and reality series for viewers.

Per the pact, current-season content and content from Univision's library will be coming to Hulu and Hulu Plus over the next 90 days.

"The Hispanic population in the U.S. is already over 50 million and growing much faster than the balance of the U.S. population," said Jason Kilar, Hulu CEO, explaining the alliance. "Year-to-date, Univision is the country's third-most-watched network among all Americans 18 to 34 years old."

On the surface, Hulu appears healthy. Hulu and Hulu Plus have seen significant growth over the past 90 days and on a year-over-year basis. Videos offered in Hulu grew 39% year-over-year, and videos offered in Hulu Plus rose 106% year-over-year.

The Hulu Plus subscription service exceeded 1 million paid subscribers over the summer. The company believes, based on internal research, that it was the fastest ramp up ever to 1 million paid subscribers among any video subscription service in the country.

Looking ahead, Hulu expects subscription services to account for more than half of Hulu's overall revenues within the next 12 months.

Hulu also recently launched its first foray into original long-form programming with "A Day in the Life," a six-episode, half-hour documentary series by filmmaker Morgan Spurlock.

In the very near future, however, the shape of the company could change dramatically. Hulu has been on the block for nearly a year, and the lucky acquirer is bound to alter its DNA. Google reportedly bid in the range of $4 billion, although it demanded more content for a longer period of time, among other concessions. Satellite TV provider Dish Network reportedly offered up $1.9 billion.

One perceived problem is that the TV companies that own Hulu (NBCUniversal, Fox Entertainment Group, and Disney-ABC Television Group) want to phase out free ad-supported content completely.

Regarding this rumor -- or any of the acquisition talks -- a Hulu spokesperson offered no comment on Wednesday.

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