Hulu Tracks More Viewers Than Network Sites Combined

9 Feb, 2011 By: Erik Gruenwedel

hulu

Hulu, the online repurposed TV programming pioneer, generated 323 million hours (19.4 billion minutes) of viewing in 2010 — more than twice the combined viewing hours (162 million) of all the major network websites, according to a new report.

Hulu, which is co-owned by The Walt Disney Co., News Corp. and NBC Universal, upped its viewership 17% from 2009, while the five major broadcast TV sites (ABC, CBS, NBC, Fox and the CW) grew at about five times the rate at 82%, according to comScore’s annual year in review.

Combined repurposed online TV viewing grew 33%, suggesting one in three viewers either watches or catches up with their favorite program on-demand.
It also supports efforts by Time Warner and Comcast in rolling out authentication-based platforms (TV Everywhere) that allow monthly subscribers free 24/7 access to original programming across multiple devices.

“This strongly growing market represents one of the most significant opportunities for advertisers with this attractive advertising channel generating both high engagement from viewers and high [cost-per-thousand] for publishers,” the report stated.

While Hulu is No. 1 in repurposed TV programming viewing, Google Inc.’s YouTube still dominates in overall (largely user-generated) Web-based video views.