Hulu Drops Monthly Price To $5.99

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Hulu just doesn't seem to get it that the reason Netflix and Amazon are more popular is because no one likes to pay for commercials. Dropping the price to $5.99 a month for a year might bring in a few people but it also might piss off current users already paying $7.99 and $11.99.

Hulu has cut the price of its ad-included monthly streaming service from $7.99 a month to $5.99 a month in an apparent effort to catch up with rivals Netflix and Amazon. The reduced offer is only good for new subscribers, and the price will return to $7.99 a month after one year. (Hulu also offers an ad-free edition for $11.99 a month.)
 
Last time I was on Hulu+ a few years back, there were 2 things that irritated me beyond belief.

1) Paying to watch something with the same ad over and over and over again...
2) Getting blocked by Subscription walls... why on earth would I try to watch something on Hulu+ if I have to have a Cable Tv sub and pay subscription fees to include the channels the show is on when there are numerous sites that allow you to freely stream the content if you have an active cable subscription

1 is somewhat, kind of, understandable... 2 just irks me beyond belief.
 
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So what exactly is on TV or Hulu that is worth the money? I really don't get why someone would pay the money for it.

Sports? Just go have a beer at the local saloon.
 
AMEN to not paying for Ads.

Although, maybe they'll just get a bunch for Hollywood actors telling us why we should watch ads, since they all already weighed in on who we should vote for?
 
Zion Halcyon said:
AMEN to not paying for Ads.

Although, maybe they'll just get a bunch for Hollywood actors telling us why we should watch ads, since they all already weighed in on who we should vote for?
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I only accept this argument if you don't have cable or satellite service. Otherwise you pay more for even more commercials. :)

You can say they don't have shows you like or you already have cable so it's redundant, but $7.99 with a few commercials is really fair assuming those two conditions are not present.
 
Does Hulu even have media collection that can rival Netflix or Amazon?
 
SticKx911 said:
I only accept this argument if you don't have cable or satellite service. Otherwise you pay more for even more commercials. :)

You can say they don't have shows you like or you already have cable so it's redundant, but $7.99 with a few commercials is really fair assuming those two conditions are not present.
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I'd happily pay twice as much to avoid commercials. They ruin the immersion so completely that I'd rather just not watch at all.
 
Steve said:
Hulu just doesn't seem to get it that the reason Netflix and Amazon are more popular is because no one likes to pay for commercials. Dropping the price to $5.99 a month for a year might bring in a few people but it also might piss off current users already paying $7.99 and $11.99.

Hulu has cut the price of its ad-included monthly streaming service from $7.99 a month to $5.99 a month in an apparent effort to catch up with rivals Netflix and Amazon. The reduced offer is only good for new subscribers, and the price will return to $7.99 a month after one year. (Hulu also offers an ad-free edition for $11.99 a month.)
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No, you don't seem to get that they're offering a special deal to get new customers, which is a very reasonable thing to do.

But, I guess it's cooler to take empty-headed potshots at companies for making completely reasonable business decisions.
 
Maybe if they had a service that more people wanted they wouldn't need to slap current customers in the face by offering it cheaper to new comers.
 
Skillz said:
Does Hulu even have media collection that can rival Netflix or Amazon?
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Nope. For some reason they don't retain all seasons of network TV shows. Doesn't make sense to only offer the last 5 episodes of a TV series that recently aired. The movie selection is similar to Netflix although much smaller. If you want 1080p or 4k then forget it. They're kind of like a better version of Crackle. If people are paying $12 a month for Hulu it's a ripoff.
 
Steve said:
Hulu just doesn't seem to get it that the reason Netflix and Amazon are more popular is because no one likes to pay for commercials. Dropping the price to $5.99 a month for a year might bring in a few people but it also might piss off current users already paying $7.99 and $11.99.

Hulu has cut the price of its ad-included monthly streaming service from $7.99 a month to $5.99 a month in an apparent effort to catch up with rivals Netflix and Amazon. The reduced offer is only good for new subscribers, and the price will return to $7.99 a month after one year. (Hulu also offers an ad-free edition for $11.99 a month.)
Click to expand...

No, that is not really the reason at all. The reason I did not stick with Hulu for even one day is this: I want to watch the 5th season of some show where I have already watched season 1 through 4. Ok, cool, they have the 5th season so, I load it up and see that it wants to start at episode 5 or something and I think, crap, I selected the wrong episode, I will just go and select episode 1. What, WHATS THIS: I cannot watch episodes 1 through 4 because they are not showing them.

So, I called Hulu, immediately cancelled and have not gone back. This is a common theme on their shows which makes them not worth the cost.
 
They emailed me a while back about the 5.99. We dropped it first time around because their ads are fucking annoying. Ads are one thing, but you could not skip theres. Fine print... reduced ads! WTF, why even pay?
 
I pay the $11.99 for Hulu Plus and watch a crap ton of new shows on it, usually the day after they air. Money well spent for me, zero ads and I can watch all my shows when I want.
 
The irony...

Both will offer the same programming. A few shows on the ad-free service — including New Girl, Scandal, How To Get Away With Murder, Grey’s Anatomy, and Marvel’s Agents Of S.H.I.E.L.D. — will have a 15-second pre-roll ad and a 30-second post roll. Hulu also offers a sampling of ad-supported shows for free to PCs and a subset of the mobile devices served by the paid services.
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I hardly watch any TV at all.

Occasionally I would get bored and pull up Family Guy on Hulu, but with no more free viewing I'll never be using it again. Oh well.
 
Oh, DAMMIT! I *JUST* signed up for their $7.99 plan last week! Time to contact support and demand the drop to $5.99 or I quit.
 
I think Hulu's biggest problem is the fact they are still clinging to the outdated episodic model of weekly releases. A lot of Hulu users subscribe to be able to stream network TV shows a few days after they come out. Network TV survives by delaying the release of each episode one week at a time so that you are compelled to maintain a perpetual year long relationship with them to get all your content. Netflix shattered this notion by releasing entire seasons on day 1. They were even a bit concerned initially with the premier of House of Cards that people would just binge watch the show and then cancel their membership. I sure a lot of people did do this, but as Netflix's library expanded there's now enough content to keep the average user subscribed month after month. Even if there were only a few shows you were interested in you'd constantly be subbing and unsubbing just to save a few bucks. For most people this isnt worth it.

However Hulu is like this weird bastardized version of Netflix and broadcast television. You pay to get the shows you want, but are encumbered with all of the nuisances that streaming is supposed to alleviate. It's just a poor model honestly, but I dont see it really going anywhere. Major networks arent about to change their system, and Netflix sure as hell cant get every show, so Hulu fills that one void. However it is one that I wont be paying for, netflix has plenty of content.
 
I don't mind Hulu, just share the sub with my sister in law. Also, on my TV I can skip the commercials simply by changing the stream quality (even to the same setting).
 
I guess their removal of their free service didn't help them as much as they thought. I give it a few years and we will see the free tier come back.


Skillz said:
Does Hulu even have media collection that can rival Netflix or Amazon?
Click to expand...

It is different so depends on what you are looking for. Hulu gives you access to the current season, Netflix or Amazon is going to give you past seasons.
 
I pay for the $11.99 service. No ads. Well, only a couple shows have 1 ad before the show starts. Still cheaper than cable and it has most of the shows I want to watch.
 
SticKx911 said:
I only accept this argument if you don't have cable or satellite service. Otherwise you pay more for even more commercials. :)

You can say they don't have shows you like or you already have cable so it's redundant, but $7.99 with a few commercials is really fair assuming those two conditions are not present.
Click to expand...

Well, consider it accepted. I am a cord-cutter. :)
 
Are they still bundling in commercials?

If so, then STILL not worth it.
 
Exavior said:
I guess their removal of their free service didn't help them as much as they thought. I give it a few years and we will see the free tier come back.




It is different so depends on what you are looking for. Hulu gives you access to the current season, Netflix or Amazon is going to give you past seasons.
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Some of the current season but, not the whole thing. (Missing earlier episodes.)
 
Hulu has a lot of contents.
A lot of it complete, then you have different licensing for different programs, and its a bit of a patchwork.
Some, like mentioned you have to watch soon, or they go away.
Their watch list is a lot better now to its easy to keep track.
The no-ad Hulu, and Netflix, and I have yet to run out of stuff to watch.. and yes I am a proud couch potato.
I have amazon too, but again between Hulu and netflix, saturation point really.
The one thing always seems to suffer a bit its SciFi once you chew out tons of that, doesn't seem its produced as fast as I would love I guess.
 
Hulu is like TV on Demand that allows you to watch a show you missed upto 4-5 wks ago that you get free from your cable box. I would consider Hulu if I didn't have cable. Also, unless you're mobile and the streaming is only practical way to get your shows, I would consider passing.
 
I had Hulu/Plus and it was a pain. Dam ads and not to mention their library was outdated. I jumped ship and went with Netflix. I got me a free Amazon fire stick for the TV in the bedroom. I've got the smart TV in the livingroom and even with Netflix & Amazon Prime, it's still cheaper than cable. I would'nt go back to Hulu.

I'm at the mercy of TWC/Spectrum (rectum) and just using their net service.
 
dark_reign said:
Nope. For some reason they don't retain all seasons of network TV shows. Doesn't make sense to only offer the last 5 episodes of a TV series that recently aired. The movie selection is similar to Netflix although much smaller. If you want 1080p or 4k then forget it. They're kind of like a better version of Crackle. If people are paying $12 a month for Hulu it's a ripoff.
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So basically it's a glorified DVR with a shitty netflix selection...hmm...NOPE
 
TripleAgent77 said:
Am I understanding correctly, there are still ads on some shows, and you can't watch all episodes on the PAID "ad-free" version? WTF?!?! That sounds like trash.
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I don't know about the content, but regarding the ads yea there are ads in specific content even in the ad free plan.
 
Frankly, I don't mind Netflix over Hulu. And with their Disney deal kicking in this September, Disney movies (and their subsidiaries like Lucasfilm and Marvel Studios) will all be on Netflix at the same time or shortly after the DVDs come out. Zootopia was the first one, but this also means Rogue One will be the first Star Wars movie available on Netflix, all of them going forward. This includes Dr Strange for Marvel. And given they already have the best TV properties for Marvel, its just a no-brainer over Netflix. Pair that with Vudu (and I only purchase digital copies of movies now), and Crunchroll for those of you with Anime, and drive it all with a Roku device, and who needs cable?

Then again, if you get that cable itch and have all that, can't go wrong with Sling TV.
 
v6maro said:
So basically it's a glorified DVR with a shitty netflix selection...hmm...NOPE
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Yes, but it's a case where the DVR keeps only 5 episodes of your favorite TV shows that recently aired. If you missed any of the previous episodes then too bad.

The current $6 a month offer isn't a bad deal if you can tolerate ads. Only one free week is a joke but doesn't surprise me considering major movie and TV studios are backing the service.
 
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