Hulu is fighting back with an original programming slate that includes some of Hollywood's biggest names. New series orders include: the limited comedy series Four Weddings and a Funeral, written and executive produced by Mindy Kaling and Matt Warburton, inspired by the 1994 British romantic comedy.
Armored with critically acclaimed content, including the Emmy and Golden Globe Award-winning drama series The Handmaid’s Tale, Hulu is a major player in the world of streaming. The company announced today that it has surpassed 20 million U.S. subscribers and has seen a 60% jump in total engagement. Despite its rapid growth, Hulu has yet to match Netflix's 56.7 million U.S. subscribers. Netflix remains the top dog in the world of streaming with a worldwide total of 125 million subscribers that span 190 countries and these numbers grow every quarter. Hulu, however, has proven itself as a force to be reckoned with.
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| Elisabeth Moss at 'The Handmaid's Tale' Season 2 Premiere. Photo by Phillip |
There's no arguing that the history-making success of The Handmaid's Tale has helped grow Hulu's numbers, but the company's growth is about more than its original content. “The critical acclaim of The Handmaid's Tale is one major variable in the recent uptick, but offering Live TV and an improved user experience, coupled with aggressive marketing, all equals more subscribers for Hulu,” explains Jill Rosengard Hill, Executive Vice President at consumer-centered business strategy company Magid.
In a string of announcements today, Hulu confirmed that it will renew The Handmaid’s Tale for a third season. Based on the award-winning, best-selling novel of the same name by Margaret Atwood, the show was a breakout hit becoming the most-viewed series debut on Hulu ever in its first week and has drawn acclaim from both fans and critics since its series premiere in April 2017 with the history-making 10-episode first season. An immediate fan favorite and awards darling, The Handmaid’s Tale has gone on to become the first series ever on a streaming video on-demand service to take both the Golden Globe and Emmy Award for Best Drama Series. In total, the first season amassed 13 Emmy nominations and eight wins, in addition to three Golden Globe nominations and two wins. To date, The Handmaid’s Tale has garnered more than 30 prestigious awards, including a 2018 Peabody Award. And, last week’s record-breaking premiere of the show’s 13-episode second season has already doubled its audience versus season one.
“The Handmaid’s Tale is certainly Hulu’s highest-profile original content and likely driving an upsurge in subscriptions,” says Ashwin Navin, CEO and Co-Founder of TV data and analytics company, Samba TV. “Hulu can look to The Handmaid’s Tale formula and success as a roadmap for future original content investments to help drive more subscriptions.”
Despite its current success, Hulu reportedly lost $920 million in 2017, which is nearly as much as the $1 billion that Hulu’s four owners (Comcast, Disney, 21st Century Fox and Time Warner) invested in the company last year. BTIG media analyst Rich Greenfield recently predicted that Hulu will lose close to $1.7 billion this year. In contrast, last year Netflix had a $7 billion content budget and an approximate 117 million subscribers worldwide, and earned more than $500 million.
SOURCE: The Forbes
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