Media

Hulu Video Streaming Service Revenues Up 65% in 2012

TV sports
Thinkstock
Hulu, the streaming video company jointly owned by The Walt Disney Co. (NYSE: DIS), Comcast Corp. (NASDAQ: CMCSA) and News Corp. (NASDAQ: NWS), expects revenues of $695 million in 2012, up 65% from just over $400 million a year ago. The company claims more than 3 million paid subscribers to its Hulu Plus, more than double the number of subscribers at the end of 2011.

Now while revenues of $695 million are nothing to sneeze at, that number doesn’t mean an awful lot to Disney, which posted revenue of more than $10.7 billion in its most recent quarter, or to Hulu’s other partners. The company it does affect — not in a good way — is Neftlix Inc. (NASDAQ: NFLX). Netflix posted revenue of $2.66 billion in the first nine months of 2012 and claims a U.S. subscriber base of more than 25 million.

Cost of subscription revenues at Netflix totaled just about $1.75 billion in the first nine months of the year, while Hulu said it will spend $500 million for the full year. Adding another $600 million for the fourth quarter brings total subscription costs for Netflix to $2.35 billion.

Competing against Hulu, Amazon.com Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN), and others, soon to include a joint venture between Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE: VZ) and Coinstar Inc. (NASDAQ: CSTR), has put a virtual end to Netflix’s status as a growth stock. And being the category leader just sharpens every competitor’s aim.

The blog post reporting Hulu’s financial status is available here.

Paul Ausick

The Average American Is Losing Their Savings Every Day (Sponsor)

If you’re like many Americans and keep your money ‘safe’ in a checking or savings account, think again. The average yield on a savings account is a paltry .4% today, and inflation is much higher. Checking accounts are even worse.

Every day you don’t move to a high-yield savings account that beats inflation, you lose more and more value.

But there is good news. To win qualified customers, some accounts are paying 9-10x this national average. That’s an incredible way to keep your money safe, and get paid at the same time. Our top pick for high yield savings accounts includes other one time cash bonuses, and is FDIC insured.

Click here to see how much more you could be earning on your savings today. It takes just a few minutes and your money could be working for you.

 

Thank you for reading! Have some feedback for us?
Contact the 24/7 Wall St. editorial team.