As a blogger one of the things that really can bug me is when media companies hide their content on their websites where nobody goes. I mean how often do people go to a comedycentral.com , abc.com , etc ? Its even worse when that content is not able to be embedded on sites like this. The good news is that last week Disney who owns ABC, ESPN, and many other cable channels, announced a pair of deals that will send content to both Youtube and Hulu. The Youtube deal is only for clips of shows/games/movis and not the piece of content in its entirety although Youtube really pressed hard for that content as well. Here is a link to ESPN’s new channel on youtube. As you can see below you can view in HD too by clicking HD on the bottom of the bar.
This is awesome as ESPN’s video options were hard to search and often had clips pulled. There were some work arounds like Apture search and Red Lasso for awhile at least, but really this is pretty significant step forward for Disney and ESPN. But what about digital distribution of entire shows, movies, and games? Disney is believed to be in very late stage talks to finalize a deal with Hulu. Disney is rumored to be getting around a 30% stake in Hulu, on par with what Newscorp/Fox and NBC Universal will have if the deal is finalized. If and when the deal is finalized, it would leave CBS Viacom all alone as the last network not with an ownership stake in Hulu.
Content like Pixar films, ESPN shows, and ABC news are rumored to be excluded from the deal, but that is not final. Mainstream shows like Lost and Desperate Housewives are believed to be definitely in the content package. Hopefully the Hulu deal gets consummated soon. While the saying “hold on to analog dollars instead of opting for digital pennies” may apply, its important to build traction and visibility with the online audience that’s growing in size and importance. The ad dollars will get there soon enough.
