21 votes

Disney assumes full control of Hulu in deal with Comcast

11 comments

  1. [7]
    acdw
    Link
    How is this not a monopoly? Disney owns so much of the entertainment space now.

    How is this not a monopoly? Disney owns so much of the entertainment space now.

    13 votes
    1. [2]
      knocklessmonster
      Link Parent
      Because there is still plenty of competition, at least according to the legal definition from the US government. Is it strong enough to take on what is essentially 21st Century Fox and Disney's...

      Because there is still plenty of competition, at least according to the legal definition from the US government. Is it strong enough to take on what is essentially 21st Century Fox and Disney's entertainment empires? Probably not. The smaller players will likely start buying and selling each other to make up for it.

      6 votes
      1. acdw
        Link Parent
        I think you're right. The smaller players will likely start buying and selling each other to make up for it. To expand on my previous comment, I think this is another problem of current antitrust...

        at least according to the legal definition from the US government

        I think you're right.

        The smaller players will likely start buying and selling each other to make up for it.

        To expand on my previous comment, I think this is another problem of current antitrust law: 3 companies controlling the market is almost as bad as one. There should be a lot of small to mid-size companies, no giant ones. I don't know how to fix that though.

        2 votes
    2. [2]
      Algernon_Asimov
      Link Parent
      Because of... Netflix Amazon Prime Apple TV HBO Now CBS All Access NBCUniversal And that's just the ones that I, an Aussie, know about. There are probably more streaming services in the USA that...

      How is this not a monopoly?

      Because of...

      • Netflix

      • Amazon Prime

      • Apple TV

      • HBO Now

      • CBS All Access

      • NBCUniversal

      And that's just the ones that I, an Aussie, know about. There are probably more streaming services in the USA that locals know about.

      5 votes
      1. acdw
        Link Parent
        I mean, you're right. But I think that's the problem with anti-trust laws; they're too narrowly defined to properly protect against hegemonies like Disney's over American creative content.

        I mean, you're right. But I think that's the problem with anti-trust laws; they're too narrowly defined to properly protect against hegemonies like Disney's over American creative content.

        4 votes
  2. emnii
    Link
    I'm not quite sure what to make of this, but I don't think I like it. I've been a Hulu subscriber since it started. I've largely loved the service for keeping up on currently airing TV shows. I...

    I'm not quite sure what to make of this, but I don't think I like it. I've been a Hulu subscriber since it started. I've largely loved the service for keeping up on currently airing TV shows. I always recommended to friends that they can cut the cable subscription by keeping Netflix for movies and older shows and Hulu for the weekly stuff. I even pay for the live subscription to watch a couple shows live. But those shows aren't Disney owned and neither are the channels they air on. I hope I don't lose access to those in this turnover. I'm not paying for cable again, so I guess if a couple of those live shows drop, I'll cut my subscription back down to the ad-free, but no live level.

    4 votes
  3. [2]
    moocow1452
    Link
    Wasn't Comcast totally not interested in selling their share in Hulu immediately? Or is agreeing to sell immediately and giving the keys over completely different.

    Wasn't Comcast totally not interested in selling their share in Hulu immediately? Or is agreeing to sell immediately and giving the keys over completely different.

    1. Deimos
      Link Parent
      There's a lot of detail about the agreement in the article, but Disney is taking full operational control immediately, while Comcast is retaining their share for now and Disney can buy it out in...

      There's a lot of detail about the agreement in the article, but Disney is taking full operational control immediately, while Comcast is retaining their share for now and Disney can buy it out in 2024 (with some promises about how much they'll pay).

      3 votes
  4. Somebody
    Link
    This is going to suck.

    This is going to suck.