"The Daily Show" returns to Hulu
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JEREMY HOBSON: Viacom said this morning it’s profit dropped last quarter. Turns out one of its companies — Paramount Pictures — isn’t selling many DVDs. So Viacom’s working another strategy. Late yesterday it cut a deal to allow popular programs like “The Daily Show” onto the website hulu.com.
Marketplace’s Scott Tong reports.
SCOTT TONG: Comedy Central shows like “The Daily Show” and “The Colbert Report” are actually returning to Hulu.com. Parent company Viacom had pulled them, but reconsidered. The new deal puts the shows on the website, but with ads. Robert Thompson watches the entertainment industry at Syracuse. He also watches a lot of TV.
ROBERT THOMPSON: Things like the daily show are one of the very very desirable products to see the next day on the Internet. “The Daily Show,” unlike something like “Lost,” doesn’t need to be seen on a big screen.
Viacom’s hit “Jersey Shore” will also be online, but 21 days later. Thompson says it’s all part of a migration to on-demand programs, when people want it. Yes, online is integrating with On-TV. But it’s early, he says. Will this strategy make a winner of Hulu? Who knows.
I’m Scott Tong for Marketplace.
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