Hulu Begins Offering Disney-ABC Programming with Five Episodes of "Grey's Anatomy"

In a posting on its corporate blog, Monday, broadcast network-owned broadband video service, Hulu, announced that it has begun offering programming from ABC. The roll-out of ABC's programming on the service appears to be proceeding quite slowly: the only ABC programs currently available are five episodes of the primetime medical drama, "Grey's Anatomy." According to Hulu's blog posting, the 'Grey's Anatomy' "videos posted on Hulu will mirror the episodes most recently aired on TV, which includes the two-part season 5 opener, two episodes from the middle of the season, and another pair that lead up to the heart-wrenching finale." However, the company promises that more ABC titles "are on the way" (including "Desperate Housewives," "I Survived a Japanese Game Show," "Scrubs," "Superstars" and "Ugly Betty") and invites users to check its "Hulu Days of Summer" calendar for news on which other ABC programs it is making available, as well as suggesting they check its Twitter and Facebook feeds.

The availability of ABC programming on Hulu follows the announcement in April (see the article posted on itvt.com, April 30th) that the network's corporate parent, The Walt Disney Company, via its ABC Enterprises subsidiary, would join NBC Universal, News Corp. (Fox) and Providence Equity Partners as a joint venture partner in and equity owner of the service--leaving CBS as the only major US broadcast network not participating in Hulu. When the deal was first announced, Disney and Hulu promised that it would result in a range of Disney-ABC programming being made available on the service, including, in addition to "Grey's Anatomy":

• Episodes of such ABC primetime programs as "Lost," "Desperate Housewives," "Ugly Betty," "Samantha Who," "Scrubs," and "Private Practice," as well as full-length episodes of the ABC late-night talk show, "Jimmy Kimmel Live."
• Episodes of such ABC Family programs as "The Secret Life of the American Teenager" and "Greek."
• Various series from ABC Daytime and SOAPnet, including "General Hospital" and "The View."
• Series from ABC's library, such as "Hope and Faith," "Less than Perfect," "Commander in Chief," "Who Wants to be a Millionaire?" and "Dancing with the Stars."
• A selection of programs from the Disney Channel, including "Wizards of Waverly Place" and "Phineas and Ferb."
• Library titles from Walt Disney Studios.
• A range of short-form content, including Webisodes, "sneak peaks," and episode recaps from ABC Entertainment, ABC Family and SOAPnet.

In related news:

• According to a recent report in the UK broadcast-industry trade publication, Broadcast, Hulu--which plans to launch its service in the UK this September--is offering UK broadcasters equity stakes in the UK version of its service, in addition to a share of the advertising the service generates. The report also stated that UK terrestrial broadcaster, ITV, is potentially close to reaching a deal with Hulu.
• Hulu says that it will offer Fox News's live stream of Michael Jackson's memorial service, starting at 10:00AM Pacific, July 7th.