Hulu Loses The Daily Show And Colbert

from the building-community dept

Tue, Mar 2nd 2010 7:19pm — Mike Masnick

For a while now Comedy Central's two most popular shows, The Daily Show with Jon Stewart and The Colbert Report have been available for streaming online on both Hulu and on the Comedy Central websites for each program. I'd always wondered why Viacom had allowed those two shows on Hulu, seeing as Hulu is basically owned by Viacom's competitors -- and those two shows are some of the most popular on Hulu. Over those two years, though, Viacom has also built up its own online sites -- actually building some (weak, but still some) aspects of community around both sites. Apparently, it realized it had all the leverage, and Hulu wasn't willing to pony up. So Viacom is pulling both shows from Hulu next week. This is a pretty big loss for Hulu, though the company is trying to shrug it off. But it does suggest yet another potential problem with Hulu's business model. For all the crap we give Viacom over things like its YouTube lawsuit, the company has worked hard to try to build community around these particular shows -- but other shows that are relying on Hulu can't do that as easily.

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Filed Under: colbert, daily show, jon stewart, online video, stephen colbert
Companies: hulu, viacom

41 Comments

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Anonymous Coward, 2 Mar 2010 @ 7:40pm

what a shame, one of the few reasons I still went to hulu.
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jeff, 2 Mar 2010 @ 8:19pm

Those were the only 2 shows I've bothered to watch on hulu besides some SNL clips in the last 11 months. It's back to the usual methods or comedycentral website.
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bob, 2 Mar 2010 @ 8:21pm

Look
We still got the pirate bay.
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Aaron Martin-Colby (profile), 2 Mar 2010 @ 8:29pm

Sad
Daily Show and Colbert were the only reasons I ever went to Hulu. And Viacom's website interfaces are bad enough where I don't go there. Hulu's design and speed were much better.

Which... no longer applies? I just went to the Daily Show website, and new episodes are shown in a player oddly similar to Hulu.

How long has this been the case? My last trip a number of months ago had a really crappy design.

Ok, so. I guess Viacom FTW.

Still, it pisses me off that content providers are obsessed with taking things AWAY from the centralized media houses and trying to nestle it away on their own sites. Hulu was great because it had so much crap on it. Dailyshow.com has... Daily Show.
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Rekrul, 2 Mar 2010 @ 8:33pm

This perfectly illustrates why relying on a streaming only web site rather than being able to download permanent copies is a bad idea.

By the way, there's a program called GetFLV that can download from Hulu. The process isn't quite as seamless as the web site makes it out to be, but it does work. YOu can find it here;

http://www.getflv.net/

It's not free, or cheap though.
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Jon, 2 Mar 2010 @ 9:28pm

Canada
Hulu won't stream to Canada. ComedyCentral gets redirected to it's cousin site ComedyNetwork.ca (which is hard to navigate and slow to upload new shows/clips).

There must be a better way. If I don't manage to catch Daily Show / Colbert Report when they're on TV, I rarely try to find them on the web due to the aggravation.
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Chucklebutte (profile), 2 Mar 2010 @ 9:39pm

See you again Hulu
those 2 shows are the only reason I go to hulu.
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Cynyr (profile), 2 Mar 2010 @ 9:42pm

RSS feed
The only complaint is the loss of an RSS feed to alert me of new episodes.
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j. stan smith (profile), 2 Mar 2010 @ 10:02pm

Won't be missed...
...by me. The two shows are among the very few available at Hulu I not only never viewed but never considered watching.
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AC, 2 Mar 2010 @ 10:12pm

Two Words
Digital Video Recorder
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Jamie Carl (profile), 2 Mar 2010 @ 11:00pm

In other words, someone in the US did something else that only affects the US and the rest of the world silently couldn't give a fuck?
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ECA (profile), 2 Mar 2010 @ 11:15pm

tHEY ARE ALL LEAVING
IF you look around you will find that the CORPS are trying to startup their OWN sites..and they really suck. NBC really really sucks.
Sifi(syfy) hasnt added anything in almost 6 months..

Hulu kinda Stopped improving. They cant even sort things very well, and never have done it properly.
Hulu installs 1/2 of a Old series and stops. Many are spotty, ep 1,2,5,9 and then dont finish the series.
Its as if they are a Church in the middle of Nowhere, and only get money from the passersby..when they remember to donate. There is no backbone to get/make them better.
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Mike Masnick (profile), 3 Mar 2010 @ 1:57am

Re:
In other words, someone in the US did something else that only affects the US and the rest of the world silently couldn't give a fuck

Uh, please, be nice. First, we are a US site, and the majority of our audience is US based.

Second, we *regularly* discuss stuff happening in other countries that only impact people in those countries.
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Anonymous Coward, 3 Mar 2010 @ 2:12am

What is this Colbert Show I keep hearing about?

But more importantly, did this happen because Les Moonves has a renewed contract and believes that he can better monetize content inhouse?

Perhaps there are too many choices, a paradox if you will. But I have to hand it to them for actually in-housing instead of out-housing their content distribution method. These days, it's too easy to loose an audience, and the downstream community (however small it is) that is created.
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Anonymous Coward, 3 Mar 2010 @ 3:05am

Hulu isn't available in my country so they can suck it. Should they go down and die, someone else will take their place.
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Alex, 3 Mar 2010 @ 3:50am

The process isn't quite as seamless as the web site makes it out to be, but it does work.
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slim, 3 Mar 2010 @ 3:56am

those 2 shows are the only reason I go to hulu.
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Anonymous Coward, 3 Mar 2010 @ 4:11am

Re:
Wait, are you suggesting that I pay someone to allow me to pirate streaming video?

I'm not advocating piracy, but if you are going to pirate, paying to scrape a flash stream seems like the absolute worst way to go.
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Anonymous Coward, 3 Mar 2010 @ 4:41am

This is a great example of content versus distribution. That balance couldn't be agreed on, so everyone took their ball home.

It's very interesting that a distributor who is owned by content providers suddenly find themselves valuing distribution.

Also, why do distributors get to own the content anyway? I'm not sure that distribution and content shouldn't be separated by some regulation. Those regulations used to be in place, and I feel that the quality of TV went down with it.
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Anonymous Coward, 3 Mar 2010 @ 5:02am

Re: Two Words
looks like three
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Rekrul, 3 Mar 2010 @ 5:07am

Re: Re:
Wait, are you suggesting that I pay someone to allow me to pirate streaming video?

First of all, I don't see downloading a permanent copy of something from Hulu as "pirating" it. After all, they're not selling copies, so they're not being deprived of a sale, and once they delete these shows, people will no longer come to the site to watch them, so either way, they lose nothing by people downloading a copy to keep.

I'm not advocating piracy, but if you are going to pirate, paying to scrape a flash stream seems like the absolute worst way to go.

I was just making people aware of the program and that it does work. Whether they want to pay for it or not is their choice. Those who don't want to pay can probably find a way around it.
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DavidW, 3 Mar 2010 @ 5:36am

Wouldn't mind but...
I wouldn't mind this change... if Comedy Central had a video player that didn't tap out on me all the time. I tried to watch the Daily Show two nights ago and I it took at least two times as long to watch because of the buffering pause every 20 seconds or so.
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Simon, 3 Mar 2010 @ 5:46am

Re: Re:
I'm not in the US, but I certainly have a passing interest in this information.

Although to be fair, Hulu really should be at http://aww.hulu.com/ instead of http://www.hulu.com/
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Anonymous Coward, 3 Mar 2010 @ 6:13am

Judging by all these people saying "those two shows were/are the only reason I went/go to hulu" Viacom made a sound (if shortsighted) business decision.
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Jim, 3 Mar 2010 @ 7:04am

Really?
"...but other shows that are relying on Hulu can't do that as easily."

The situation with Colbert and Daily are more the norm than the exception, at least for popular shows. I don't give a hoot about Hulu's nice Flash player (even though it is really nice) and I care little about the community. But if I miss an episode, it's great to see it on-line at any site. I'd also like to see it through Boxee, but since Hulu doesn't want Boxee to have any ownership the customer (they want you to use Hulu Desktop), they're doing everything they can to stop that or at least make it less convenient (I know Hulu blames its parents, but that's mostly BS).

Getting exposure on Hulu is great coup for an unknown show or low-budget indie film, but for a show that already has a huge following, being on Hulu is just not that critical yet. Fans of "Lost" and "The Family Guy" don't care what URL they have to type. Right now at least, it's the content that makes Hulu popular, not the other way around.
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Ben Doom (profile), 3 Mar 2010 @ 7:40am

I disagree...
I think this is a loss for Viacom. I just sent this letter:

I just saw an article in the New York Times (http://mediadecoder.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/03/02/viacom-will-take-daily-show-colbert-off-hulu/?part ner=rss&emc=rss) regarding your removal of The Daily Show and The Colbert Report from Hulu.

The article implies that this is not a loss for your viewers, as the episodes will still be available on your website. However, I'm certain you are wrong.

Let's be honest about it. Americans are lazy. I certainly am. At the moment, I have a centralized system for viewing what little TV I watch all in one place: Hulu. Hulu is convenient for me. Hulu is easy. For me to stop using Hulu would be, for me, much like never using a supermaket again.

Let me explain.

Before supermarkets, grocery shopping was often done pievemeal. You bought bread at a baker, and produce at a greengrocer, and meat at a butcher, and so forth. Now, we have one stop shopping. Please, for the sake of sanity, tell me you recognize the popularity of the supermarket better than you seem to understand your own industry.

Now, imagine if Kraft stopped selling products in supermarkets, and opened Kraft stores. Do you really think that I'm going to go on a special shopping trip for my macaroni? Or do you think I'll stop buying Kraft products?

Hulu also offers me several advantages over and beyond your internal site. The most important of these is that Hulu Desktop is well suited for use on an HTPC. Your site? Not so much. Secondarily, Hulu has Chuck, and House, MD, and the other shows I watch. Your site? Not so much. Finally, Hulu has a consistent experience that I'm comfortable with, and don't have to think about -- in other words, it's my TV. Your site? Not so much.

I would suggest to you that, by pulling shows from Hulu, you will be precipitating a startling decline in viewership online. And, unfortunately, web users hold grudges. will you ever get them back?

Ben Doom
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Aaron Martin-Colby (profile), 3 Mar 2010 @ 9:13am

Re: Re:
I don't see that as piracy at all. Not in any interpretation of the law.

That would mean recording TV with a VCR is piracy, which has been long-determined to be legal.
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Aaron Martin-Colby (profile), 3 Mar 2010 @ 9:17am

Re:
Even in another country, our issues should be of concern to you. Our companies are global, which means choices here will mirror choices in other countries. Viacom specifically is a French company. And our politics are frequently forced on other countries through back-door deals and trade agreements. Issues here will likely become issues there.
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degustibus, 3 Mar 2010 @ 9:35am

CC Hulu
Hulu does captions, Viacom does not. I'll stick with Hulu and I suspect a good number of deaf/hardofhearing will too.
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Nastybutler77 (profile), 3 Mar 2010 @ 9:54am

Re:
Why are so many people confused on how to spell "lose"? At least once a day in these comments I see someone (the same person maybe?) talking about "loosing" something. Is it the European way to spell lose? Like "colour"? Really it's not that tricky of a word...
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BigKeithO, 3 Mar 2010 @ 9:55am

Re: Re:
Except we don't get to watch Hulu. :(

I know what you are saying, just wanted to add my pointless $0.02.
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ECA (profile), 3 Mar 2010 @ 10:02am

THE PROBLEM
Hulu has a few problems, as I mentioned earlier.

But many of the corps(nbc,cbs,fox,...)
want MORE control.
They want to let you see the LAST 5 ep. only, and THEN sell you access to the older material. That is what has been mentioned.

But I dont think these folks see the problem.
1. setting up a server farm to hold all the data.(they will never publish all of it)
2. BANDWIDTH. This is what makes things really SUCK. None of these corps can handle 1,000,000 hits and data transfers in 1 day.
3. they crippled Hulu, by limiting distribution. WHY limit watching shows to USA, canada, england?
4. people would enjoy being able to goto 1,2,3 sites and being able to Watch ANY video they wished. NOT 200 different sites.
5. area distribution, SUCKS. many Corps have Area distribution. Which means they have sites around the world for access from those areas. AND many have shows NOT in the USA, that you might like to watch..but YOU CANT. Since you live in the USA you cant access the ASIA site.
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Anonymous Coward, 3 Mar 2010 @ 10:43am

Great! I've always hated their 'you can't watch it because you live somewhere else'. I thought the internet was global so fuck them. In any case who needs Hulu when you have The Pirate Bay?
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Anonymous Coward, 3 Mar 2010 @ 11:02am

Re:
Firebug. Google It.
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nasch (profile), 3 Mar 2010 @ 11:31am

Re:
These days, it's too easy to loose an audience,

That is something Colbert does fairly often actually. He loosed his audience on Wikipedia once, for example.
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Nastybutler77 (profile), 3 Mar 2010 @ 1:54pm

Re:
"In any case who needs Hulu when you have The Pirate Bay?"

Because searching for and streaming videos is much faster, easier and more reliable than downloading shows from PB. The upside to PB is that you can keep what you download and you can find things that you can't find on legitimate sites like Hulu, I realize, but Hulu has (had?) value that PB doesn't. If you can't see that, then that's your loss.
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ECA (profile), 4 Mar 2010 @ 1:54am

lAST THING ABOUT THIS..
OK,
we have to ask WHY??
And for all that is TV.
WHAT is the part that makes money..
What makes you GO and watch a program...
The program doesnt make the money..
its the commercials..

since hulu is SHOWING the shows, they are making the money, not the corps.

The THING is...
Programs BUY time on the TV. Cable/sat/broadcast..ALL the same.
They want you to WATCH, so that you see the adverts. BETTER programs COST MORE to ADVERT.
Part of the money goes to the Program, and the MOST goes ????
THINk about it.
On Hulu you see at MOST 5 commercials per show..on OTHER SOURCES you get at LEAST 10-15 minutes of commercials..
ADVERTS and commercials make MORE money then the show does..
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really, 4 Mar 2010 @ 11:02am

Re: Two Words
that's 3 words
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PiracyForLife, 4 Mar 2010 @ 6:51pm

This will all change once "The Video Bay" is launched. Leave it to Pirate Bay to push the piracy envelope. Pirate Bay founders launch beta of "The Video Bay"
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Pirate, 4 Mar 2010 @ 6:53pm

The Video Bay for the win!
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Nerdy.Biz, 19 Mar 2010 @ 5:31am

Boxee replaced hulu on my media center months ago. It still plays Daily Show and Colbert and arguably has a better interface than hulu. http://boxee.tv
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