Hulu’s UK Launch Now Expected In January

It may be a while yet before people in the UK get a chance to watch Hulu.  Although the wheels are still in motion to take Hulu across the Atlantic, no content deals have been struck, and so what was supposed to be a pre-September launch now appears to be penciled in for January. 

In May, reports indicated that Hulu was attempting to reach agreements with broadcasters ITV and Channel 4.  Now, an unnamed source has told Emma Barnett, "ITV is closest to signing a deal with Hulu which will have a level of exclusivity built into it."

BBC Worldwide is apparently next on Hulu’s list of would-be partners.  "This will give it enough material to launch and probably take three to four months after its first deal with ITV," Barnett‘s source continued.  "So you’re hopefully looking at a January 2010 launch."

These partnerships would mean quite a lot for Hulu, considering the jump in users and advertisers it would see as a result.  They’d represent a great deal for existing Hulu fans, too, of course, since more content would become available.

Let’s just hope that, come late December, everything doesn’t get pushed back again until April or May.