Hulu To Open Up Even More Ad Inventories

• Following the increase in subscriber count, and consequently, more time spent on ad-supported video streaming, Hulu to increase ad inventories.
• Ad agencies will also benefit from Hulu as it is currently the only viable platform to advertise against TV-like programming.
• Despite its progress with advertisements and increasing ad inventories, Hulu is still expected to incur a $1.7 billion loss in 2018.

With an increase in overall subscriber count, more ad-supported Hulu subscribers have been spending time on the platform, streaming the available content. In 2017, Hulu had around 54 million unique viewers and 17 million paid users, which shows a 40% increase year-over-year. Following such advancements, Hulu has decided to open up more ad inventories.

Hulu’s ad inventory has also been rather limited, which would sell out very quickly. But now with the increase in the number of subscribers, longer periods of video streaming, and the service expanding its distribution, Hulu has managed to afford more space to include advertisements.

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This is also beneficial to the ad agencies as well. Facebook and YouTube are currently coming under fire owing to issues like brand safety and transparency. Meanwhile, other streaming services such as Netflix and Amazon Prime Video are still offering their services on an ad-free model. So currently, under the ever increasing cord-cutting trend and decline of traditional linear TV viewing, Hulu is the only trusted streaming alternative for advertisers in search of TV-like programming.

Now, despite all its progress with ads, Hulu is still in losses. In 2018, the streaming service is projected to incur a loss of $1.7 billion in spite of the $1.5 billion investment coming in from parent companies - Comcast, Fox, Disney, and Time Warner. However, it can be argued that Hulu’s traditional media ownership is the reason why it is not able to grow as freely as Netflix and Amazon.

But still, Hulu’s advancements in its ad business, as well as the increase in subscriber count, are indications of hope for the platform. The streaming service has seen modest success in the market if we compare its significantly lesser resources and investments than that of Netflix and Amazon. On top of that, Hulu is also scheduled to invest heavily this year - though less than Netflix and Amazon - to fill its platform with more high-quality originals and licensed content which can increase its subscriber count even further.