Hulu now available within Disney+
Disney has finally carried through with integrating Hulu into Disney+, launching the new Disney+-with-Hulu service as a “beta” last week. Basically, customers who pay for both Hulu and Disney+ will see a new “Hulu” category tile appear in Disney+; the new category offers most of Hulu’s library of TV shows and movies. Advanced Hulu features, such as the Hulu Live cable TV replacement service, or Hulu add-ons (like Starz, Max, etc.), aren’t included. Finally, the stand-alone Hulu and Disney+ services and apps will still exist as usual; good news for those that only want one service but not the other.
Thoughts on Disney+-with-Hulu
I’ve given the merged service a go on my devices. Non-American Disney+ users will find some aspects of this “beta” service familiar, as Hulu-on-Disney+ is similar to the Star category offered on non-US versions of Disney+. However, there’s some differences; for starters, the Hulu programming is kept pretty much within the Hulu category, and doesn’t appear combined with the rest of Disney+ (such as in Disney+ “holiday specials” playlists).
One example: when searching “The Simpsons,” two separate listings appear for the show---one is Disney+’s back catalog of the show (going back to the first season), while the other is Hulu’s, which only carries recently-aired episodes.
The other major aspect that surprised me about Hulu-on-Disney+: instead of doing a “find and replace” using the non-US Disney+ (replacing “Star” with “Hulu”), as I basically expected, Disney folded almost everything into the new category. And I do mean everything… including non-Disney-owned shows, such as those from rival studios Paramount and Warner Bros., who have their own streaming services.
As such, it’s now possible to watch shows like Nickelodeon’s “Rugrats,” Cartoon Network’s “OK KO! Let’s Be Heroes,” etc. with a big “Disney+” banner above them. I assume all this was greenlit under the terms of being on Hulu; most modern media companies also likely care more about money than public image (as Warner Bros. Discovery demonstrates). That said, it still feels odd to see a “Warner Bros.” movie and TV show section (complete with the famous WB shield logo) on Disney+.
One downside of the combined Disney+/Hulu: bookmarked shows and viewing aren’t carried over between services. If you start watching a show or save it to a watchlist in Disney+, those won’t carry over into Hulu, and vice versa. Perhaps this can be worked out once the new service leaves beta?
Conclusion
Overall, the combined Disney+/Hulu should work well for those that want the convenience of accessing their Disney+ and Hulu shows all within one app. It also might encourage users to subscribe to both services, as the price difference is minimal. Hulu and Disney+ together also make up for each other’s weak spots: Hulu is a bit lacking in children’s programming and some major franchises, while Disney+ is a bit low in adults-only programming.
However, Hulu subscribers who want to watch live TV or have Hulu add-ons (or watch the few shows that aren’t available via Disney+, for rights-related reasons) will want to keep using the Hulu app. The same goes for those that also have ESPN+ and access its live sports programming through Hulu, as there’s no such availability within Disney+.
Image: Disney+ main page with Hulu. (Disney / screenshot by author)