There have been rumors going around for years that “Hulu will start charging!” and while there has been a shift in the service content available, you can still watch Hulu.com for free. That’s right. It may change in the future, but as of now – you can still watch. All free.

Phil from Modern Family has figured this out already. Because he’s a (lovable) tech geek. / Ph: Hulu

Which seems to be a point that many people are missing when they hear the news that broke Tuesday about how Hulu will now charge some people who opt into a subscription fee.

If you pay for Hulu ($8.99/month) you will have access to more TV episodes on Hulu than the average person (or bear – not that many bears use the Internet for anything other than where to find the best campgrounds.) This subscription service is called Hulu plus. We suspect that Hulu, like any company, wants to make more money. If you are worried they will eventually charge you to use any part of the site, that’s not what we’d predict will happen. Too many people would choose to find illegal ways of downloading or streaming episodes, instead. Rather than loose that traffic, Hulu is simply offering a more advanced viewing service for those who do pay.

What are the perks of Hulu Plus?

  1. More episodes. Not just the current five, all episodes of a TV season. Even new shows like Glee, Modern Family or 30 Rock.
  2. Stream to your iPhone.
  3. Stream to your iPad.
  4. Stream to your TV.
  5. Stream to your XBox or PS3. (Future goal.)

Hulu Plus boasts this awkward tag line: “More wherever. More whenever. Than ever.”

P.S. The Bill that was  finally passed that meant that TV commercials couldn’t be louder than actual TV shows does not seem to apply to online content or places like Hulu.com. We know this because a recent Being Erica marathon on Hulu.com had us clicking mute for every criminally loud commercial. We can handle short commercials – but our eardrums ringing? Not so much.

Tagged: , , , , ,