Zombie fans looking forward to AMC's upcoming The Walking Dead spin-off series now have a place to watch that series online: Hulu.
Today, the company announced several exclusive deals that it has signed exclusive streaming rights of all new and upcoming scripted series on AMC (including The Walking Dead spin-off, Fear The Walking Dead), BBC America, IFC, SundanceTV and WE tv.
"AMC Networks has an incredible reputation and track record in producing captivating storytelling across a variety of genres for true connoisseurs of television," says Hulu CEO Mike Hopkins. "This huge partnership guarantees that Hulu viewers will soon be able to enjoy the newest slate of premium programming from some of the top cable networks."
Any new series by any of those networks will be available only on Hulu, but there is a catch: those shows won't appear on Hulu until their following seasons air live. So it's a lot like Netflix: you have to wait a year to see the content. But if you're wanting to watch those shows online, Hulu will be the only place to do so.
"We believe in the combination of compelling content and technology to engage audiences and deliver viewers back to the linear television experience," says Ed Carroll, COO of AMC Networks. "AMC Networks has been the original home of some of the most popular shows in the history of online streaming, and we are excited about this new partnership with Hulu, a growing company that has created a network-branded environment for content in a highly competitive space."
Hulu's deal also makes IFC Films available for viewing, which adds strength to Hulu's current weak movie offerings.
Hulu has already nabbed exclusive rights for all episodes of comedy series Seinfield: expect to see that series added to the service later this year.
With agreements like these, Hulu is quickly becoming a contender in the online streaming wars, pitting it directly against other services like Netflix and Amazon Prime. However, Hulu still needs to up its original content offerings, which is probably why the company also announced a new Hulu-only series called Difficult People: that series' executive producer is Amy Poehler. Hulu previously announced that it had exclusive rights to 11/22/63, a mini-series based on the Stephen King novel of the same name starring James Franco.
Finally, Hulu is officially dropping the "Plus" from its name for those who pay to subscribe to the service. From now on, regardless of whether you pay for it or not, it's just Hulu.
[Photo Credit: Hulu]
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