countries.
This IS something that needs to be addressed, but it is not as simple as it may
seem.
Canada, being a great neighbor, should have the least obstacles in arranging a
working model for Hulu to work there. But the issue is the same as why Hulu
wouldn't work in some place like France--international law to protect the
content and advertising.
I like the site abc.com and frequently watch theier primetime shows and
dramas directly from the site because the streaming quality is GREAT HD in
high-bandwidth and is actually much better than the broadcast I get in my
home via satellite and DVR. But they restrict access abroad for the same
reason as hulu--content protection and advertising revenue.
Obviously Hulu does not own the content it streams and only licenses it and
pays for the liscense with advertising revenue. Why would an American
company want to pay for someone to watch something like The Daily Show in
Russia, when the American sponsor of the content gets no benefit aince they
don't have any Russian customers nor could they serve that market?
Also, should someone abuse the service by capturing the content and trying to
redistribute it, it would be much easier to file for injunction against an American
user here than it would be to try and stop some pirate in China. Especially
since Hulu now has feature movies online now, and the content could be
captured in sufficient quality make an excellent counterfit DVD that could be
sold.
These are the biggest hurdles, in addition to the waste of pusing bandwidth like
that around the world. A better solution would be for other companies like Hulu
to open in other countries and liscense content and find advertisers to cover
costs. But the market they operate in has to be rich enough and have enough
broadband proliferation to support the ad revenue required to cover content
costs.
Anyone want to start a company with me?
