Hulu, Great New Place to Watch TV Shows and Movies for FREE

Leaves BETA and now offers an enormous library of different movies and TV shows for FREE and LEGAL on-demand video streaming.

As many of you are well aware, streaming video online is growing increasingly popular as people get faster internet connection speeds and are looking for ways to time-shift their TV viewing habits or are simply looking to find content not available due to geographic restrictions.

“Today, Hulu.com is crossing a milestone in its mission to help people find and enjoy the world’s premium content, when where and how they want it,” said Jason Kilar, chief executive officer of Hulu. “With full-length episodes of current and archived television shows, feature films, sports and news, we believe the Hulu service is a step forward in giving consumers entertainment on their terms.”

From the famed TVLinks of yesteryear, R.I.P, to more contemporary favorites like QuickSilverScreen or SurfTheChannel, video streaming sites have become a popular way to bypass the traditional limits of broadcast TV or the motion picture industry.

For some, video streaming has been a means to watch video content at a place and time of your convenience and not that of broadcasters. For others, it's also a means to watch movies before they appear at local box office theaters, or in the case of independent or "artsy" films, simply at all.

Today marks an interesting new step forward for the legitimization of such sites with the launch of Hulu.com. Aside from their own video streaming sites that each TV broadcaster has devised, from FOX to NBC, this is the first time that I've heard of it being done by a third party that is amassing content from a variety of different outlets and putting it all in one convenient place.

Hulu has content partnerships with the Warner Bros. Television Group, Lionsgate, NBA, NHL and more than 20 other top content providers. It offers feature films like "The Usual Suspects," "The Big Lebowski," "Alien3," and "Garden State."

It also has great selection of full-length episodes from more than 250 TV series like "Family Guy," "30 Rock," "The Simpsons," and "Prison Break." For old school favorites they even have "The A-Team," "The Incredible Hulk," "Miami Vice," "Airwolf," and "Archie Bunkers Place!" How's that for a collection?

What makes it so great though is that it's perfectly legal and FREE. This means there are a few ads you have to watch every now and then, but all in all it's a small price to pay for great content and of exceptional video quality.

“Hulu helps fans find great content wherever they are online,” said Peter Chernin, president and chief operating officer, News Corporation. “With tools that make sharing easy, Hulu encourages viral distribution. At the same time, Hulu’s distribution partners are some of the most visited on the Web, engaging consumers where they are already spending their time. This is a powerful combination.”

This is the more interesting part because it allows registered users to actually take the HTML code for each video offered and then embed content in your blog, website, forum post, whatever.

For example:

The Big Lebowski (PERSONAL FAVORITE)

....and "The Incredible Hulk"

“Hulu.com’s impressive content line up and user experience are equally important in bringing consumers back again and again,” said Jeff Zucker, president and chief executive officer, NBC Universal. “These are the same attributes that make Hulu attractive to major brands. Both groups see the value in a quality, clutter-free online service.”

I'm not a big fan of Mr. Zucker, especially after he tried to say that P2P was robbing poor corn farmers, who are currently raking in billions thanks to huge ethanol subsidies I might point point, but he may just have finally found the solution to illegal file-sharing that the rest of us have known about for some time. We don't mind watching a few ads now and then, just make it convenient, and easy to watch online, and FREE and everybody will be happy.

CHECK OUT HULU.COM

**Also be sure to check out our TOP TVLINKS ALTERNATIVES and MORE TOP TVLINKS ALTERNATIVES guides to find other great places to watch video content for free**