DirecTV has bid outright for Hulu and Time Warner Cable is
looking to buy a piece of the online video service, Bloomberg
reported Monday, noting that both companies met a July 5 deadline to submit
binding proposals.
According to the report, TWC wants to invest in Hulu and
join current owners Walt Disney Co., News Corp., and Comcast.
TWC's
interest in securing an equity stake in Hulu first emerged in mid-May, with
The Wall Street Journal reporting then that the MSO was particularly
interested in Hulu to help it obtain out-of-market distribution rights for top
TV programming and set it up to deliver subscription-based services outside its
traditional cable footprint.
DirecTV declined to comment. TWC was not immediately
available for comment Monday afternoon.
