The free Hulu website improved its layout, making it easier to search for shows you want, and discover shows and clips that are similar to the shows you watch. The Hulu website does not require the Hulu Plus subscription, yet a majority of the Hulu TV show offerings are available to nonpaying viewers too. If you don't see these changes type "new.hulu.com" into your web browser. After that you can return to typing "www.hulu.com."
Home Page Layout and Personalized Recommendations
Many of the changes incorporate elements of the Hulu Plus app layout for other devices. The dynamic home page may show different genres and groups (categories) of videos each time you return to the webiste. Examples of these categories include TV's Most Fashionable Shows, Popular in Courtroom Drama, Popular in Late Night Comedy, "Back to the 80s," "Top Mom Clips," and "Period Pieces."
If you have signed in to your Hulu account (either the free account or the paid Hulu Plus account), you will also get personalized recommendations. Recommendations are grouped by genres—"Recommended in Comedies," "Recommended in Drama." I noticed that my recommendations differed than those for my son. His comedy list had more sit-coms similar to "The Office," and my comedy list were shows like "The New Girl," and "Glee."
New Search Feature
As you cruise about the Hulu website, you might be reminded of a TV show or movie you want to see. Rather than scrolling up to the search bar, simply start typing the name of the show and it will populate the search terms and start displaying matches. If the show you want is the first match, you can click on the thumbnail and start playing the newest episode immediately. No need to click to the show page and peruse. If you want to watch "Desperate Housewives" immediately, type the words, and click and you are ready to watch.
Pick Your Commercial
Unfortunately, there is no getting around the fact that you have to watch commercials on Hulu (unless, of course, you leave the room). Unlike watching a TV show on you DVR, you cannot fast forward. So, if you have to watch commercials, why not customize them?
Occasionally, at the start of streaming a TV show, you will have a few seconds to choose one of three commercials for a product. For example, a car commercial I noticed had one version that talked about new models and another with a dog in it (I chose the dog). A "Daily Show" episode offered me the option of watching one long commercial at the beginning of the show, or watch it with regular commercial interruptions. The long commercial was a four minute long music video for some alcohol.
Aside from these occasional choices of which version of a commercial you want to watch, you can go into your account settings and customize the types of products that interest you. Click on your name in the upper right corner of the screen, then choose "account," and "privacy and settings." There you will find "Ad Tailor." Answer the questions in this section to tailor the commercials to your lifestyle. I'm not buying a car anytime soon, so I opt out for cars, and opt in for new types of foods by saying that I am the person who makes the decision about buying food. The result was that I saw a Starbuck's commercial about their new green coffee and went out to try some. The ad tailoring seems to follow your account and are not limited to the website (i.e., I get the customized ads both on the website and on my iPad's Hulu Plus app).
Again, most of the changes are for the Hulu website that you find on your computer's web browser. The free Hulu website has optimized the experience to watch on a bigscreen TV, but you'll need to connect your computer using a cable or WiDi. More on how to do that in another story.
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