Hulu shareholder Providence sells US$200m stake

Private equity firm Providence has reportedly sold its 10% stake in US catch-up TV service Hulu for US$200 million.

Hulu

Hulu’s other shareholders News Corp., Comcast and Disney will have full control of the company when the deal closes. News Corp owns the Fox network, Comcast owns NBC and Disney owns ABC, meaning the service is now fully controlled by US studios.

Neither Providence or Hulu have confirmed the deal, which would value the company at US$2 billion.

Providence was, along with Disney and NBC, one of the start-up investors in Hulu, contributing US$100 million in 2007. Disney then bought into the company in 2009.

The agreement also triggers share sales options for some Hulu management with equity stakes and wire service Bloomberg reports that CEO Jason Kilar will make US$40 from offloading shares following the Providence deal.

Hulu, which also operates subscription service Hulu+, has attracted various suitors including Google and Amazon. It is ostensibly a US operation although does run a subscription service in Japan.