As a Hulu viewer myself, it's never fun to hear that you might lose out on a great service, but there is a rumor spreading around between sources that Hulu might be going to an Authentication service where they will validate your status as a cable or satellite tv customer.  Of course, Hulu has not yet given an official word on this yet, but we'll keep you informed as the news comes out.

"It's looking like the jig may be up for Hulu as we know it. Rumor has it that the TV and video streaming service might be planning to switch from its free model to a plan that requires viewers to prove they pay for cable or satellite TV, according to the New York Post.

The purported new model is called "authentication" and would work by making users log into Hulu with cable or satellite TV account numbers in order to watch any show on the service -- essentially putting up a de facto pay wall around its content. HBO's streaming service, HBO Go, works exactly like this.

The streaming service is owned jointly by Fox parent News Corp., Walt Disney, Comcast, and equity firm Providence Equity Partners. It currently has two types of service, a free-for-all and a subscriber service that costs $7.99 per month and has about 2 million users. It's unclear if the rumored changes will affect both services.

According to the New York Post, Hulu had 31 million unique users in March and earned $420 million in ad revenue last year."

Source: C|NET

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