Hulu CEO Kilar to leave this quarter

Hulu CEO Jason Kilar and chief technologyofficer Rich Tom are to leave the US online TV company during the first quarter.

In a blog posting on Hulu’s site, Kilar said he and Tom would leave at roughly the same time, and that he was working with the Hulu board to ensure a smooth transition.

Kilar said the Hulu team and its “courageous, prescient partners” had “collectively built a culture that matters, a brand that matters, a business that matters”, creating a company that generated almost US$700 million in 2012 and had signed up a record 200,000 new subscribers in the past seven days alone.

“I’ve been so fortunate to play a role in this amazing, ongoing journey,” said Kilar. “My decision to depart has been one of the toughest I’ve ever made. Though the words will fall short of the intended mark, please know how much this team means to me and how very thankful I am to be able to innovate and build alongside you each day.”

Kilar’s announcement comes just over a month after Hulu shareholders ABC, Fox and NBCUniversal purchased Providence Equity Partners’ 10% stake in the company for US$200 million, valuing the company at about US$2billion.

Reports over the last few months have suggested that Kilar has been under pressure to focus more on profitability at a time when content costs have been rising thanks to competition from Netflix and others.

Rupert Murdoch, chairman and CEO of Hulu’s backer News Corp said: “Jason and his team have done a great job building Hulu into one of the leading online video services available today and it’s incredibly well positioned for the road ahead. We are grateful for Jason’s leadership and wish him the best on his next venture.”