Later this year, the streaming video service Hulu will serve up a Pizza Hut advertisement that allows viewers to order a pizza right within the ad. The feature combines Pizza Hut’s online ordering system with Hulu’s interactive advertising system. It’s the kind of thing that could become more common as companies take advantage of emerging interactive ad capabilities. Mike Hopkins, the chief executive of Hulu, promoted the Pizza Hut ad campaign at Hulu’s annual presentation for advertisers in New York on Wednesday.
We love catching up on TV with Hulu, but unless you’re willing to pay for Hulu Plus the only way to use the service is from a desktop browser. That will finally change this summer when the company introduces free ad-supported TV episodes on your mobile device. Hulu announced the news today at a media event in NYC, also revealing plans for a new Hulu Plus iPhone app, in-app pizza delivery and more. In an attempt to bring in even more viewers, Hulu will offer a “selection of ad-supported full TV episodes on mobile devices for free” this summer. We assume this means you’ll have access to some content but not everything offered with Hulu Plus. The company may also use this as an opportunity to push its own content. Hulu said it plans to triple the marketing budget for its original shows.