WarnerMedia snags Hulu founder as CEO — right on time for HBOMax launch
He's a Kilar Queen... of the streaming screen. Jason Kilar, the founding CEO of Hulu, just got hired by WarnerMedia to be its new CEO — juuust in time for the May launch of its new streaming service, HBOMax:
- Warner is a big ol' confusing media giant: It owns Warner Bros, HBO, CNN, TNT and a bunch of other media-related subdivisions.
- And the plot thickens... Warner itself is owned by AT&T, which acquired Time Warner (now WarnerMedia) in 2018. Like competitors Verizon and T-Mobile, AT&T has been trying to gain more of a foothold in the streaming world.
It's on... Between the impressively fast growth of Disney+, the pending launches of Peacock and Quibi, and the fact that everyone is stuck at home streaming anything with words/video on Netflix: the streaming wars are heating up big time. So is competition for top streaming talent:
- Warner's decision to make Kilar CEO means that HBOMax — and streaming in general — is a top priority for the company's future. Since streaming is the future (present?) of TV, it makes sense to bring on a top streaming pioneer to lead the charge.
- Kilar's streaming-laden resume is Warner's dream: He spent 9 years at Amazon before founding Hulu in 2007, spent 6 years leading Hulu, then served on the boards of a bunch of media companies before founding his own video startup (which sold to Verizon).
Old School media needs New School talent... Warner's got the cable and movie OGs under its belt, but it hasn't conquered streaming yet. That's why it's bringing on a CEO with a strong rep in both the media and tech circles (media + techy = New School media). Now Warner hopes it'll be better positioned to succeed in the competitive streaming space — with its new profit-puppy hopeful, HBOMax.