Hulu

More streaming services than you can shake a virtual stick at have cropped up over the past year, which makes it all the more aggravating when that one movie you want to watch is nowhere to be found. You shell out every month for Netflix, Amazon Prime, Hulu, Shudder, Filmstruck and a dozen more, and yet once that craving to rewatch The Lion King hits, you’re plum out of luck. What’s the point of having countless hours of programming at your fingertips for your immediate enjoyment if that doesn’t include The Little Mermaid?

For almost a decade, Hulu has been one of the biggest homes for online TV. The day after many shows premiered on television, you could watch them on Hulu. Hulu offered several different subscription models, either with our without commercials, but you could also watch a lot of their programming for free. But that is about to change.

The war between cord-cutters and cable seems only to be widening, as networks ponder their own streaming services to thwart increasing competition like Netflix and Hulu. Cable may finally have struck back, as Time Warner considers purchasing enough stake to end Hulu’s access to current TV seasons.