Remember when former Amazon executive Jason Kilar joined NBC Universal / News Corp to head an unnamed online video venture that is said to be the next big YouTube rival?

The unnamed video site is not unnamed anymore. Kilar has finally broken the silence and announced the coming of Hulu.com. Hu-what?

Hulu.com is NBC and News Corp’s “ambitious” venture into the world of online video programming which is set to go on beta this coming October. For now, they have announced the name. “Why Hulu?,” Kilar said in the site’s first official release, “Objectively, Hulu is short, easy to spell, easy to pronounce, and rhymes with itself. Subjectively, Hulu strikes us as an inherently fun name, one that captures the spirit of the service we’re building. Our hope is that Hulu will embody our (admittedly ambitious) never-ending mission, which is to help you find and enjoy the world’s premier content when, where and how you want it.”

Much is still unknown, but at the moment, Hulu.com is accepting sign ups for the site’s private beta. And if the images that adorn the site’s splash page could speak for itself, we can perhaps expect videos (full-length, I hope) from among the latest TV programs today such as Heroes, Family Guy, Friday Night Lights, Simpsons, and K-Ville, among others.

In spite of Kilar’s explanation, I still wonder how the name “hulu” materialized and how “it captures the spirt of the service”. But HU am I to judge? HU knows, HULU could be the next household name in the online video world — this I’ve got to see. (After all, HUever questioned why Google was named such?)

Update. Interestingly, Michael Arrington did a little investigation on the term “hulu” and got these findings. Hmm. Rename, quick.

Related posts:

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2. News Corp., NBC Universal add CNET Networks as strategic content provider and distributor
3. YouTube rival taps thePlatform
4. New content partners for News Corp. and NBC Universal’s online video venture announced
5. Lulu sues Hulu