Hulu has received an unsolicited, and still private offer to buy the company lock, stock, and barrel — disengaging some of America’s largest television networks from the online streaming business Hulu represents.

With an offer in hand, Hulu’s owners News Corp., Walt Disney, and Comcast/NBC have decided to hire investment bankers to solicit any competing offers for the service.  Yahoo! may be one of the companies interested.

Hulu has always represented an irritation for program buyers — notably cable networks and television stations — that purchase programming to rerun on cable networks and television stations.  Because Hulu gives away most of its content for free, these buyers argue it devalues the programming they are buying.

In short, if everyone has already been able to watch 30 Rock several times online, for free, why pay top dollar to buy the series to show on a local television station?

The problem is even worse from the perspective of cable, phone, and satellite companies in the business of selling video packages to customers.  As soon as viewers discover they can watch all of their favorite shows online, again for free, why buy the cable TV or satellite package?

The Los Angeles Times reports Hulu may have some bad news in store for cord cutters: it may implement its own “authentication” system that would only allow instant access to those with a verified subscription to a pay television package.  All others would need to wait just over a week before they can watch popular shows during a limited viewing window.

For many analysts, that will slash the service’s net worth to a would-be buyer.  So would the inability of the new owners to win long-term contracts for the rights to keep popular series and shows on Hulu for the indefinite future.  In the case of Comcast/NBC, it’s a classic case of being torn between bringing your programming to more viewers and eroding away your company’s own cable subscriber base.

[flv width=”360″ height=”290″]http://www.phillipdampier.com/video/Bloomberg Olson Says Yahoo Google Amazon Potential Hulu Buyers 6-22-11.mp4[/flv]

Bloomberg News reports on rumors Yahoo!, Google, and Amazon may be interested in acquiring Hulu.  (5 minutes)

Krone

When David Krone decided to quit his job as senior vice president of corporate affairs at Comcast to go to work as Sen. Majority Leader Harry Reid’s top aide, he got quite the parting gift from Comcast — $1.2 million to cover the cost of the condo he bought just a year earlier.

Comcast’s agreement to make Krone whole, even during one of the worst real estate markets in recent history, was quite a relief for the man who had to make do with a severance package worth $2.9 million.  Now Krone is slumming it on a Senate aide’s salary — $165,000 a year.  That is less than the $270,000 Krone contributed to various candidates, mostly Democrats, since 1989 according to the Center for Responsive Politics.  The Center for Public Integrity says he is Reid’s biggest donor over the past two decades.  Now Reid is his boss.

According to the Wall Street Journal, Krone spent years as a cable industry lobbyist, living in a penthouse unit above Reid’s own condo at Washington’s Ritz-Carlton.  Reid even sought to help Krone win a commissioner position at the Federal Communications Commission — an agency that oversees the cable industry Krone lobbies for, a position Krone declined.

In January 2008, Mr. Krone became a top executive at Comcast, working on public affairs, government relations and public-policy issues. He moved to Philadelphia, paying $1.95 million for a condo, real-estate records show.

After less than 10 months, however, Mr. Krone decided to bail out of the job. Friends say he was unhappy because he had expected to be more involved in top-level decision making than he ended up being.

By then, the real-estate market had declined. When he told Comcast he was quitting, the company agreed to pay him $2.07 million—allowing him to recoup his original purchase price, plus closing costs, according to Mr. Reid’s office.

Companies often cover real-estate losses when trying to woo prospective employees. It is extremely rare for them to do so when an employee quits, say executive-compensation experts. “Severance benefits and even golden parachutes generally don’t protect executives against personal real-estate losses,” says Chuck Yen, an executive-compensation consultant with Grant Thornton LLP.

“Comcast did not know that David Krone was going to Harry Reid’s office or to any other government or regulatory agency” when his separation agreement was negotiated, according to company spokesman John Demming.

Some people familiar with the matter say the company wanted to make sure that he didn’t harbor any ill will after leaving, given his connections. As a heavily regulated cable and media company, Comcast has a lot at stake in Washington.

When Mr. Reid invited him to Capitol Hill several weeks after he left Comcast, Mr. Krone thought it was to discuss another FCC post, Mr. Krone told friends. Instead, Mr. Reid offered him a job, and Mr. Krone accepted.

In April 2009, four months after Mr. Krone started in the Senate, the property sold for $1.09 million, $980,000 less than Mr. Reid’s office said he received from Comcast.

“Whether or not they lost money when they sold it is irrelevant,” said Jon Summers, Mr. Reid’s spokesman.

Billboards sprinkled across Ft. Wayne, Ind., telling residents, “Frontier is pulling the plug on FiOS — Switch to Xfinity,” has infuriated Frontier Communications, who says it will continue to provide FiOS service in the area, at least for broadband, indefinitely.  Now the independent phone company has sent a “cease and desist” letter to Comcast officials demanding the billboards come down.

Frontier spokesman Matt Kelley accused Comcast of spreading false rumors in an effort to drum up business.

“Frontier is not planning on pulling the plug,” Kelly told WANE-TV. “We are going to continue providing FiOS service in Allen County and we have no plans to remove it.”

[flv width=”480″ height=”380″]http://www.phillipdampier.com/video/WANE Ft Wayne FiOS Not Going Away 6-9-11.mp4[/flv]

WANE-TV in Ft. Wayne led its newscast with the dispute between Frontier Communications and Comcast over fiber optic television.  Is the plug really being pulled? (Loud Volume Alert!) (3 minutes)

But Comcast officials note Frontier has been pushing existing customers hard to switch to satellite television service, and Frontier earlier announced dramatic rate increases for its fiber cable television service — rates much higher than other competitors.

Comcast issued a statement about the dispute:

“Comcast continues to invest in these markets, while Frontier has taken a number of steps to discourage new customers from signing up for its service and encourage current customers to seek alternative services from satellite. We are using these ads to make consumers aware of our Xfinity TV service as a better choice for consumers.”

HissyFitWatch: Oooh... Comcast!

From our own Stop the Cap! investigation, both companies are partly correct.

We called Frontier this afternoon posing as a new FiOS customer in Ft. Wayne trying to sign up for television service.  The only option available, we were told, was satellite television service.  While Frontier was happy to sign us up for telephone and fiber broadband, the company representative told us she could not take our order for FiOS TV because, “it’s not available in your area.”

But Comcast’s claims about FiOS lack the very important detail that FiOS broadband and phone service will be offered by Frontier without any interruption — only television service appears to be at issue, and remains available to current customers.

We heard from several Ft. Wayne customers who are unhappy with Frontier’s handling of FiOS.

“While Comcast is being clever, the fact is Frontier wants TV customers to switch to satellite, which is simply a stupid idea,” says our reader Kevin.  “Why would I want a satellite dish when I have fiber.”

Lee, another Frontier customer, believes the company broke its promise of no rate increases after buying out Verizon’s local operations.

“They promptly raised the TV rate by around $30, and if you are a new FiOS customer, expect to pay hundreds and hundreds of dollars for installation,” he says.

Last week, Frontier’s deadline for Comcast to pull down the billboards passed, but as of today those billboards are still on full display.  Comcast’s response to Frontier?

“We received their letter.”

[flv width=”480″ height=”380″]http://www.phillipdampier.com/video/WANE Ft Wayne Deadline day for billboard back-and-forth 6-17-11.mp4[/flv]

WANE-TV in Ft. Wayne updates viewers.  Frontier’s unilateral deadline for Comcast to pull down their billboards came and went.  The billboards are still there.  Now what? (2 minutes)

Comcast customers looking for some savings off their broadband service are getting some decent discounts when threatening to take their business elsewhere.  Depending on the competition in your area, customers are paying as little as $19.99 per month for Comcast Performance Internet, which delivers around 12Mbps download speed.  While the best deals often go to new customers, current customers can get some nice discounts just by using the word “cancel.”

Stop the Cap! has collected some examples from our readers about recent experiences with Comcast’s retentions and promotions departments.  Any customer can try any of these numbers and ask if promotions are available.  Comcast pricing can vary regionally, as do their offers.  If you don’t like the first one you hear about, ask them if they can do any better.  Very often they can.

Chicagoland

Call 1-800-934-6489, select option ‘4’ for downgrade or disconnect, then option ‘2’ for disconnect

Tell the operator you are considering dropping your broadband service because it is too expensive, but a friends of yours is getting a promotion for current customers offering $19.99 a month for Comcast Performance Internet.  Can I get that offer?

They will check for qualified offers for your area and may attempt to offer promotions for triple play packages.  In Chicago, the current Performance promo is $19.99 a month for six months, then $46.95 for the next six months.  But your pricing may vary.

San Francisco Bay Area/Seattle

Call 1-800-970-6405.  They will usually answer asking if you are calling about a special promotion.  Ask them about the Internet offer priced at $19.99 for first year, $34.99 for second year and verify what level of Internet service this provides (it should be Performance).  Some people report this offer is available to new customers only, others say it works for existing customers.  It is provided by an authorized reseller for Comcast.

Tennessee/Mid-South

Call 1-877-395-5388.  Ask about current promotions.

Expect at least five minutes of bad deals.  Hold out for 6Mbps service at $19.99 for six months or 8Mbps at $29.99 for 12 months.  You can often get them to extend the 6Mbps service pricing for 12 months.  Ask for any activation/installation fees to be waived.

Business Class Service (Usage Cap Free!)

Commercial (Business) HSI 12/2Mbps service is available for as little as $60 per month without TV or $65 with basic TV.  All installation fees can be waived.  Expect a 1-2 year commitment.  You may want to Google around for any third party Comcast Business Class resellers who can provide 12/2Mbps service for as little as $44 a month with a six month commitment and $35 activation fee.

General Advice

All promotions with Comcast are strictly “your mileage may vary.”  If a particular representative is not giving you a good offer, thank them, hang up and try another phone number shown above or call later.  You should get used to asking “is this the best you can offer” and “can this fee be waived?”  You won’t get it if you don’t ask.

With Comcast, you will also do much better buying your own cable modem and avoiding the monthly rental fee.  Perhaps some of our readers can join in the discussion in the comments with some modem recommendations.

When your promotion ends, getting an extension requires more work.  Many representatives will not want to offer you back-to-back promotions but some will when pressed.  You can also cancel service and then start a new account with the cooperation of a family member.

Some of the best pricing promotions require some level of cable television service.  If you want broadband-only service, let the representative know you want offers for that level of service only.

Don't look now: Comcast is acquiring theme parks!

Comcast is planning to assume full control of NBCUniversal’s Universal Orlando theme park in a deal worth at least $1 billion dollars, according to a source reported by the Orlando Sentinel.  Universal Orlando is NBCUniversal’s most profitable theme park, home to the popular Wizarding World of Harry Potter, which has attracted record crowds.

The company is picking up the stake of its partner Blackstone Group, and will gain full ownership of the theme park when the transaction closes.