Designing a new standard for video streaming On TV screens

Hulu TV
Online video streaming application specifically designed for TV screens, to be viewed as a “10-foot experience” using a standard 5-button remote.

Role
As the sole UX/UI Designer for the project, I conducted user research, product concepting, interface and visual design.

Context
Hulu publicly launched in March, 2008 as a groundbreaking media website offering TV series from major networks for online viewing. At the forefront of streaming services, we created a number of innovative interactions including this one.

Opportunity
Hulu was initially released for viewing through a browser only and the obvious next step was to take Hulu content directly to TV screens. This was the early days of video streaming and there were very limited options for viewing streaming content directly through your TV.

Ideation

More than simply a direct adaptation to larger screens, I redesigned the Hulu streaming experience for a “10-foot experience”, casually consuming video from a TV-watching distance. Navigation would be accomplished by a typical 5-button remote control which accompanied early smart TVs and add-on devices.

The information architecture and corresponding interface would need to be modified to access the entire Hulu catalog of content in an easily navigable hierarchy.

Product Views

Home View
Retaining the feel of Hulu’s distinctive feature masthead, I adjusted components to be easily read from a distance and navigated with minimal inputs. Where new UI components were needed, I created them following our established design guidelines. A central menu at the bottom would access your major categories of content.

Browse View
The hierarchy of content would adapt in an intuitive fashion depending on type: collection (ex.: TV series) or individual video (full episode or short-form clip).

Collection View

Individual Video View

Player View
When playing a video, a quick menu was easily accessible through the down arrow on a remote. Categories in the menu enabled quick selection of your next video.

Learnings and Next Steps

Some Things Will Be Out of Your Control
As the project neared public launch we were informed that key stakeholders had major concerns about threatening other aspects of their businesses and decided to not market this as a streaming solution for TV viewers, instead releasing it as “Hulu Desktop”, an OS application for viewing on your computer screen. This was a huge disappointment but post-launch I took some personal solace in seeing a small but dedicated group of users who figured out how to unofficially use the app on their TV and loved it. Eventually, the product would roll out to dedicated TV streaming devices (Apple TV, Roku, and others).