Today marks the start of Anime Expo 2014 in Los Angeles, where Oculus VR is representing with a booth at the show. The company is showing a never-before-seen Sword. That said, if you want to watch next-day airing of network TV shows from ABC, NBC, and Fox for one price, Hulu is a must. And its original shows are only getting. Full Episode Of 24 Season 1.

Netflix vs. Hulu: Streaming Service Showdown. It's hard to remember a time before streaming video services were everywhere. It's almost impossible to pick up a device with a screen that doesn't support them, especially the big two: Netflix and Hulu. Netflix got started nearly 2. DVD- by- mail service with no late fees that pretty much put movie rental places out of business. In 2. 00. 7, it started offering streaming content, which has quickly become its core business (and a major source of internet traffic). As of July 2. 01.

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Netflix has 1. 04 million members worldwide, more than 5. US (about 3. 7 million still get DVDs). While movies were once the main reason to watch Netflix, these days it's known for original programming that has inspired many a binge watch. Hulu is a similar beast, though it's centered more on TV than movies. It launched in 2.

NBC Universal, and quickly became the go- to service for finding programs from most of the major television networks (minus CBS and The CW) shortly after they aired. Hulu is only available in the US (with a knock- off service in Japan; you can't even get it in Canada) and had 1. It hasn't provided an updated number since then; earlier this year, it touted "4. For a while, Hulu had a limited free tier of service, but that ended last year. Hulu changes a lot, but mostly it's for the better; it recently jumped into live TV. It's the second most watched streaming service in the US, according to com. Score—behind Netflix.

If you're the type of person who will only subscribe to one, how do you pick? We'll look at each service and pick a winner in several categories to determine which service is best.

Price. Hulu used to have a free tier with limited shows and advertising, but killed it in 2. Now, the price is a flat $7.

Hulu used to call this tier "Hulu Plus," but now it's just Hulu. The biggest problem with that base tier is it still shows commercials. If you're okay with that, then enjoy.

But for an extra $4 per month, go commercial free. You can thank Twitter for that one.) That's $1.

For that $1. 1. 9. Hulu on only one device at a time officially, but typically it'll run on two or three at a time.

You can create up to six different profiles per account, and put a Hulu account on hold for up to 1. Hulu With Live TV will set you back $3. That covers all local, regional, and standard cable channels available in your market with support for up to two simultaneous streams, plus 5. DVR and full access to Hulu's on- demand programming. We liked it so much, it's our Editors' Choice in live TV streaming, ahead of Sling TV, Sony Play. Station Vue, and Direc. TV Now. If you want Live TV without commercials, you pay $4.

Netflix pricing is a little more complicated. With Netflix, you pay to see it on one screen in standard definition for $7. October 2. 01. 7.

That HD part is key—two screens are fine and all, but HD is a necessity on most TVs and computers. You can go to four screens at a time for $1. October, up from $1.

Ultra HD, which is what you want if you've got a 4. K TV. That also requires you to have a pretty rock- solid 2. Megabit per second or higher internet download connection and some specific hardware (supported devices include Xbox One S, Roku 4, Ti. Vo Bolt, and Dish Hopper 3, among others.)All Netflix tiers are ad- free (beyond it pimping its original content on log- in screens). You get multiple profiles per account, so everyone in the household can have their own "My List" of shows. Also, while Netflix likewise states in its terms of service that users shouldn't share their password, the company is on record now saying it doesn't really care about that. Netflix does not have a live TV option.

WINNER: Netflix. Overall Content Selection. The most important criteria when it comes to picking a video- streaming service is what you can watch.

Netflix used to be all about the movies, going back to its days as a DVD- rental service only. Watch Black Woman`S Guide To Finding A Good Man Online Facebook. A lot of muck is made about the state of the Netflix movie catalog. In the fall of 2. Streaming Observer noted that the number of films in the IMDb Top 2.

But guess what? That was still more titles in the IMDb Top 2. Hulu. According to an All. Flicks report from 2. Netflix had 4,3. 35 movies and 1,1. TV shows available in the US, down 3.

In the last few years, Netflix has become much more TV- oriented, as most of its original content comes in the form of entire seasons of a show, usually about 1. It's a strategy that works well for Netflix, and many shows are critical darlings, from House of Cards and Orange is the New Black to newer fare like Stranger Things, Black Mirror, Master of None, and Marvel's The Defenders.

Hulu, you would think, would be in a little better position since it's essentially owned by the operators of three TV networks, but the individual shows carried by Hulu are not always owned by those networks. Take The CW shows, for instance. Hulu had a deal for five years to show all CW shows (like Arrow, The Flash, Supernatural, etc.) the next day after air; but that contract expired. Now all CW shows go instead to Netflix—but not until the season ends.

Netflix also has the entire backlog of each season of all CW shows). Hulu was also the online exclusive carrier of the entire Criterion Collection of 9. Nov. 1. 1, they moved to a brand new streaming service called Filmstruck from Turner Classic Movies.

Hulu is also frequently missing lots of back seasons of TV shows. When it does have the whole back catalog of a major—like it does for Family Guy or Seinfeld—it makes a big deal out of it. But it's few and far between. That said, if you want to watch next- day airing of network TV shows from ABC, NBC, and Fox for one price, Hulu is a must. And its original shows are only getting better and better, like breakout hit The Handmaid's Tale. WINNER: Tie. Add- Ons. Add- ons, in this case, are when a streaming service provides access to all the content of a whole other service.

To be honest, the best at this is Amazon Video, which lets you add "Amazon Channels" with the complete content of Showtime, Starz, PBS Kids, Seeso, Sundance, and many others, typically for around $4. Hulu now offers three add- on "channels": HBO, Cinemax, and Showtime. For an extra $8. 9.

Showtime catalog becomes available via any Hulu interface; Cinemax is $9. HBO costs $1. 4. 9. On Showtime, new shows are available the day after they air. So that includes shows like Billions, Shameless, Homeland, Twin Peaks, I'm Dying Up Here, and many more. It also includes movies and specials that are exclusive to Showtime.

Standalone Showtime online is $1. Hulu. The HBO add- on costs the same as you'd pay for a separate subscription to HBO Now—or if you had an HBO subscription on cable (which comes with access to HBO GO).

You don't save, but you have the convenience of not needing a separate app to stream Game of Thrones. One other thing Hulu pegs as an "add- on"—its $4- per- month commercial- free option. See price, above.)Over on Netflix, there aren't any content add- ons; not streaming anyway.

You could consider the DVD plans an add- on in this more modern age. Otherwise, it's one price fits all the content on Netflix. Maybe that's because offering up shows one at a time goes against the company's very ethos? Or it just doesn't play well with others? Either way, it's a shame.

WINNER: Hulu. Exclusives and Originals. Hulu has several exclusive shows that are cultural phenomenon—Seinfeld and South Park—as well as exclusivity on a few current shows, like past seasons of You're the Worst and Fargo. It's got a handful of modestly great original shows as well: The Mindy Project (which it picked up after Fox canceled it), Chance, The Path, Difficult People, Casual, and the Emmy- winning The Handmaid's Tale. And seriously, for The Handmaid's Tale alone, it's worth subscribing. Netflix has a lot of exclusives, sure. But what Netflix offers in the way of originals is on another level. It has invested $1.