You can probably blame Google Play and the cut it requires
Google is currently doubling its efforts to enforce its billing methods – thus getting developers to pay a fee if they want to make money with in-app purchases. A deadline for the Google Play policy, which went into effect in April – following an initial announcement in 2020 – is forcing developers to make in-app transactions through their own billing system. This change particularly affected Barnes & Noble and Amazon Audible apps, which have removed the ability to purchase new titles via Android phones. It seems that Hulu may be the next service to fall victim to this change, as any subscription-related fees will now have to be done via the website instead of the app.
As discovered by 9to5Google, from the latest update, the Hulu app on Android phones and TVs no longer offers the option to sign up for the service, either as a new paying customer or for a free trial period. To sign up for Hulu, access the service using the Web site on your phone or other device. Once you have your credentials, you will be able to log in to the Android app. The new splash screen that notifies users of the change states the following:
Are you trying to sign up for Hulu?
Sorry, we can not make registrations in the app. If you are already a subscriber, log in below to start viewing.
Hulu has not confirmed or denied that this change is related to Google’s policy enforcement efforts, but it’s not difficult to connect the dots as the app does not even direct users to sign up in other ways or even mentions the free trial period. So if you are not yet a Hulu subscriber, you can expect the sign-up process to become a little more inconvenient now.
We have contacted Hulu for clarification and we will update this article if we hear back.
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