From washingtonpost.com:

As Hulu continues its spectacular rise (it is the No. 3 video site in the U.S. and is closing in on No. 2), it just got major buy-in from yet another major media company. Disney is now an investor, joining News Corp and NBC (along with private equity firm Providence Equity Partners). Each of the three media companies now reportedly own 27 percent of Hulu.

As the initial exclusivity for NBC and Fox content expires, Hulu will be adding Disney/ABC videos and TV shows to its distribution mix as well. Hulu is becoming the preferred distribution channel for the big media companies. And it is succeeding in attracting the fickle Web audience. This should worry YouTube, which is still casting about for a business model that will pay for its enormous storage and bandwidth costs. The media companies cannot ignore YouTube just yet, but by strengthening Hulu they can give it their best content first.

The faster Hulu grows in popularity, the more I realize I need to buy a new computer. My iMac G5 simply cannot handle high-resolution Flash content. While I can watch high-quality videos on YouTube, their HD clips are too choppy for me. Likewise, most of the content on Hulu is completely unwatchable on this machine. Fortunately, most of the content featured on Hulu is unwatchable to begin with, regardless of whether it’s on a computer or television. Hopefully Disney joining the group will bring more than Hannah Montana and Desperate Housewives to the mix.