Hulu Advertising Inventory Guidelines

Updated: July 2022

These guidelines (“Guidelines”) apply to purchases of advertising inventory sold in the U.S. on the Hulu website or application or on any Hulu-related digital properties (“Hulu Advertising Inventory”) through direct buys and/or through Hulu’s self-service ad manager tool (“Hulu Ad Manager”). These Guidelines are incorporated into and a part of the applicable insertion order terms, and, as applicable, the Hulu Advertising Manager Terms located at https://home.admanager.hulu.com/terms/. The Guidelines do not, and cannot, provide an exhaustive list of guidelines or examples, and Hulu reserves the right to review, approve, reject, and refuse to display, or remove any and all advertising on a case-by-case basis. Hulu also reserves the right to approve exceptions to these Guidelines on a case-by-case basis. Hulu may update these guidelines from time to time without notice, so please check in and review them regularly.

Disclosures for Advertising Materials. Advertising materials and the advertising sponsor must be clearly identifiable and may not be disguised as editorial content or programming as determined by Hulu. The method of disclosure can differ depending on the platform, target audience, and type of advertising, but in all cases must be clear and conspicuous. Similarly, disclosures concerning a product, service or offer, such as how a product works, what is included with a service, or what is excluded from an offer, must be made clear and conspicuous to a reasonable consumer.
Substantiation, Legality, Third Party Rights. Advertisers must be able to substantiate any express or implied claims conveyed in the advertising materials. An advertised offer must be fulfilled as stated in the advertisement, and advertisements may only portray or make claims about the product or services being advertised that are accurate and truthful. Advertisements must not be misleading and must comply with all applicable laws, rules, and regulations, including industry self-regulatory guidelines, and must not infringe or violate any third party’s rights.
Technical Specifications. Advertising materials must comply with Hulu’s technical specifications, which can be found at https://advertising.hulu.com/ad-products/ and with respect to Hulu Ad Manager, at https://home.admanager.hulu.com/tech-specs-for-video-ads/.
Advertiser Landing Page. Where personal information is solicited on the advertiser’s landing page, (i) any collection of personal information must be in full compliance with all privacy laws and (ii) advertiser must clearly explain to the consumer how advertiser will use the personal information collected.
Prohibited Content. The following list describes content within advertising that is not acceptable in Hulu Advertising Inventory:
- Content that is reasonably determined to be harmful, threatening, obscene, fraudulent, harassing, defamatory, including mere attacks of a personal nature, attacks on an individual business, or a comment on a private dispute
- Claims or representations that could be interpreted as wrongfully discriminatory based on race, sex, religion, nationality, disability, sexual orientation, or age
- Sensationalism (killer bees, gossip, aliens, scandal, etc.)
- Inflammatory, graphic, or offensive content, language or images, including bad language and proxies for bad language (e.g., X@#%!), graphic violence, and gratuitous use of guns/ammunition/firearms/weapons, tobacco products, illegal drugs, and marijuana
- Sexually explicit content
- Materials that infringe or assist others to infringe on any copyright, trademark or other intellectual property rights
- Illegal activities or references to products and/or services used to assist in furtherance of illegal activities
- Unauthorized or unapproved uses of Hulu or a Hulu affiliate’s products, services, creative assets (e.g. talent, characters, movie or show titles and logos, show imagery, color scheme, font(s))
- Content or imagery that copies, mimics or is otherwise substantially similar to current or past Hulu or Hulu’s affiliate advertising creative from any media form
- An implied yet unauthorized affiliation or favored status with Hulu or an Hulu affiliate
- Any content that includes the “Hulu” name, word mark or logo in any form, including, but not limited to, voiceover, promotional codes, or text overlay
- Content that contains or promotes spyware, malware or other harmful code
- Any content that directly links to content that contains any of the above prohibited content
Prohibited Products, Services, Industries or Categories. Advertising for the following products, services, industries or categories is not accepted:
- Guns, ammunition, firearms and related dangerous products or violent sports/recreational activities
- Illicit drugs and related products and services (with the exception of anti-drug campaigns approved by Hulu)
- Cannabis, marijuana, CBD and related products and services
- Products or services that are of a sexually explicit nature (e.g. pornography, sex sites, adult magazines, escort or paid dating, sex toys, 900 numbers, pay-per-call)
- Tobacco (e.g. cigarettes, e-cigarettes, cigars, pipes, chewing tobacco) and related products and services, including nicotine (with the exception of anti-smoking campaigns approved by Hulu)
- Movies with an MPAA “X” rating
- Credit repair services
- Money-making opportunities
Reviewed On A Case-By-Case Basis. The following products, services, industries or categories require review on a case-by-case basis to determine whether they are appropriate for Hulu Advertising Inventory, taking into consideration various factors, including, without limitation, advertising content and targeting restrictions:
- Any direct business competitor of The Walt Disney Company family of brands
- Online or other dating services
- “T”, “M”, “AO” or “RP” rated video games
- “TV-MA” rated programming
- Movies with an MPAA “R” or “NC-17” rating
- Employment services
- Financial, banking, investment, insurance, real estate, brokerage and loan services
- Religion and religious themed ads
- Political ads (e.g. lobbyists, PAC sites, political parties or campaigns)
- Products or services regarding sexual health (e.g. condoms, contraceptives, personal lubricants, pregnancy tests, erectile dysfunction medication)
- Gambling and sports betting
- Cryptocurrency/NFTs
- Alcohol (beer, wine and hard liquor)
- Dietary and nutritional supplements including diet, weight loss, or slimming products such as diet pills or food substitutes such as slimming shakes
- Cosmetic or body modification procedures, including tanning in an ultraviolet device and plastic surgery
- Black magic, astrology, horoscopes, occult, paranormal and psychic services
- Contests, sweepstakes, giveaways and lotteries (except State-sponsored lotteries)
Hulu Ad Manager Specific Terms: In addition to the other Guidelines herein, the following terms are applicable to Hulu Advertising Inventory purchased through Hulu Ad Manager:
1. Third Party Technology. The use of third party technology, including any tags, pixels or other software code appended to advertising materials, is strictly prohibited.
2. Advertising to Children and Teens. Hulu Ad Manager advertisers may not direct advertising to children and teens under the age of 18.
3. Hulu Ad Manager Prohibited Products, Services, Industries or Categories. In addition to the prohibited categories in Section 6 above, the following products, services, industries or categories are also prohibited on the Hulu Ad Manager product:
  - Religion and religious themed ads
  - Products or services regarding sexual health (e.g. condoms, contraceptives, personal lubricants, pregnancy tests, erectile dysfunction medication)
  - Gambling
  - Alcoholic beverages (e.g. beer, hard liquor and distilled spirits)
  - Movies with an MPAA “R” or “NC-17” rating
  - Dietary and nutritional supplements
  - Over-the-counter medication
  - Prescription drugs
  - Black magic, astrology, horoscopes, occult, paranormal and psychic services
4. Interactivity. Advertising containing Call-to-Action buttons, URLs, hashtags and/or QR codes that imply interactivity is prohibited on Hulu Ad Manager.
Guidelines applicable to Hulu Advertising Inventory directed at children under 13
1. Disclosures. In addition to text disclosures, audio disclosures must be used when video advertising is directed at children under 13.
2. Compliance. The advertising materials and delivery must also comply with the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act, the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Rule, as amended, and any United States Federal Trade Commission guidance on the foregoing Act and Rule (collectively, “COPPA”) and the Children’s Advertising Review Unit’s (“CARU”) guidelines. COPPA and CARU provide that, among other requirements, advertisements directed to children under 13 years of age should not engage in online behavioral advertising. To learn more about COPPA and CARU, see https://www.ftc.gov/enforcement/rules/rulemaking-regulatory-reform-proceedings/childrens-online-privacy-protection-rule and https://bbbprograms.org/programs/all-programs/children’s-advertising-review-unit/Ad-Guidelines.
3. FORT-D. All advertisements directed at children under 13 must run through the internal ad approval system (“FORT-D”) before an ad campaign directed at children under 13 can launch.
4. Data Collection. Personal information (as defined under COPPA) must not be collected from children on Hulu Advertising Inventory.
5. Nutrition Guidelines. All advertisements directed to kids and families for food and beverage products, food service providers, and restaurants must comply with The Walt Disney Company’s (“TWDC”) Nutrition Guidelines and must be approved on a case-by-case basis. TWDC’s Nutrition Guidelines can be found at http://citizenship.disney.com/disney-check.
6. Entertainment Software Products (e.g., console games, mobile games) directed at children under 13. Industry sponsored ratings for entertainment software products (referred to herein as “Games”) must be disclosed in video and audio. Games carrying an Entertainment Software Rating Board (“ESRB”) rating of E or E10+ (for everyone 10 and older) may be advertised. For more information on ESRB ratings, go to www.esrb.org. Ads for “T” rated entertainment software products are reviewed on a case-by-case basis.
7. Films and Videos directed at children under 13. Advertisers should take care to ensure that only age-appropriate videos and films are advertised to children. If an industry rating system applies to the product, such as the Motion Picture Association of America (“MPAA”) rating for films, the rating label must be prominently displayed. Ads for “PG-13” rated movies and “TV14” TV programming are reviewed on a case-by-case basis.
8. Products Labeled “Keep out of reach of children”. Advertising for products that are labeled “Keep out of reach of children” but are of benefit to children, e.g. sunscreen or dental products, should depict adult supervision. In such cases, Advertisers must be able to support the implied claim that the product does not present a danger to children with reliable scientific evidence.
9. Product Categories and Content. In addition to the prohibited categories and content listed in Sections 5 and 6 above, the following categories and content are prohibited on Hulu Advertising Inventory directed to children under 13:
  - Content that could frighten or upset young children or the parents of young children or is otherwise inappropriate for children
  - “TVMA” TV programming, or “M”, “AO”, “RP”, rated entertainment software products or movies with an MPAA “R” or “NC-17” rating
  - Products or services regarding sexual health (e.g. condoms, contraceptives, personal lubricants, pregnancy tests, erectile dysfunction medication)
  - Alcohol (beer, wine and hard liquor)
  - Gambling and sports betting
  - Cryptocurrency
  - Political ads (e.g. lobbyists, PAC sites, political parties or campaigns)
  - Food or beverages that contain high levels of caffeine or any artificial stimulant (including guarana or other energy drinks)
  - Dietary and nutritional supplements including diet, weight loss, or slimming products such as diet pills or food substitutes such as slimming shakes
  - Cosmetic or body modification procedures, including tanning in an ultraviolet device and plastic surgery
  - Black magic, astrology, horoscopes, occult, paranormal and psychic services
  - Subscriptions
  - Advertisements that link to any age-restricted social media platform or network e.g. Facebook, Instagram, Twitter
  - Products with product pricing featured