I suppose YouTube is feeling the heat from Hulu, because they announced today that they’ll be streaming full-length movies and TV shows. The only thing surprising about this is that it’s taken so long to come about.

According to a Hollywood Reporter story, the movies and shows will be streamed on a separate section of YouTube, and include titles from Sony and Lionsgate, as well as TV networks and independent studios.

YouTube has already made deals with MGM (for TV shows and full-length films) and Disney (excerpts from ABC and ESPN shows). Titles include the James Bond flick "Casino Royale," CBS’ new mystery series "Harper’s Island," Morgan Spurlock’s "Super Size Me," and Richard Linklater’s "Slacker."

This is pretty cool, and I can’t really think of a downside. Of course, I’ll always see movies in theaters, because I just love the experience of it. The popcorn, the dark theater, a great movie on a big screen … nothing compares with all that.

But I can see how sites like Hulu and YouTube are a great place to catch up on TV shows and films I missed in the theater.

What about you? Do you watch movies and TV shows on these sites?

Photo Credit: Sony Pictures Entertainment, Inc. 

I’m always psyched to find new places to watch free movies online. I received a note today from Steven Fan, CEO of a site called HelloMovies.com.

The site aggregates films from a variety of sources, including free online movies, paid online movies, Netflix, TV listings such as Starz OnDemand and Encore OnDemand, Xbox Live, and soon, theaters.

It’s pretty cool. I registered (it’s free), and started browsing the site. They have a lot of movies listed, everything from "Fatal Attraction" to "The Crawling Hand" to "Liar, Liar."

When I clicked through to "The Crawling Hand," it told me what the movie is about, how it’s rated on IMDB.com and NetFlix.com (a measly 2.5 out of 5 - maybe you need to watch this with the MST3K gang!), and where I can watch it online for free (Hulu.com).

Check it out, and let me know if you like HelloMovies.com. Steven says they’re always looking for feedback and ways to improve the site.

Image: Amazon.com

Wow! This is huge! YouTube is all about the advertising revenue, and to boost it, they’ll be showing full-length TV shows and films from Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer’s archives.

I guess YouTube + Google = Big Things. The site plans to make the big announcement on Monday, and will kick off the festivities by posting episodes of its decade-old “American Gladiators” on one channel.

On another channel, you can find feature films like “Bulletproof Monk” and “The Magnificent Seven,” as well as clips from movies like “Legally Blonde.” These will be free to watch, with ads running alongside the video.

More after the jump…

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