Australia is on the top 10 list of countries on Hulu's international expansion plans, its director of international business development, Simon Gallagher, said at the Media 2010 event.

The web TV service has had explosive growth since it launched in 2007, delivering popular shows to American homes via broadband. A collaboration between Fox and NBC Universal, it aims to combat online piracy of television programs.

The strategy has worked, Gallagher said, citing figures that show a significant fall in pirated shows when the programs were available on Hulu. The service is free for viewers and shows are aired online immediately after they are broadcast in Hawaii (the latest broadcast time in the US).

However, he said, significant challenges must be addressed before such a service can be introduced in Australia. These include collaboration between the networks and the cost and speed of broadband access.

''In the US, six out of seven internet users now view internet video every month,'' he said.