Hulu Boss Jason Kilar Declines Yahoo CEO Post

1:55 AM PDT 7/6/2012 by Georg Szalai

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UPDATED: With the executive search in its final stages, the company is also considering interim CEO Ross Levinsohn.

Yahoo's CEO search is down one leading contender: Jason Kilar, head of online video site Hulu.

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"As has been reported, Jason Kilar has been a focus of the Yahoo CEO search committee. He has graciously declined to be considered," a Hulu spokesperson tells THR.

No further comment was provided.

Earlier, AllThingsD reported that the web giant's quest for a new leader was entering its final stages, with Hulu CEO Kilar and and Yahoo interim CEO Ross Levinsohn having emerged as the top two candidates, AllThingsD reported.

Several other unnamed candidates also were being considered for the job, but no further details were immediately available, it said.

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The top job appeared Levinsohn's to lose, given that he has been at Yahoo for several years and has a reputation as a media-savvy leader, AllThingsD said.

He is a former News Corp. top executive and also used to work at HBO.

Kilar is credited with building Hulu into a popular video destination. Last year, the conglomerate owners of Hulu -- News Corp., Disney and NBCUniversal -- decided to hold on to the site rather than sell it.

Kilar, a former Amazon and Disney executive, famously ruffled some feathers of his conglomerate bosses a couple of years ago when he publicly raised questions about the current TV business and its viability.

Yahoo's board seemed to be weighing whether Levinsohn's media and advertising focus or Kilar's product development and technology credentials are best for Yahoo's future.

A Yahoo spokeswoman declined to comment, AllThingsD said.

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Yahoo's CEO post has seen a lot of turnover. Most recent CEO Scott Thompson had to resign in May after less than half a year in the post amid a controversy over misstated education credentials.

Email: Georg.Szalai@thr.com

Twitter: @georgszalai