Hulu has shelved plans to expand the streaming service to the UK, citing failed negotiations with British broadcasters.

The extremely popular online video service has been a U.S. exclusive since its launch.

All content deals with the ITV and the BBC have fallen apart, mainly because both now have their own streaming services.

"Hulu's talks with ITV have come to a halt because the broadcaster wants to focus on growing its own catch up service – ITV Player and not syndicate its content out to a third party at the moment. Conversations with Channel 4 and Five have also not come to any fruition because Hulu wants to sell the advertising inventory around both broadcasters' content – like it does with US content - and this is not something either broadcaster is willing to concede ON. Hulu has told several people at the British broadcasters that it has been forced to abandon its UK expansion plans after failing to sign any content deals," says a "senior TV executive," via The Telegraph.

Hulu is the second most popular online video site in the United States behind YouTube.

Adds ITV executive Ben McOwen Wilson: "Hulu is a major success in the U.S. but the UK TV market is a different place. It is much more consolidated, which mean there are fewer online locations than in the U.S., which users need to visit to get access to their favourite content –- therefore there is less need for aggregators."

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Google's Andy Rubin has revealed this week that the upcoming Android firmware, version 2.2 (froyo) will have built-in full Flash support.

Rubin managed to take a subtle shot at Apple during the interview with the NYTimes, in regards to the "openness" of the Android operating system.

When asked if consumers acutally cared whether a smartphone OS is open, he compared closed platforms, like that of the iPhone OS to totalitarian governments.

"When they can't have something, people do care. Look at the way politics work. I just don't want to live in North Korea," Rubin says.

He adds: "Sometimes being open means not being militant about the things consumer are actually enjoying."

It is unclear when 2.2 will begin hitting smartphones, but it is expected, at least on the Nexus One and other top-end phones within the next couple of months.

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The Google Nexus One is set to go on sale in the UK via Vodafone starting on April 30th with the "superphone" being available for as cheap as free depending on the contract.

After just a couple of days on pre-order, the phone is already sold out, meaning either demand was very high or supply was low, with many assuming the latter.

For anyone ordering the device, Vodafone is sending off this message: "Thank you for placing your order, reference number [redacted]. Unfortunately we have suffered a surprisingly high demand for the Nexus One From Google, which means that it is unexpectedly out of stock. Please accept our sincere apologies for any inconvenience caused. We hope to have further stock available within 7-10 working days and will contact you again once your order has been dispatched."

The U.S. launch was considered rather sluggish, but Google says the phone has already helped their bottom line.

The Nexus One has a 3.7″ AMOLED 480x800 WVGA display, a 1GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon processor, 5MP camera with autofocus and flash, 512MB RAM and ROM, a microSD slot and noise suppression.

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After over three years of release, the Nintendo Wii finally has a new colorway, a slick black headed to U.S. retail shelves on May 9th.

So far the date has been confirmed by Target and GameStop in the U.S., and confirmed for May 23rd in Canada by Future Shop.

The Wii itself will be completely identical to the white model currently available (minus the color, obviously) and will come bundled with a Wii remote, Wii Sports, Wii Sports Resort and a Wii MotionPlus for $199.

The black colorway has been available in Japan since late last year, and has sold pretty well.

Worldwide, Nintendo has sold 70 million Wii units.

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AOL has sold one of the pioneers of instant messaging, ICQ, to Digital Sky Technologies Limited (DST) for $187.5 million USD.

Despite losing popularity in the United States to other services such as MSN Messenger and AIM, ICQ remains the most popular IM service in Russia and other smaller international markets.

"The acquisition of ICQ is a strategic enhancement of our business in Russia and Eastern Europe. ICQ's long-standing brand name and its sizeable loyal customer base together represent a very attractive opportunity to further strengthen our position in the region," says Yuri Milner, Chief Executive Officer of DST.

ICQ was created in 1996 by Mirabilis of Israel, and AOL purchased the parent company in 1998.

Besides Russia, ICQ is a leader in Israel and the Czech Republic, where users spend over 5 hours a day on the service.

Adds Tim Armstrong, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of AOL: "As AOL continues its turnaround effort, we're fortunate to find a great home for ICQ with DST. DST is a leading innovator in the Internet investment space and has a significant presence in the markets where ICQ is strong. Founded and run in Israel, ICQ has been a revolutionary company on the Internet. We wish them great success as a part of DST and will be rooting for them going forward."

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Giant computer manufacturer HP has agreed to purchase the struggling smartphone maker Palm today for $1.2 billion in cash, including assuming Palm's debt.

Palm put itself up for sale in the last two months after it became clear that the company's phones were not selling and it only had enough cash to last the next 12 months. Palm was entertaining offers from HTC, Lenovo, RIM and others, but HP was never really listed as a likely candidate.

Although Palm has arguably the best smartphone OS available (WebOS), the company has struggled to sell its flagship Pre (Plus) and Pixi (Plus) models, forcing retailers to slash the price to as low as $0 in an effort to get them off shelves.

HP's move can be seen as a way to rival Dell, who has gotten itself back into the smartphone market with the upcoming release of the Thunder, Flash and Lightning phones, all sporting either Windows 7 Phone or Android as their operating system.

"Palm's innovative operating system provides an ideal platform to expand HP's mobility strategy and create a unique HP experience spanning multiple mobile connected devices," says Todd Bradley, executive vice president of HP's personal systems group. "The smartphone market is large, profitable and rapidly growing, and companies that can provide an integrated device and experience command a higher share. Advances in mobility are offering significant opportunities, and H-P intends to be a leader in this market."

Palm CEO Jon Rubenstein is expected to stay with the company although it is unclear in what position.

Shares in Palm jumped to $5.90 in after hours trading, despite HP paying only $5.70 a share (a 23 percent premium from the closing price) for the company.

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