But a source close to the bidding told Reuters his offer was too low, that Hulu could be worth as much as $1 billion to $2 billion. Time Warner Cable's bid was fashioned as an equity investment, another person said, as the cable operator hopes to set up a joint venture with other cable companies to operate Hulu. Yahoo did not respond to requests for comment. Its shares closed up 1.2 per cent at $26.33. At least five bidders have emerged for the five-year-old video service with four million users, potentially setting up a bidding competition. A second source close to the bidding said the offers submitted so far were non-binding and dependent on Hulu amending content licensing agreements the bidders found too restrictive. Silver Lake, a minority owner of influential Hollywood talent agency William Morris Endeavor, has also submitted an indicative letter of interest, the source familiar with the Hulu bidding said, confirming an earlier Bloomberg report.