TV giant Time Warner has told Hulu that it wants current seasons of shows off the streaming service, the Wall Street Journal reported.

The news comes amid reports that Time Warner is negotiating to take a 25 percent equity stake in Hulu, reportedly valuing the service at more than $5 billion.

A deal would see Time Warner join Comcast, Disney and Fox as part-owner, though the three companies would have to reduce their current 33 percent ownership share to allow all four companies to hold equal stake.

According to the Wall Street Journal, Time Warner views the presence of current seasons on streaming sites like Hulu and Netflix as an incentive for cord-cutting, since it allows customers to catch up on their favorite shows even without a pay-TV subscription.

Time Warner, however, did not indicate that the removal of current seasons would be a condition for its investment, the Wall Street Journal said.

Current show episodes account for less than a quarter of streams on Hulu, the Wall Street Journal said.

Hulu currently has around 10 million U.S. subscribers.