More Xbox TV Talk
TV on the thing you bought to avoid TV with.
Published: 21:00, 02/12/2010 by Peter [Colossalblue].
30Today marks the fifth anniversary of the Xbox 360′s UK launch. In those five years there has been so much added to the Xbox family of services, from the social networking integration to the Zune Marketplace and Netflix (at least in the US). It seems like there could, just maybe, be a bit more coming.
If Yahoo! (via Reuters) is to be believed, the perennial talk of Microsoft moving TV services onto their console may have just taken a large step forward. They quote “sources” as saying that the Seattle-based technology giant is looking at multiple plans and strategies to get programming from various networks and cable providers onto the Xbox 360. One such plan involves allowing cable subscribers to view programming through their consoles with added interactive functions such as messaging.
This all sounds very US-based just now but with that huge market seemingly on the brink of embracing technologies like Apple TV, Google TV and even Netflix (which already has a healthy base) streaming services, it might be a potential earner. Hopefully it will also provide them with a springboard for expansion into other global regions.
The plans come at a time when subscription television providers are suffering as customers move towards online catch-up and streaming services. Microsoft has already courted one such provider, ESPN (owned by Disney), who might act as a test case for other channels and networks.
According to the unnamed sources, these plans are still some way off but the early talks have been productive and are looking promising.
We think it also shows promise for how Microsoft intend to support the now-middle-aged console into its twilight years. And we all scoffed when Microsoft told us they were planning a healthy ten-year life cycle.
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02/12/2010 at 21:14
Member since: Forever
Consoles really are Trojan horses, if MS can become a proper IPTV provider then there’s a whole new revenue stream.
02/12/2010 at 22:29
Member since: May 2009
They need to find new revenues as they are not as dominant as they used to be in the PC market.
03/12/2010 at 00:11
Member since: Jul 2009
In what way? They still have a whopping 90% OS (Operating System) market share with all computers on the internet (ignoring servers, obviously). Bonkers!
03/12/2010 at 03:22
Member since: Jan 2010
With Netflix, Hulu, MLB+, PSN Video store and a web browser on the PS3 (in the US) it’s no wonder MS are trying to play catchup. Im not convinced the model suggested above will be of much use to most people, if you already a cable subscriber then viewing your TV through the Xbox where it is streamed doesn’t sounds like a particularly attractive option. Viewing it on Xbox needs to make it better, not worse…
1) Streamed TV picture quality is NOT equal to HD Cable.
2) Streamed TV burns bandwidth and download quotas (if relevant).
3) Cable subscribers in the US generally get PVRs included which can record shows for them with things like automatic series recording etc. These are quite advanced and come with large HDDs.
4) To access this you will almost certainly need a Gold Live Sub.
What cable subscribers want, are IPTV solutions that are cheaper than cable and allow them to ditch their cable or wind it back significantly. In Australia, Microsoft DO offer such a service, providing limited Foxtel cable packages viewable through the Xbox that don’t require you to have a normal cable subscription. As it stands though, the quality is still worse than through cable, it burns a lot of data per hour (~800mb from memory), not all channels are available and you can’t record it. What’s the point?
03/12/2010 at 10:20
Member since: Forever
Netflix was on 360 a year before PS3, Hulu was confirmed at the same time and there’s many other providers already live like ESPN etc… I’m not sure where your playing catch-up comes from.
True IPTV isn’t just these catch-up services though, its also the convergence with live broadcast TV and whilst all your points are 100% correct & I agree with all of them as negatives, broadcasters are still gravitating towards IPTV and that will only ever increase.
04/12/2010 at 02:16
Member since: Jan 2010
It’s true, 360 had Netflix first – but like all these things with Xbox you need to be a Live Gold Sub to use it, and if you were outside the US and had a 360 you got SFA.
Until about 12 months ago the state of play was this:
USA
—
360 – Netflix & Zune Maketplace
PS3 – PSN Video Store & Web Browser (for Hulu and other streaming sites)
Rest of World
———-
360 – Nothing
PS3 – PlayTV, Various IPTVs (BBC, iView etc), Web Browser, PSN Video Store, VidZone
When PS3 got netflix in the US, the 360 really had no advantage over the PS3 for video content. Whilst it’s true Hulu Plus was announced for many platforms at once, the PS3 got it almost straight away (and without needing a Live Gold Sub!) whereas 360 users are still waiting.
Since then PS3 has added Mubi in several countries, MLB.TV (which is actually very impressive service and not IP blocked outside the US) and various catchup TV services in several countries. Xbox has added Last.FM and ESPN3, although again you need to be a Gold Sub AND to get ESPN3 you need to have you ISP with one of the supported ‘affiliated service providers’.
I like the idea of IPTV on my consoles, but I don’t understand MS’s model of insisting on a Live subscription to use them. If you can get ESPN3 on your ISP, then you can view it free with any pc/mac/linux browser so how MS can justify making it premium is beyond me. Same with Hulu Plus and Netflix.
In summary, the PS3 has been a better choice for TV outside of the US for a long time, and now it’s as good if not a better choice for people inside the US. This has to be concerning for MS which is why I say it’s no wonder they are looking for ways to step their game up.
Whoever brings me NCAA Football and NFL in HD streaming available outside the US will win my vote – I’ll happily have my loud ass Xbox running all day if it can do that ;).
03/12/2010 at 13:07
Member since: Jan 2010
One of the best and most accurate tag lines ever Colossal, really made me chuckle.