C|NET: Xbox Live Cues Up TV, Movie Downloads

[Jason Dunn]

<div class='os_post_top_link'><a href='http://news.com.com/Xbox+Live+cues+up+TV%2C+movie+downloads/2100-1043_3-6133048.html?tag=nefd.lede' target='_blank'>http://news.com.com/Xbox+Live+cues+up+TV%2C+movie+downloads/2100-1043_3-6133048.html?tag=nefd.lede</a><br /><br /></div><i>"Users of Microsoft's Xbox Live service will soon be able to download selected television shows and movies, the company announced Monday. The new service is expected to go live on November 22, said Scott Henson, Microsoft's director of platform strategy. The idea is to add the new content--movies like Patriot Games, V for Vendetta and The Matrix, as well as TV shows such as Survivor, South Park and Friends--to existing Xbox Live offerings of games. Some of the content will be available in high-definition format, while the rest will be in standard definition.</i><br /><br />One of my favourite things to do with my Xbox 360 is check out HD content, so this is a very exciting development from where I'm sitting. <a href="http://www.xbox.com/en-US/live/marketplace/moviestv.htm">Here's an official page</a> that has a list of the studios/networks that will be providing content initially, including CBS, Paramount, Warner Brothers, Comedy Central, VH1, Spike TV, the UFC, and others. Of course, my excitement is tempered (killed) by the fact that this is for US households. I can hope they'll open it up to Canada and other countries around the world, but I somehow suspect that will take a very long time.<br /><br />The <a href="http://www.xbox.com/en-US/community/news/2006/20061106-moviestv.htm">full press release from Xbox.com</a> is after the break.<br /><!><br />Microsoft Corp. November 6 announced agreements with CBS, MTV Networks, Paramount Pictures, Turner Broadcasting System Inc. (TBS Inc.), Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) and Warner Bros. Home Entertainment to bring an initial lineup of over 1,000 hours of hit TV shows and movies to Xbox 360™ gamers in the U.S. by the end of the year. Furthermore, Xbox 360 will be the first gaming console to bring standard and high-definition TV shows and movies via digital distribution over the Internet directly to the consumer.<br /><br />Beginning Nov. 22, on its first anniversary, Xbox 360 will be the first gaming console in history to provide high-definition TV shows and movies directly to gamers in their living rooms. Xbox 360 gamers will have access to the full-length TV shows as downloads to own and movies to rent via download from the Xbox Live® network, the worldwide leader in online distribution of high-definition gaming and entertainment content. This announcement also brings with it several additional “firsts”:<br /><br />* For the first time, consumers will get an integrated gaming and entertainment experience on a gaming console that includes downloadable high-definition TV shows and movies. This new full-length content adds to the ever-expanding number of choices gamers have on their Xbox 360, whether they want to play games or play a movie on a disc or as a download in high definition or standard definition.<br /><br />* For the first time CBS will deliver high-definition download-to-own TV shows including “CSI,” “Jericho,” “Numb3rs” and remastered “Star Trek” episodes; gamers can buy them and watch them repeatedly.<br /><br />* For the first time on any platform, NASCAR.COM will deliver download-to-own condensed versions of select NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series races from “Race Rewind.”<br /><br />* For the first time, the Ultimate Fighting Championship will make 50 of its most intense fights available for download as well as select episodes from the original season of “The Ultimate Fighter” reality series.<br /><br />“This groundbreaking announcement is a win for everyone,” said Peter Moore, corporate vice president of the Interactive Entertainment Business at Microsoft. “It connects our partners with one of the most coveted audiences in entertainment today, and provides even greater value to our Xbox Live community, allowing them to enjoy the games and entertainment they want, when they want it.” <br /><br />The initial lineup of TV shows available for download to own and feature films available for download to rent will include a growing catalog of popular hits. Examples of content that will be available on the network by the end of year include the following:<br /><br /> * “Robot Chicken” and “Aqua Teen Hunger Force” from Adult Swim<br /> * “CSI,” “Survivor” and “Star Trek” from CBS<br /> * Emmy and Peabody award-winning “South Park” and “Chappelle’s Show” from COMEDY CENTRAL<br /> * “The Real World” and “Pimp My Ride” from MTV<br /> * “Avatar: The Last Airbender” and ”SpongeBob SquarePants” from Nickelodeon<br /> * “Skyland” and “The Nicktoons Network Animation Festival” from Nicktoons Network<br /> * “M:i:III,” Nacho Libre” and “Jackass: The Movie” from Paramount Pictures <br /> * “Carpocalypse” and “Raising the Roofs” from Spike TV<br /> * “Race Rewind” provided by NASCAR.COM<br /> * Select episodes of the original season of “The Ultimate Fighter” reality series and the “UFC: All Access” shows from the UFC<br /> * “Breaking Bonaduce” and “Hogan Knows Best” from VH1<br /> * “The Matrix,” “Superman Returns” and “Batman Forever” from Warner Bros. Home Entertainment<br /><br />Xbox 360 gamers can access Xbox Live Marketplace with a free Xbox Live Silver membership and a broadband connection. More information about the content available on Xbox Live Marketplace can be found at <a href="http://www.xbox.com/marketplaceentertainment">http://www.xbox.com/marketplaceentertainment</a>.

[Darius Wey]

Step 1: Announce TV and movie downloads for Xbox Live Marketplace. Check.
Step 2: Release a bigger HDD to store aforementioned downloads.
Step 3: Tie it all in with the Zune and Zune Marketplace.

Come on, Microsoft. You can do it. :D

[Felix Torres]

Step 1: Announce TV and movie downloads for Xbox Live Marketplace. Check.
Step 2: Release a bigger HDD to store aforementioned downloads.
Step 3: Tie it all in with the Zune and Zune Marketplace.

Come on, Microsoft. You can do it. :D

If I may?
Step 2a: Enable copying of downloaded content, encrypted and DRM'ed if need be, to USB drive or to networked PC.

Using the PC as an archival resource fits their existing strategy of tying the XBOX and PC into a seamless whole, plus it saves *us* money. :wink:

Also, Step 3.5: provide custom audio streaming channels ala Rhapsody/Napster/etc.

They're getting darm close to the optimum home media hub, no?
And presenting a problem for would be competitors in both the gaming and media markets.

Hopefully content providers will realize they're not going to get a safer play than this.

[Felix Torres]

Update:
Purchased content can be deleted and re-downloaded at will, even off a different Xbox. It is tied to the gamertag, not the hardware.
So MS is providing the archival storage for you.
Given enough bandwidth, it might work...

[Darius Wey]

And presenting a problem for would be competitors in both the gaming and media markets.

Agreed. I wonder what's running through the minds of Sony and Apple. ;)

[Felix Torres]

I wonder what's running through the minds of Sony and Apple. ;)

Apple: Who, me worry?

Sony: Ohmigahd!! Another feature we need to code and get running! Will it ever end?! :twisted:

[Jason Dunn]

Purchased content can be deleted and re-downloaded at will, even off a different Xbox. It is tied to the gamertag, not the hardware.

Now THAT'S interesting, because it's DRM tired to *persona* and not *hardware*. That's friggin' HUGE and is the ONLY way DRM can be used without hassle...amazing that they finally did it.

[randalllewis]

Microsoft's biggest deal in ages and it is announced as almost as afterthought!

Forget Vista, Zune, Office, the Novell deal...this is the biggest and most farsighted announcement that Microsoft has made in ages and it got next to no coverage in the MSM. Finally, and it has been a long time, the creative juices in Redmond figured out a way to leverage a existing expertise (the fantastic XBox 360) into a better gadget that will appeal to more than the gamer in a family and open a new market in digitial media where the company will not be playing catch-up for once. Apple has nothing to compete with this except teensy, tiny screens to watch Evengeline Lilly (I much prefer seeing her on my 42 inch plasma.) Sony has nothing to compete with this and if they do develop something, they'll screw it up with a proprietary technology of some kind. Now Microsoft, make me proud of you and market this thing with the same zeal Apple has with the iPod. Vista and the other stuff get all the MSM attention, but this is the one that has the potential to be huge new income stream for the company.

PS. I hope they will eventually tie Zune into this as well.

[Felix Torres]

Purchased content can be deleted and re-downloaded at will, even off a different Xbox. It is tied to the gamertag, not the hardware.

Now THAT'S interesting, because it's DRM tired to *persona* and not *hardware*. That's friggin' HUGE and is the ONLY way DRM can be used without hassle...amazing that they finally did it.

Well, the XBOX/Zune crew are hardly your father's Microsoft; their mandate is to win. And if winning means doing things differently...
&lt;shrug>
The PC side of MS is driven by the needs of their corporate customer base while the XBOXers appear focused on *their* customers; consumers and gamers.

As is, this is not new; the XBLA games are similarly licensed.
This is possible because XBL lives in a universe all its own; we complain about the inability to copy data in/out of the 360 HD, or the need for separate XBLG accounts for families with multiple online players, but those very restrictions allow Gamertag-linked achievements, gamerscore, and DRM.

TINSTAAFL! ;-)

[Felix Torres]

PS. I hope they will eventually tie Zune into this as well.

They'd better; they just sacrificed the extremely nice and useful MSN music on the altar to the gods of Zune.
It (and its high bit-rate d/ls) will be missed.

[randalllewis]

PS. I hope they will eventually tie Zune into this as well.

They'd better; they just sacrificed the extremely nice and useful MSN music on the altar to the gods of Zune.
It (and its high bit-rate d/ls) will be missed.


I've purchased a lot of music from MSN Music and I agree it is/was a good music service. Interestingly though, since I downloaded WMP 11, my MSN purchased tracks have stopped working. I've contacted customer support and been told this is a known issue which may have a solution this week or next. Maybe I won't miss MSN Music after all.

[Jason Dunn]

I've purchased a lot of music from MSN Music and I agree it is/was a good music service.

Better break the DRM on those while you still can:

http://forum.doom9.org/showthread.php?t=114916

I did this on some MSN Music songs I had, and it worked like a charm.

[Felix Torres]

Microsoft's biggest deal in ages and it is announced as almost as afterthought!

Forget Vista, Zune, Office, the Novell deal...this is the biggest and most farsighted announcement that Microsoft has made in ages and it got next to no coverage in the MSM.

No reality distortion zone is a big minus with the MSM.
But as for the biggest announcement in ages I think the best is yet to come. Consider this survey sent to XBL subscribers recently:
http://www.xboxic.com/news/1949

The arcade joystick is a must, but the really interesting stuff is the music options. They are thinking about bringing song sales, download subscriptions, *and* the MSN radio streaming stations to the 360.
Now *that* is big; MS going after XM and Sirius, or maybe teaming with them. And they are thinking about feeding Zune from the XBOX according to a recent comment dropped by the exec in charge of 360 media.

And, of course, there is the "small" matter of the rumored DirecTV blade; the alliance of 360 with DirecTV...

MS isn't going to simply ride their launch lead on Sony into 2008, they're looking to build on it and maximize the online revenue streams which, in turn, will allow them to aggressively drop prices and just plain bury Sony.

But the music subscriptions?
I want that so bad I can taste it; too bad they didn't send *me* the survey. ;-)