Jeremy Charette
11-22-2005, 03:00 PM
<div class='os_post_top_link'><a href='http://www.broadcastingcable.com/index.asp?layout=articlePrint&articleID=CA6285458' target='_blank'>http://www.broadcastingcable.com/index.asp?layout=articlePrint&articleID=CA6285458</a><br /><br /></div><i>"When Microsoft's Xbox 360 shows up in stores this week, it will offer more than just life-like graphics and improved online play for such games as Madden NFL 2006 and King Kong. The 360 will have enough processing power and network connectivity to bring streamed and downloaded video straight to a TV screen. The Xbox 360—not to mention Sony's PlayStation 3 (due to arrive next year) and other hard-drive–based, next-generation gaming consoles—is moving well beyond basic gaming. For content owners, that means another media platform to explore. “Both the Xbox 360 and PS3 have the capability to act as portals onto other content beyond games,” says Michael Gartenberg, VP/research director, Jupiter Research. Indeed, the new systems are about more than games. Built into Xbox 360 are Windows Connect, which lets users access music files and pictures from a PC, and Media Center Extender, which allows users to stream content from a Media Center PC to an Xbox hooked up to another TV in the home. The Xbox will also use wireless technologies, eliminating the need for cables running from PC to TV. “If the user has a Media Center Edition 2005 PC, they can have instant access to all the live and recorded TV on that PC,” says Jeff Henshaw, executive producer, Xbox Digital Entertainment. “And if you carry music and photos around on a portable digital audio player or camera, you can plug them directly into the Xbox for music or a slide-show experience.”"</i><br /><br /> <img src="http://www.digitalmediathoughts.com/images/EE_hdrImg.jpg" /> <br /><br />The Xbox 360 is exactly what Microsoft needs to really bring the complete Windows Media Center experience to every TV in the home. It has the power to stream high-definition media, control live TV, and display high-resolution photos; without any significant delay or frustration. Conventional Media Center Extenders simply can't compare. Microsoft is already leveraging it to deliver free and pay-to-play content to consumers, just as Apple has done with the iPod and iTunes. You can expect to see more arrangements between Microsoft and major content providers in the coming months.