Netflix On Xbox 360

Xbox 360 owners gained access to Netflix’s ‘Watch Instantly’ video-on-demand streaming service last November with the roll-out of the long-awaited New Xbox Experience. This gave Xbox Live subscribers access to the 12,000-plus movies and television episodes Netflix gives away to its subscribers.

This was just the latest step in the evolution of video games consoles from being meant just for games to becoming true multimedia devices designed as living room entertainment hubs.

Games Consoles = Entertainment Hubs

Since then, all three home games consoles, the Xbox 360, PS3, and Wii have added video to their line-up of offerings.

The Xbox 360 has secured more television and movies on both sides of the Atlantic, with content from NBC Universal amongst other. 1080p HD Zune playback and a console version of the Sky Player are also on the way to the Microsoft console.

The PS3 has added a music video service called Vidzone to its line-up, which acts like an on-demand MTV. Thanks to its in-built Web browser, the likes of Hulu and the BBC iPlayer can also be viewed on the Sony console.

The Wii hasn’t faired quite as well, but its Web browser can also stream video in the same way the PS3 can. And with YouTube rolling out a version of the site intended purely for watching on television, Wii owners aren’t without options.

New Netflix Features

Today saw Microsoft unveil another update to its Xbox 360 dashboard. It includes several new features for Netflix playback. Party Watch is a social feature that enables Netflix users to watch content together on their Xbox 360 consoles.

While improved playback functionality, an improved search function, and more information regarding what your friends are watching all add to the usefulness of Netflix on the Xbox 360.

Netflix An Xbox 360 Exclusive?

Interestingly, the patch notes for the update also includes a section concerning the exclusivity of Netflix on games consoles:

“This exclusive partnership offers you the ability to instantly stream movies and TV episodes from Netflix to the television via Xbox 360. Xbox 360 will be the only game console to offer this movie-watching experience, available to Xbox LIVE Gold members who are also Netflix unlimited plan subscribers, at no additional cost.”

This promise for the Xbox 360 to “be the only game console” featuring Netflix Watch Instantly flies in the face of rumors from April which suggested the service was also on its way to the PS3 and Wii.

Either Microsoft has secured a long-term exclusivity agreement with Netflix or it’s hedging its bets that Netflix will decide not to branch out and welcome rival consoles to the party. Either way, the Xbox 360 looks to have secured Netflix for the foreseeable future.

[Via NewTeeVee]

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Games Consoles

I’ve been banging on for a while now about the importance of video games consoles in getting online video into the living room. That’s because I firmly believe these Internet-connected devices are key to getting quality streaming content onto people’s televisions rather than only on computers as it generally is at the moment.

We’ve already seen a fair few advances in this area. Both the Wii and PS3 are able to provide users with access to Web-based television services such as the BBC iPlayer, Joost, and Hulu. While the Xbox 360, which has no Web browser capability, has Netflix and now the Sky Player providing both downloadable and live streaming video.

Microsoft At E3 2009

At E3 2009, this year’s Electronic Entertainment Expo held in Los Angeles, Microsoft unveiled even bigger and more ambitious plans for online video on the Xbox 360, which are detailed below. What’s clear is that Microsoft realizes the potential for online video and has also realized that in the Xbox 360 it has a ready-made delivery system installed in millions of homes around the world.

The Xbox 360 video service will be rebranded as the Zune video marketplace. Streaming content will now be available in 18 countries up from 8, including the U.S., Canada, the UK, France, Germany, and Australia. TV shows and movie will now be available instantly rather than the current system of queue and view.

Full HD On Xbox 360

Xbox 360 video is already available in 720p high-definition but this is being pushed to 1080p full high-definition. Video playback will begin at low bitrates in order to allow for instant viewing but will soon ramp up to 1080p with 5.1 audio. Microsoft claims this new method of video delivery will be as close to the “disc in the drive” experience as is possible over the Internet.

Microsoft’s hook-up with BSkyB to bring the Sky Player to the Xbox 360 in the UK and Ireland was confirmed. And the feature mentioned alongside that which allows for social viewing of sports is to be rolled-out for other content in other territories as well. So a bunch of Xbox 360 friends will be able to watch a movie together using a virtual theater.

Conclusions

These are exciting times for console owners because they are getting treated as the innovators and early-adopters of online video coming to the living room. Microsoft, for once, is actually leading the charge rather than following in other’s footsteps. Whether Sony and Nintendo can now keep up remains to be seen.

Games consoles are ready-made set-top boxes just waiting for online video content to be added to them. All three of the current-gen home consoles, the Xbox 360, PS3, and Wii, can be hooked up to the Internet and that feature can easily be used for streaming video as well as the intended use of online gaming.

Console Content

Each of the three consoles has seen some movement of late on video content being added. The PS3 is probably in the best position because its built-in Web browser means the Sony console is able to access Hulu, the BBC iPlayer, Joost, and any other streaming video service available on the Web. Xbox 360 owners instead have to rely on applications being added to their console’s dashboard.

It has secured quite a lot of content though. Xbox 360 owners in the U.S. have access to Netflix’s ‘Watch Instantly’ playlist, although they’re not alone. It’s rarer these days for a set-top box or Internet-enabled device NOT to have Netfix integration. Thus proving the company’s commitment to video on-demand.

Xbox Sky Player

Now, it’s been announced that Sky Player is coming to the Xbox 360 in the UK. PS3 owners can already access Sky Player online through their Web browsers but this is a new, specially developed version just for the Microsoft console.

A rough release date of Autumn has been given but there are no details on pricing yet. The Web-based Sky Player service sees existing subscribers with multi-room given access to the channels they subscribe to; non-multi-room subscribers having to pay a fee for a Sky Player account; non-subscribers having to pay the same fee they would to have the full Sky service in their homes. I can’t see it being much different on the Xbox 360.

Xbox Sky Player viewers will have access to sports, movies, and other programming, all of which will be streamed live or on-demand. A 1Mb Broadband connection is required and all programming will be delivered in SD DVD quality. The service will be integrated into the Xbox 360 dashboard and will have Xbox 360-specific features such as the use of avatars and the ability to talk to other viewers in real-time.

Conclusions

The Sky Player service, on the Xbox 360 or otherwise, is only available to people resident in the UK and Ireland. But there is speculation that this deal could be followed by similar ones in the States with content-providers other than Sky, possibly to be announced as early as E3 2009 next week.

This is just yet another example of how games consoles are becoming an important element in the evolution of online video and digital streaming. They are already sat next next to your TV, hooked up to the Internet, and powerful enough to stream good-quality content. So it makes sense to use them to their full potential.

[Via BBC News and TechRadar]

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Netflix Overstretches

Netflix is making huge headway in making the idea of digital downloads and streaming mainstream. By making its ‘Watch Instantly’ service available on all manner of devices, it is getting into millions of homes in the U.S. But is it overstretching itself?

Netflix is now available not only on PC, but on a range of devices including the Xbox 360, the Roku box, a hybrid Blu-ray player, and even a new range of Internet-enabled televisions. But in order to serve these different devices, is it throttling some aspects of its streaming service?

Bandwidth Throttling

There is one glaring issue facing the streaming and downloading of movies and television content, particularly as high-definition becomes more common. That is, Broadband speeds and Internet connections being able to handle the bandwidth needed to allow for a good user experience.

This is already an issue, with many ISPs not offering fast enough speeds, or the infrastructure not in place in many areas of the world to make these distribution methods a possibility. But the issue is compounded by the problem of throttling, with ISPs known to purposely slow down the connection speeds for people downloading a lot of data.

In the United States, this has mainly been confined to people downloading torrents over P2P networks, with ISPs such as Comcast being warned over such behavior by the FCC (Federal Communications Commission). In the UK, ISPs have expressed displeasure over the BBC iPlayer and how it is costing them money. And it’s happening all around the world.

Netflix Throttling Itself?

A thought-provoking post on The Break it down Blog investigates whether Netflix has started throttling its service to PC users. The author, Riyad Kalla, has noticed a deterioration of the Netflix ‘Watch Instantly’ service on his PC compared to on his Xbox 360.

He details how he determined that it was Netflix rather than his ISP, Qwest, doing the throttling and asks whether this is due to Netflix having contractual obligations to provide a certain level of service to Microsoft via the Xbox 360.

Conclusions

The comments on the blog post address the various issues, and make for interesting reading. While it’s not 100 percent cut and dried that Netflix is to blame for this worsening of its service, the possibility does make me wonder if the company has maybe overstretched itself by moving onto one too many devices.

Streaming and digital downloading isn’t going to truly take off if the companies involved, including the ISPs who effectively act as middle-men cannot guarantee a fast and efficient service. With Netflix looking to offer a streaming-only service in the future, this could prove to be a business-killer in the long run.

Netflix U.S. Only

When the Xbox 360 recently got a makeover to the New Xbox Experience, Xbox Live users in the U.S. gained access to the full range of ‘Watch Now’ movies on Netflix. That’s over 12,000 titles that are now available to stream through the Xbox and onto your television.

Unfortunately, Netflix is a U.S. only operation, and so Xbox 360 users in Europe and elsewhere weren’t afforded such luxury. But now, those of us in the UK and Ireland are at last starting to get some titles filtering through. Paramount, Warner Bros., and MGM already offer titles through the system, and now another studio has climbed on board.

Universal Movies Deal

Universal Movies has done a deal with Microsoft to bring its movies, both old and new, to Xbox Live. All the titles will be downloadable for between £2.10 and £4.50, depending on the age of the movie and whether you want it in standard or high definition.

The initial offering of 29 films includes classics such as The Incredible Hulk, Shaun Of The Dead, The Blues Brothers, and Scarface. Once downloaded, a movie will remain on the console’s hard drive for 14 days, but once playback is commenced, you have just 24 hours to finish watching.

Movies But Not TV

So, that’s movies sorted out, but what about TV shows? Stephen McGill, Head of gaming and entertainment at Xbox 360 informed T3 that streaming television isn’t a priority at present, with the main focus being on delivering the best film titles.

The reasoning behind this decision is, rather bizarrely, that Microsoft thinks people already have enough ways to watch television. McGill stated:

“People are already consuming TV shows through other mediums – if I want to watch something, I can watch it on my TV, my laptop or use services like the iPlayer. It’s not necessary to offer consumers another way of watching TV, Xbox users want movies”.

Unfortunately, this means Microsoft doesn’t seem interested in having the BBC iPlayer available through the Xbox 360. The iPlayer is already available on the Wii and on the PS3 via its built-in Web browser. YouTube has also been given a TV friendly makeover for PS3 fans.

Conclusions

The Universal deal just underlines how important games consoles are in making online video and television and movie downloads mainstream and accessible to all. Between them, the three current-gen consoles offer a multitude of different options for gamers to download or stream content.

As the range of devices in the living room, from Internet-enabled television, set-top boxes, and Blu-ray players increases, games consoles also have their place. All of the modern ones offer multimedia experiences in which online video is a key ingredient.

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The New Xbox Experience is an overhaul of the existing Xbox Live online service available to all Xbox 360 owners with an Internet connection. And Web video is now part of the deal.

Xbox 360 owners can now stream any of 12,000 movies and television episodes through their console direct to their TV. And it’s all free for existing Netflix subscribers and Xbox Live Gold members.

Netflix On Xbox 360

The deal between Microsoft and Netflix was announced back in July at the E3 Media and Business Summit. But the service was delayed until the New Xbox Experience was launched on Nov. 19.

This deal is just one of a number made by Netflix in recent months which is seeing its library of streaming content becoming available on a huge range of products.

Netflix Growing In Stature

Netflix is rapidly becoming one of the most important player in the streaming video business, and has existing deals already in place with Roku and LG. The Xbox 360 is now the third TV-connected living room device with the ability to stream Netflix content.

High Definition Video

Netflix is also now offering high-definition movies as part of its online service, following in the footsteps of VUDU. There are initially only 300 HD choices available but the range will increase massively over time.

Sony Show Bitterness

There is one omission to content available on Xbox 360 however, with Sony decided to make any movies from Sony Pictures Entertainment unplayable on the Playstation 3’s rival console.

The Sony movies will still be watchable on PCs, Macs, and other Netfix enabled set-top boxes but Sony seems to have taken a rather obvious and snide decision to prevent the competition from benefiting from its intellectual property.

Bigger Issues

There also seems to be some problems with getting the Netflix ‘Watch Now’ feature to work on the Xbox 360, but that’s probably just teething problems that will be fixed sooner rather than later.

One issue that is here to stay is the ever-present one of territorial rights control. With DVDs and TV shows region locked, so is Netflix, so any Xbox 360 owner outside of the U.S. is out of luck. So for me in the U.K., the New Xbox Experience just means new reasons to be disappointed.

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Today was the first day, and Microsoft was the first of the big three to show its hand. And one of the announcements means that Xbox 360 owners will soon be getting more access to online movie downloads.

This will be coming from Netflix, the online movie rental company, which is teaming up with Microsoft to allow Netflix subscribers, who also own an Xbox 360, to have access to its extensive catalogue through their consoles.

Free To Existing Subscribers

According to Reuters, the service will be launching in the Autumn, and is likely to come as part of a software upgrade. The brilliant news is that the service will be free to Netflix subscribers who also hold Xbox 360 Live Gold memberships. Which is likely to be a fair portion of the 10 million Xbox 360 owners out there.

Xbox 360 owners will be able to access the 10,000 titles, made up of both episodes of popular television series, and movies currently available as part of the 2007 launched Netflix ‘Watch Instantly’ feature.

Rumours surrounding some kind of partnership between the two companies have been rife over recent months, but until today, nothing official had been announced.

In Addition To Roku and LG Partnerships

This latest move by Netflix follows on from earlier partnerships with Roku and LG, both of whom are creating cheap set-top-boxes with the express intent of providing a living room alternative for people to download or watch Netflix content.

We’ve spoken about the Roku box, which retails for just $100, twice in the past. First when it was launched, and then when it was announced that the makers had plans way beyond simply Netflix.

Xbox On Top, Sony To Follow?

This latest deal means Xbox 360 owners get even more online video offerings than before, with original programming already rumoured to be on the way, and a video service available through Xbox Live.

Sony has its E3 press conference on Wednesday, and it’ll be interesting to see whether Playstation 3 owners get any similar announcements. There have already been rumours of a video download service coming, so now we just need the details filling in.

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Xbox Live is Microsoft’s Web platform, exclusively available to Xbox 360 owners. Of the 18 million people who own the current generation console, 10 million have signed up for the service.

The service currently offers various different for sale, either by use of a credit card or redeeming points for participating in various Xbox Live activities.

Many games, including user created ones are available, as well as films like Saw and The Departed, and full episodes of TV shows such as South Park.

Original Programming On Way

Now, from a deal struck between Microsoft and Hollywood producer and talent agent Peter Safran, original programming will now also be heading on to Xbox Live.

According to The New York Times, Safran will be producing a series of programmes, across a range of genres for distribution via Xbox Live.

The shows are expected to run at about ten minutes long each, and are likely to include appearances from celebrities under his management, including Sean Combs, Jennifer Lopez, Jessica Simpson, and Brooke Shields.

All of the shows are expected to appeal to the core Xbox 360 user group of males aged between 14 and 34, and the first run will be available from Autumn of this year.

A New Market

Safran commented on the deal by saying:

“The Xbox is unique. It operates at a level outside of what we generally consider Web entertainment,”

The new shows will first be available through Xbox Live before possibly appearing elsewhere. This is likely to depend on how successful, or otherwise, they are.

Conclusions

This is certainly an interesting development, because it adds another string to the Xbox 360’s bow, and makes Xbox Live a venue for original programming, rather than just an outlet for distributing other content.

Microsoft are clearly trying to make the Xbox 360 an all encompassing entertainment hub, and they realise that original programming will have to figure somewhere in order to make that a reality.

It now seems that in the latest dashboard update, there was the inclusion of limited DivX support, although it’s not 100% functional, and Microsoft tried to call the files anything but DivX.

The Xbox Team’s official blog announced:

“[The Xbox 360] now supports files encoded using MPEG-4 Part 2, Simple and Advanced Simple Profile, [which are] often referred to as Xvid or DivX video files”

This is sure to be great news for the millions of Xbox 360 owners, as it increases the library of media content they can now have access to through their trusty consoles.

Not Quite Full Support

However, it’s not full support, as the Xbox 360 won’t support files which contain additional functions, such as menus or subtitles. It will also only support content encoded with DivX version 5.0 or later.

It’s not the only good news for Xbox 360 owners as we enter the Christmas season either, as the European launch of the Xbox Live Marketplace Video Store has been announced for December 11th.

Xbox Live Marketplace Video Store

From that date, Xbox Live users will be able to rent full length feature films for as little as £2 each (or 250 Microsoft Points) or HD-DVD movies for £3 (or 380 Microsoft Points).

Robin Truchy, European director of Xbox Live said:

“We want to give consumers the entertainment they want, in the format they want, when they want it and at an affordable price.”

“We are already offering HD games, HD music videos and the option to enjoy HD-DVD format films, now we are offering HD movies to download and rent as well.”

The films stay on the console’s hard drive for 14 days after being downloaded from the Marketplace website and must be watched within 24 hours after the play button is first pressed.

Consoles Rapidly Becoming Media Hubs

This is just the latest in a long line of steps taken seemingly to place what were once mere games consoles at the heart of the digital media revolution.

The Xbox 360, along with the PS3 are rapidly becoming more like media entertainment hubs sitting in your front room, rather than just machines to play Mario and Grand Theft Auto on.

Where this will end is anyone’s guess, but with the digital market growing, and television companies increasingly looking towards the Internet to sell their wares, it’s an important step forward for consumers.

Mike Volpi, the new CEO of Joost arriving from Cisco. told The New York Times that:

Joost is a piece of software and it can reside on a variety of platforms… It could be on a television set-top box. Or potentially it could be imbedded in a TV set with an Ethernet connection, or on a mobile phone, or in some alternative device that might come out in the future. The flexibility is really high.”

Possible Set Top Box Partners

But who will this STB partner be? Joost could theoretically just go out there and strike a deal with any STB manufacturer to create a Joost IPTV box that will bring Joost to the TV set.

However, I’ll put my money on the fact that they are also waiting for a deal with a popular brand with a large consumer base.

Let's look at the options: