TMCnet News
Microsoft to update Xbox with new features, entertainment channelsDec 05, 2011 (San Jose Mercury News - McClatchy-Tribune Information Services via COMTEX) -- Microsoft's Xbox 360 is getting a makeover. No, Microsoft isn't releasing an updated version of the console. But it is revamping the game machine's interface, adding new content and features. Through a software update available Tuesday, users will get access to a swath of new digital entertainment content, including video channels from the likes of YouTube, HBO and Epix, and digital music from iHeartRadio. Subscribers to Comcast's pay television service will be able to access all of the company's on-demand video via the Xbox. The software update will also include a universal search feature that will allow users to search for movies and other content across various digital content providers. And it will let owners use Microsoft's Kinect accessory to navigate the entire Xbox interface. Previously, users could access only a handful of functions through Kinect. "Our vision for the living room is to bring you all the entertainment you want," said Ross Honey, general manager in charge of entertainment and advertising for Microsoft's Xbox Live service. "When you come to the couch, you only have to use one device. We're focused on making it super simple." Since it launched, the Xbox 360 has offered more than just games. Even before the latest update, owners could access video from providers including Netflix (NFLX), Hulu Plus and ESPN. But Microsoft has been continually adding new entertainment services, making it an ever-more compelling digital media hub, said Kurt Scherf, principal analyst with Parks Associates, a market research firm. "You can't help but be impressed with what Microsoft has done with living room entertainment," he said. Bringing digital content from the Internet to the living room has been a long-term aim of consumer electronics manufacturers. Many new television and Blu-ray players allow users to connect to digital content services such as Netflix and Pandora. Additionally, companies including Apple (AAPL), Google (GOOG) and Roku have been working on digital set-top boxes that provide similar access to non-Internet ready televisions. The Xbox 360 hasn't gotten as much buzz lately as these newer devices, but it's been far more successful at connecting consumers to the digital living room, said Danielle Levitas, a consumer technology analyst with IDC. Unlike Internet televisions or digital set-top boxes, consoles like the Xbox 360 are already in tens of millions of American homes, she noted. And a much higher proportion of game consoles are connected to the Internet than are Internet-capable TVs, in part because owners want to get access to online multiplayer games, she said. "The consoles are still dominating" the digital living room, she said. Still, the Xbox 360 is likely to remain primarily known and used as a gaming machine, analysts said. Microsoft is unlikely to market it as anything but that, and few consumers are likely to buy it just for its digital living room uses, they said. "If you don't self-identify as a gamer and aren't considering getting a game box for gaming, I don't see it happening," Levitas said. Contact Troy Wolverton at 408-840-4285. Follow him at Twitter.com/troywolv. ___ (c)2011 the San Jose Mercury News (San Jose, Calif.) Visit the San Jose Mercury News (San Jose, Calif.) at www.mercurynews.com Distributed by MCT Information Services |