In addition to gaming news, Microsoft announced several enhancements to the Xbox 360's media capabilities.
(Credit: Daniel Terdiman/CNET)Microsoft announced a host of forthcoming media upgrades for the Xbox 360 at its E3 press conference Monday. The chief highlights: an updated video store, now using the Zune branding, that will allow instant-on 1080p video purchases of movies and TV shows; improved Netflix integration; access to Last.fm's streaming audio service; and expanded access to online video content in more countries around the world. (Disclosure: Last.fm is owned by CNET's parent company, CBS Interactive.)
For starters, the Xbox Video Marketplace will be rebranded as the Zune Marketplace. The pay-per-view movies and TV shows will be upgraded to 1080p (from their current 720p incarnations), and will be available as instant-on streams rather than "queue and view" downloads. Availability of the service will also be expanded from its current 8 countries to 18.
The Zune branding was hinted at last week when Microsoft announced the updated Zune HD portable media player. Despite indications of cross-linked functionality, the Zune HD did not make an appearance at the Xbox event, nor were any specifics on syncing between the Zune and Xbox provided.
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Entone)
Vudu is thinking outside the box--literally. The company's 14,000-plus movie library will soon be available on Entone set-top boxes and DVRs. A software upgrade on the Entone units will effectively add the entire functionality of the Vudu BX100, including on-demand access to HD and HDX movies.
While you may not have heard of Entone, the company supplies set-top hardware to smaller regional telephone-company-video providers. Many of those providers may have lackluster (or nonexistent) video-on-demand offerings, so Vudu's library--which includes about 1,500 high-definition movies as well--offers a worthwhile added value to consumers.
For Vudu, the deal represents the first time the company's content will be available on third-party hardware. Vudu has cut the price of its entry-level box to just $149, but having its pay-per-view content available to a much wider audience--including TV viewers who don't need to invest in any new up-front hardware purchases--is the first step for the company to transition from a box manufacturer to a service provider. Like Netflix, Amazon Video-on-Demand, or Rhapsody, Vudu could start showing as a supported feature in the increasingly long list of network-enabled consumer electronics--everything from TVs and Blu-ray players to home theater systems and game consoles.
Compatible Entone set-top boxes are scheduled to get the Vudu upgrade sometime this summer. A representative for Entone said that it should include the entire gamut of features available on the existing Vudu hardware, including the Vudu Labs features that include access to YouTube and Flickr.
Amazon Video on Demand HD, as it appears on the Roku Digital Video Player
(Credit: Roku/Amazon)It's been a long time in coming, but Amazon Video on Demand is finally available in high-def. Owners of TiVo HD/Series 3 DVRs, the Roku Digital Video Player, the Sony Bravia Internet Video Link, and Panasonic VieraCast TVs (and, presumably, VieraCast-enabled Blu-ray players) will be the first to enjoy Amazon's content in HD (software updates to enable HD viewing on those products should be available imminently). Likewise, Windows and Mac users will also get access to HD video content via Amazon's Web site.
As with competing services, HD movie rentals will cost $3.99 to $4.99, and TV episodes will be available for purchase for $2.99 each (HD movie purchases currently won't be available). More than 500 HD movies and TV shows will be available initially, encompassing content from most major studios, including Warner, Sony Pictures, MGM, Paramount, and Universal. TiVo is pledging that the "vast majority of titles" on its boxes will offer Dolby Digital 5.1 surround soundtracks.
CNET was able to get a sneak preview of the Amazon HD offerings on the Roku box last week. For existing users, it's a pretty seamless upgrade: new HD-specific filters for HD movies and TV shows are available, so there's no need to go hunting and pecking for high-def content.
Quality on the Roku box was very good--the 720p video is closer to that of a really good DVD, but it's definitely superior to the standard-definition content that's available. We didn't detect any major difference between the quality of Netflix and the Amazon HD offerings on the Roku, but the Amazon interface allows you to choose rentals or purchases directly from the onscreen interface, whereas Netflix requires you to manage your viewing queue via a PC.
Amazon and Netflix will be getting some company.
(Credit: Roku)The Roku Digital Video Player may be getting as many as 10 new Internet video-on-demand channels by the end of 2009. So says Roku vice president Tim Twerdahl in an interview with U.S. News & World Report.
The Roku Player was originally a Netflix-only device, but it recently added Amazon Video On Demand. The U.S. News story reports Roku has "quietly distributed a development kit to what Twerdahl calls a few 'close, big-name' partners." More info is expected to be revealed this summer, at which time the development kit would be made available to additional programmers.
Providers weren't named, but tech blogger Dave Zatz points out that YouTube support on the Roku has been hinted at in the past, and that Blip.tv has outed itself as a Roku developer as well. If those are 2 of the 10, that still leaves 8 more.
Obviously, any of the existing video content aggregators (Hulu, Sling.com, and CNET sister-site TV.com) would be huge attractions to the Roku, as would individual network-video sites. I'd also like to see some music services (Pandora was just added to Roku rival Vudu, and will also be on most Samsung Blu-ray players and home theater systems shipping in 2009).
Which providers would you like to see added to the Roku box? And do you think that Roku is starting to steal some of Boxee's thunder? Share your opinions below.
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ZillionTV)
A new company called ZillionTV says it will soon introduce a new service that will enable cable and satellite subscribers to cut the cord and get subscription-free movies and TV shows right on their TVs from the Internet.
The company, which officially launched on Wednesday, has struck deals with some major Hollywood movie studios and TV networks, including Disney, 20th Century Fox Television, NBC Universal, Sony Pictures, and Warner Bros. Digital Distribution.
The plan is to offer streaming movies and TV shows directly to TVs using a broadband connection. The company has created a small piece of hardware it calls a Z-bar, which provides the connection between the TV and the Internet via an Ethernet cable or Wi-Fi. The Z-bar also acts as a receiver for the company's unique remote control, which works a lot like a laser pointer and uses sensing technology to navigate through the content menu on the TV screen.
The back side of the Z-bar shows the connections to the TV and the Internet.
(Credit: Marguerite Reardon/CNET )The ZillionTV service, which is currently being beta tested, will only be offered through an Internet service provider. It will be commercially available starting in the fourth quarter of 2009.
Unlike some other Internet-to-TV services, such as Netflix's movie rental service, ZillionTV does not require a subscription. It also doesn't require users to buy an expensive box, such as Microsoft's Xbox 360, Apple's AppleTV, or even Roku's $99 digital video player. Instead, for a nominal activation fee of less than $50, users will get the Z-bar and remote. And then they will be able to view up to 15,000 titles of TV shows and movies through the service without having to sign up for a monthly subscription.
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The Roku Digital Video Player has just gotten a whole lot more interesting.
The company announced Tuesday that it is adding more than 40,000 movies and TV shows to its online video service from Amazon Video on Demand.
Roku launched its $99 digital video player in May with Netflix as its first streaming partner. For a monthly fee, consumers can watch any of Netflix's 12,000 movies and TV shows in its library.
The company said it had sold out of the device in the first two weeks after it went on sale. And since then, sales have been strong, said Tim Twerdahl, vice president of consumer products for Roku.
The company won't release specific sales figures, but Twerdahl said the company has sold well over 100,000 devices in the past nine months.
While this is certainly a good start, the Roku box could become even more popular as more content is added to the platform. The Netflix deal has been a good start, but the service only offers a fraction of its overall DVD library for streaming.
The deal with Amazon is key because it not only offers a much larger library of content, but it also offers hot new titles, many of which are released on Amazon's download service when they're made available on DVD.
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Roku)
Amazon Video On Demand will be coming to the Roku Netflix Player in early 2009.
Amazon's video service will become the first non-Netflix "channel" to be available on the Roku box. The service, formerly known as Amazon Unbox, offers more than 40,000 movies and TV shows.
While that dwarfs the 12,000 or so streaming titles currently available via Netflix--and includes many newer titles as they're released on DVD--they're available on a pay-per-view basis rather than the flat-fee subscription of the Netflix.
A mid-December firmware update included the promise of "a number of great new channels that will begin to appear on your player in early 2009." That implies that Amazon is the first of several additional viewing options that will eventually be available on the box. Whether or not the Roku hardware will be rebranded to emphasize its more diverse choices beyond Netflix remains to be seen.
Amazon Video On Demand is also available on TiVo DVRs and the Sony Bravia Internet Link, as well as on Windows PCs and Macs.
The 99-cent offerings include a good assortment of worthwhile movies--including some recent hits.
(Credit: Vudu)One of the biggest beefs with the Internet video-on-demand services offered on the Apple TV, Vudu, TiVo (via Amazon Unbox), and Xbox 360 is that the movies are just too expensive--usually around $4 for new movies, $5 to $6 for HD films, and a bit less for older "catalog" releases.
Watch just five or six movies a month, and you can easily rack up a $30 charge--not very appealing compared with Netflix's all-you-can-eat pricing plans.
But Vudu took a step in the right direction Wednesday with its new "99 for 99 cents" section, which will offer a rotating list of films for just under a buck. Even better, the initial list--already available on Vudu's Web site--isn't crammed full of the usual sort of dreck you see on such virtual bargain tables.
In addition to some older favorites (Animal House, Groundhog Day, Austin Powers, Chinatown, The Big Lebowski, and many of the Star Trek and Jack Ryan movies), you'll also find recent hits such as I Am Legend and Cloverfield. Not bad at all--though it's worth noting that all of these are in standard-def, not HD. Vudu's also extending its recent "renewal" policy, which lets people rewatch movies they've already purchased in the past seven days (99 cents for standard-def reruns, $1.99 for HD).
Remember that nearly all of the pricing and viewing limitations--such as the fact that rentals must be watched within 30 days of downloading, and within 24 hours of first clicking "play"--are imposed by the Hollywood studios that own the films (rather than the hardware makers). To that end, it'll be interesting to see whether Vudu's rivals begin offering a similar discount tier. In the meantime, though, Vudu's got a another distinguishing feature over its competition.
Hulu's great. Now, how can I get it on my TV?
(Credit: CNET)The Roku Netflix Player debuted last week to largely positive accolades. And why not? The $100 Netflix box delivers on-demand video to your TV for a flat monthly fee that's as low as $9 a month--the same price that would rent you just two to three movies on Apple TV or Vudu. But if the Roku box (and subsequent Netflix-compatible players) has an Achilles heel, it's the dearth of content: only about 10 percent of Netflix's 100,000-plus DVD library is available for streaming, thanks to Hollywood's byzantine licensing systems. The Roku box could stand to have another content source--and I think Hulu would be a perfect candidate.
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The straightforward interface of the Roku Netflix Player
(Credit: CNET)The Netflix box is finally a reality.
The Netflix Player by Roku is the first product that allows subscribers to have movies and TV shows from the service's Instant Viewing feature (aka "Watch Now") to be streamed directly to their TV screen. Previously, Instant Viewing was available only to Windows PC users through the Internet Explorer browser. With the release of the Netflix Player, subscribers need only have a wired or wireless broadband connection to access the entire Instant Viewing catalog through their TV. The full review--with hands-on video--is available at CNET Reviews. But for those who prefer to cut right to the chase, here's the short and sweet version:
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