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MTV.com announced a new homepage design Tuesday that focuses more on content, rather than aesthetic changes. It will launch Wednesday morning.

MTV.com's basic color scheme will remain the same. The navigation at the top of the site will also remain unchanged. Even the prominent promotional box toward the top of the page, which MTV calls "The Marquee," will maintain its position on the new home page.

Not much has changed from the current page.

(Credit: Screenshot by Don Reisinger/CNET)

The biggest change made to MTV.com comes in the form of a new module, called The Daily Fresh. Placed just below The Marquee, The Daily Fresh will feature content MTV grabs from both its own pages and third-party sites.

The Daily Fresh is basically a news feed. As MTV.com's editorial staff creates more content, the best stories will be hand-picked by MTV editors and placed in the feed. Those same editors will also place user-generated content that relates to one of the company's television shows, music videos, or news stories into the module. To accommodate those site visitors who want content outside of what MTV provides, The Daily Fresh will feature articles or videos its editors find from other sites across the Web. Eventually, MTV.com plans to feature a "submit" link to give site owners the opportunity to have their content featured on the music site.

The Daily Fresh underscores what is a slightly modified strategy for MTV. Instead of being a place for visitors to check out music news and the latest music videos, MTV wants to make MTV.com a hub for all the other online content MTV Networks offers on sites like VH1.com and MTVU.com. To do so, MTV.com will now syndicate some of the better content from its sister sites to the home page.

MTV also wants to give users a voice. To do so, it has partnered with a video technology firm called Innovid. Through its partnership with Innovid, MTV is allowing users to tag specific moments in videos, write a comment about the moment, and share that with friends on Facebook and Twitter. Those comments are also featured in the video's timeline. So far, the feature has been rolled out in a few videos on the site, but the company hopes to make it available on every video the site offers in the near future.

Although MTV wouldn't divulge exactly how it plans to "create more innovative ads"--a key component in its strategy for quite some time--it did say that it plans to hold a special advertising event on September 9 to celebrate the release of The Beatles: Rock Band on the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and Nintendo Wii.

The new site, complete with The Daily Fresh

(Credit: MTV Networks)

When visitors get to MTV.com on September 9, they will see an ad that will display exclusive, unreleased content from the game. MTV said that the ad will feature seven "touch points" that visitors can click on. When they do, they will see in-game videos, sneak peeks of gameplay elements, and other features it wouldn't disclose.

MTV plans to offer Facebook Connect support at some point in the future, but it wouldn't say exactly when. Based on how the company's executives were talking, though, I'd expect to see it sooner rather than later.

Although I didn't have the chance to demo the new home page, it looks like an iterative update. The top half of the site has barely changed, while the bottom half features a few new modules that some users might find useful. If they don't find them useful, MTV said that it's willing to change. According to the company's execs, the update is experimental and it plans to modify the site's design based on usage patterns.

With its new home page, MTV wants to become one of the many sites Web surfers visit every day. It wants to be a media hub for entertainment. It's certainly possible. But whether visitors will respond well to the site's few changes when it launches Wednesday morning remains to be seen.

It might not be as hotly anticipated as the "Beatles: Rock Band" game, but Microsoft announced at its annual press briefing at the E3 Expo that Facebook and Twitter will be coming to the Xbox Live service.

The press event included short demonstrations of what are effectively Facebook and Twitter clients for the gaming console, aesthetically adapted to the Xbox Live interface.

With the Facebook app, which will be a download from Xbox Live, members will be able to engage in a limited number of features including photo browsing, status updates, and looking at friends' profile "streams."

But what's more important to game developers is the fact that the Facebook Connect standard--which was rolled out first to Web developers, and then to iPhone developers--is coming to the Xbox this fall. This means that players will be able to log in with their Facebook accounts and broadcast their gaming activities on their social-network profiles.

Xbox manufacturer Microsoft made a $240 million investment in Facebook in October 2007. The service now has well over 200 million active users around the world.

Both Facebook products are "penciled in for the fall," Facebook platform program manager Gareth Davis told CNET News. He said that while there currently aren't plans to bring Facebook's virtual currency plans to the Xbox, he implied that it's not out of the question. "We're constantly looking at ways of improving the user experience or the developer experience with Facebook credits," Davis said.

This post was updated at 2:26 p.m. PT with comment from Facebook.

Paying less for streaming sounds nice, but the online catalog is still limited.

(Credit: Sarah Tew/CNET Networks)

Netflix is considering offering a streaming-only pricing tier as soon as next year, according to comments made by CEO Reed Hastings in a report by Bloomberg.

The streaming-only membership could be popular among those with Netflix-enabled devices (such as the Roku Netflix Player, Xbox 360, and LG BD300) who want streaming access without the full cost of a Netflix membership. Netflix hasn't said how much the streaming-only tier would cost, but we'd assume it would be less than the current entry-level $9-a-month unlimited plan.

On the other hand, we're still on the lookout for Netflix to start charging a premium on customers who use the streaming service in addition to DVD rentals. The company has already introduced premium pricing by charging Blu-ray renters an extra dollar a month, and it feels like it's only a matter of time before heavy streamers pay a premium as well--or at least for premium content. In other words, keep on streaming while the streaming's free, because it may not last forever.

(Sources: Bloomberg via Engadget HD)

As mentioned early last month by my colleague Daniel Terdiman, Microsoft is giving users the option to browse and purchase Xbox Live Marketplace content within the browser. The new storefront, which is slated to go live early Wednesday morning, is already beginning to appear on Xbox.com, albeit in incomplete form.

The new system gives Web users the same catalog to browse through and purchase as they get on the Xbox 360, including themes, gamer pictures, demos, and downloadable games. Once players turn on their system at home, all the purchased items are queued up and begin downloading right away.

Users are also able to manage their download queue from the site. This includes the option to view your past purchase history, and re-download old content. Microsoft's new system only lets you do this one item at a time, however I can easily see the company adding a bulk queue management tool later on down the line. In the meantime, this is a far better way to go through and re-download a large number of items than navigating the list on the console. In case of a hard drive crash or any other loss of data, this is a quick way to get back up to speed.

The new online marketplace lets you re-download items you've already purchased. Once you start up your system at home they'll start downloading.

(Credit: CNET Networks)

While you cannot play the movies, music videos, and TV shows from your browser once purchased, the online experience includes the same short video previews that are available on the console itself. It also lets you hop around available content a whole lot faster, despite the addition of alphanumeric searching on the freshly updated system software.

Other small improvements include the option to add more Microsoft points to your account balance, and tack on extra time to your Xbox Live membership. There's also the option to enter redemption codes, which are given out in retail cards and as promotional items for early betas, and exclusive content giveaways. Allowing users to submit these codes at any time means many more folks will be able to claim them in situations where they cannot make it home--giving them a jump start on contests or other limited-time offers.

The new Xbox.com Web marketplace should be completely up and running early Wednesday morning (PST). In the meantime, registered Xbox.com users can still access the new Marketplace interface to add Microsoft Points, edit account information, change Xbox Live membership levels, and redeem prepaid and promotional codes.

Since its launch in early February of last year, Facebook's online gift store has run off of standard U.S. dollars, letting users purchase gifts one at a time, or in bundles at a slight discount. However, starting Monday the popular social network has moved to a micropayment system where each point represents a cent, opening up its gifts marketplace to items outside of the $1 standard.

There are several benefits to using such a system, the least of which is user convenience. Microsoft, which has had its own points system since the advent of the Xbox Live Marketplace, has forced users to buy points in packs ahead of any purchases, in effect requiring user credit before a sale. The result of this is that users almost always have a leftover balance which can rest in Microsoft's accounts, earning the company interest until the user's next purchase.

The big difference between Microsoft's system and Facebook's implementation is that Facebook has stuck with the same monetary standard that most of its users are locked into. In comparison, Microsoft points are approximately 25 percent more per 100 than a dollar, which becomes confusing at higher amounts--and even more so at the international level. So much so that several developers have created currency translators and sites to help people figure out how to even out their remaining balances.

Facebook gifts must now be purchased in 'points' instead of U.S. dollars, opening up a new system where items can be above or below the magic 100 mark.

(Credit: CNET Networks)

So what does this mean for the future of gifts and other transactions on the service? We're likely to see both higher- and lower-priced items, which will result in customers having remainder balances. It's something that will entice (and require) them to buy more. So far Facebook is offering point packs in chunks of $1, $5, and $10 while the price points of gifts remain at the standard 100-point ($1) and free denominations. Facebook says free gifts will continue to be offered, however expect to see sub-100-point, and more expensive "premium" gifts coming in the very near future.

[via VentureBeat]

AppleTV has a rich history of getting hacked for the sake of adding extra utility. Contained within its small confines is a reasonably powerful computer that's capable of running Mac OS X (albeit slowly). The problem is that despite this power, the system software is tied to iTunes and its sister store for movies, music, and TV shows. This hinders it from competing with devices like mini-PCs and game machines that offer a huge variety of media playback, including DVDs and Blu-ray movies.

To help solve this, Boxee founder and CEO Avner Ronen has published instructions on how to get his company's media center software to run on the AppleTV. This system requires the use of developer Scott Davilla's ATVUSB-Creator, a Mac-only application that lets you create special programs that boot off a USB thumbdrive. The application comes with simple tools for putting SSH, Xbox Media Center for Mac, and its Boxee derivative on a drive with just a few clicks.

Once installed on the AppleTV, you can enjoy the same Boxee experience that's currently available on Macs and PCs running Linux. This includes being able to play Web video from multiple sources, and DivX- and Xvid-encoded content through your network--all without having to use any special transcoding software. You're also able to switch back to the Apple TV interface without having to make any massive changes to the way the system runs.

Within the next two months the software will be updated to play videos off of Hulu, meaning AppleTV owners who run the hack will be able to watch full-length TV shows (with ads) without having to purchase them from Apple's proprietary storefront. The company is also trying to get Netflix's freshly improved Watch Now streaming service running too.

Boxee is currently in private beta and limited to Mac and Linux users. We've been told that it's coming for PC users within the next month, with plans to open it up to everyone come next year's Consumer Electronics Show.

Once installed, you can run Boxee right off the AppleTV's source list.

(Credit: Boxee)

Related: Hands-on with Boxee: A gorgeous social-media viewer

Microsoft on Monday morning announced upcoming support for movie rental service Netflix as part of its system software update for the Xbox 360 (see live blog here). Console owners who are also Netflix subscribers will be able to take advantage of Netflix's Watch Now streaming movie service on their consoles without any additional software or hardware.

It's actually not the first time 360 owners have been able to accomplish such a feat. Several third-party tools that use a workaround in Windows Media Center's plug-in architecture have let you do this with just a small hit in performance. However, such a system required users to have a linked-up Media Center PC in the first place. With the new system, no new hardware is required.

Xbox 360 users will also be able to view streaming movies with other people on their friends list as part of the newly updated party chat system. This means you can watch and control a streaming movie with up to seven other people as part of a party--something not possible on the browser-based iteration (unless you've got a couch that is). Similar efforts from Lycos and YouTube have proven fun to play with.

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What makes the move interesting is that the Xbox 360 does not currently have a Web browser built in, unlike competing consoles from Sony and Nintendo. Netflix's Watch Now service requires the use of Internet Explorer, which means Microsoft has likely ported an iteration of IE over to the 360 for the sake of making all of this work.

Update: Microsoft has updated Xbox.com with further details and the full press release. Some tidbits worth noting:

• Use of streaming Watch Now videos on your Xbox 360 requires both a Netflix membership as well as an Xbox Live Gold membership, which runs about $5 a month.


• You can mark Watch Now movies or shows in your browser and they'll show up in your media list back on the Xbox. Likewise you can browse and rate the catalog right from the console.


• Microsoft says the movies should start playing in 30 seconds or less--the same as the desktop version.


• Users can fast-forward, rewind, and pause videos using the controller or a compatible media remote.


• The Watch Now library is the same as what's available on the desktop and on other set-top streaming devices.

The Zune hearts content, but how many people heart the Zune?

(Credit: Microsoft)

Microsoft may be putting together an "entertainment marketplace" tentatively named Zune VideoX, ZDNet's Mary Jo Foley reported Wednesday. In other words, it's yet another digital content store trying to take a bite out of Apple's iTunes.

Joe Belfiore, corporate vice president of Microsoft's Devices and Entertainment eHome division, is reportedly spearheading the project. But it goes without saying that as with any of these "iTunes killers" that seem to pop up like mushrooms after rain, well, it's going to be an uphill battle even for Redmond.

Creating a solid digital download store is something that Microsoft has tried repeatedly, and hasn't gotten right yet. Its Zune Marketplace hasn't exactly been a resounding success. There has also been chatter about something called "eLive," a marketplace of digital download content--music, video, games--for Zune digital media players, Windows-based PCs, Xbox gaming consoles, and Windows Mobile smartphones.

"eLive was renamed and recrafted to Zune VideoX," a source told Foley, "and the eLive vision scaled down to focus on Zune." Really? That's too bad. The Xbox has been a much more resounding success than the Zune, and it already has the successful Xbox Live Marketplace as a starting point.

That said, there's reportedly a third-generation Zune coming next year. And on another note, can somebody please outlaw the term "iTunes killer?"

Quickly filling up Netflix's rearview mirror is a sight that no tech company wants to see: Apple.

Apple announced on Tuesday that the company has cut licensing deals with every top film studio--deals that will enable iTunes to offer first-run movies a month after they are released on DVD.

This means that Apple has won a major advantage in the Web movie-rental business. One of the biggest complaints customers have with online movie services is that none offer first-run features. The same is true with some of the video-on-demand services operated by the cable companies.

Moreover, Netflix offerings don't work on anything but computers running Microsoft's operating system.

Apple CEO Steve Jobs told the audience during his Macworld 2008 keynote address on Tuesday that movies offered by the service, iTunes Movie Rentals, will play on PCs, Macs, iPods, and iPhones.

Apple also one-upped most competitors by offering films in high definition (HD). Jobs told the Macworld audience that customers can watch the streaming movies instantly. They will have 30 days to start watching the moves and once they begin streaming the film and will then be allowed 24 hours to finish viewing.

Apple will charge $3.99 for newer releases and $2.99 for older titles. Customers can pay $1 extra to obtain movies in HD. The company expects to offer 1,000 films by the end of February.

"The big surprise is that they're doing HD," said James McQuivey, an analyst with Forrester Research. "Apple nailed this because HD is what consumers want."

Apple's new rental service isn't likely to threaten Netflix's core mail-order business, according to McQuivey. Apple is charging on a per-film basis while Netflix business allows users to watch what they want for a monthly fee.

But the future of movie rentals is supposed to be providing customers access to any film with a push of a button. Nobody offers that--yet. But in the race to deliver instant gratification, Apple just zoomed past Netflix.

Still, the Web rental business as a whole has many shortcomings. Some are technological and some are the annoying restrictions imposed by the studios.

Transmitting movies over the Web, especially in massive HD-quality files, is known for taking multiple hours. The viewing experience, meanwhile, is often marked by stalling and jerky video.

Among Apple's competitors is Microsoft's Xbox. The company launched a movie and TV download store for Net-connected Xbox 360s in November and some users have complained about hours-long delays in getting their films. What Apple fans will be interested to see is what kind of viewing experience Apple can deliver.

One thing that is bound to annoy them is the viewing deadline. That isn't Apple's fault, according to McQuivey.

The reason for the deadline, he said, is that the studios insist on it because they don't want movies sitting on people's hard drives for too long.

"Their worry is that this would discourage people from picking up the DVD at Wal-Mart," McQuivey said. "The DVD market is $23 billion a year, twice as big as the annual box office revenue. The studios don't want to mess with that if they can help it. At least for now."