This week Microsoft rolled out Netflix instant streaming support with the new XBox 360 Dashboard (which they’re calling the “New Xbox Experience”) while TiVo is also rolling out Netflix support this week in their latest beta firmware update.

Netflix streaming allows people who subscribe to the (currently) $8.99 subscription to stream UNLIMITED movies available for Instant Online viewing to their XBox or TiVo for no extra cost on top of their monthly subscription. To sweeten the deal, Netflix also offers up to 300 movies in ‘HD’ quality at no extra charge.

So, let’s review the score. HD-DVD has gone the way of Beta Max and although both Apple and Amazon have offered rental and purchasing of movies electronically but are still bound to their respective platforms (Apple being iPhone/Pod and Amazon being TiVo) including the PC. I’ve yet to see either party partner with another distribution outlet which is expected from Apple but almost a shock with Amazon.

When I think about it though, Netflix is an obvious answer to the question of what company would be the first to provide movies to Microsoft for online streaming. Netflix partnered with Microsoft in the first place to provide online instant viewing of movies through Microsofts (at the time, new) Silverlight technology, which is a competitor to Flash (which popular video sites like YouTube use).

So now you have a company with an already established shipping and distribution system setup for physical media (both DVD and Blu-Ray) and has partnered with two ‘direct to TV’ companies who have in total over 30 million set top boxes already installed in homes across the WORD! Could this be the coming of the revolution?

I certainly hope so!

About six months back I finally decided to just sell my entire DVD collection. I personally was just done with physical media. I was tired of moving them, dusting them, having them take up space and never really sitting down to watch them. I mean really, I owned a little over 200 movies and sat down AT MOST one time a month to watch one. It got so bad that some of the movies were still in their original shrink wrap packaging. The industry had hooked me on the idea that I needed to COLLECT movies and I had come to the realization that it’s seriously a stupid hobby.

I became a personal flag barer for electronic distribution starting with the ability of renting a movie from Amazon unbox for only $.99 (when they’re on sale) but even then I’d have to wait about 30 minutes for the movie to buffer enough for me to be able to watch it the entire way through without having to pause and let it buffer some more.

Enter Netflix. Not only does it let me INSTANTLY begin watching a movie by detecting my connection speed and ability to download data at real time, but I can also ‘shop’ online for more movies to watch while not at home using Netflix.com. This means I can think of a movie while at work or on the go, queue it up and watch it instantly when I get home.

The bonus? This is all covered under my $8.99 Netflix account that I already had. Oh sure, there are more costs involved, but let’s break that down (and to keep it fair, I’ll break down as if I’m starting with NOTHING):

- Netflix: $8.99/mo ($107/year)

- XBox 360: $199 for Arcade Edition ($199/year, first year)

- XBox Live Gold Account: $7.99/mo ($49.99/year)

- Digital Cable: $39 for 10mbit down/1mbit up (in my area) ($480/year)

So even including your monthly Cable bill, you’re only looking at a monthly average cost of only $70 or only $29 pr month if you don’t include your monthly cable internet bill! FOR UNLIMITED INSTANT MOVIE VIEWING!

That’s pretty amazing to me! I hope more people hop on this bandwagon and we begin the revolution! Down with physical media!

I’ll step off my soapbox now

Cheers!

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During this period, users were unable to log into their XBox LIVE accounts. This combined with the DRM method which Microsoft uses on the XBox 360, users were unable to access Movies, TV Shows or In-Game Content they have downloaded to their console. This caused quite the uproar or people spouting off the usual consumer rights bullcrap. “I should be able to have full access to anything I buy!“, yelled the masses.

At first I joined the mob because I was frustrated that I wasn’t even able to continue my XNA development as even my own XNA created games for the 360 required me to be logged in before I could play them. It was both frustrating and laughable at the same time.

But as the debate and flames continued I started to think about what this really all means to me. Sure, I’m spending my own money for Microsoft Points on a virtual product tendered and stored by Microsoft. With this, you have to either accept that Microsoft is within its rights to protect this information in any way it sees fit, or seek out an alternative that has a license model that you agree with.

It all comes down to people complaining about the licensing model and how Microsoft chooses to enforce it. Older technologies had similar licensing models that were enforced differently. Even a standard DVD movie has it’s own licensing model:

• You’re only allowed to create X number of backups (DMCA)
• You can’t play it through another device (Macrovision)
• You can only play it in a the specified region (DVD Region Codes)

So limitations of use on purchased materials is nothing new to consumers, it’s just now that the product is completely virtual companies have to go to extra lengths to make sure that their property is protected and people can’t just go about stealing their product.

My point here is that Microsoft has made perfectly clear how they are handling the DRM and copy protection policies on the XBox 360. What every person in this position needs to weigh is What is this data worth to me?

If you feel that the XBox 360 content is worth the money and worth dealing with their DRM restrictions, then accept it and feel free to use the content as permitted by Microsoft. If you’re morraly against the restrictions or feel that they’re unfair, then thanks to a free market economy there are plenty of other options. Sony, Nintendo, PC Games, Mac Games, Arcade Games… outdoor sports?

“But Eric, I REALLY want to play Halo 3 and watch my movies no matter if I have internet access or not!“

Then perhaps an XBox 360 isn’t the device to be doing this on. I hear laptops have come a long way in the past few years

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