Xbox IPTV: The end of Media Center?!

[makryger]

It ain't TGB until you have the obligatory "is this the end of media center?" Thread!

But seriously, WMC had one thing going for it no matter what other people threw at it- an awesome user interface for DVRing. Now Xbox IPTV could completely supplant the role of the HTPC. And the fact that it is being done by Microsoft themselves makes the future for Media Center a bit bleaker than if it were from some other company. The Xbox 360 has gradually become the all-in-one box.

So what does this mean for the future of Media Center?

http://www.engadget.com/2011/06/06/micr ... sky-tv-fo/

[STC]

Hmm, I don't think so. Not for a long while yet anyways.
I really detest the thought of having a noisy 360 in the main TV room to watch TV through. Silent or as near as dammit you can get to silent is certainly my preference.

[sgtpokey]

I think if XBOX becomes THE way to go, the market will eventually make Msoft provide a purpose-built xbox Media Center-only machine for $10 cheaper than the cheapest xbox... At that pricepoint (or thereabouts) they would maximize their additional sales opportunities (those that want media capabiltiies but not gaming) and minimize any canabilized sales (if you were goign to buy a gaming xbox, you'd have already bought an xbox at the +$10 price)

However, I hope and think Media Center will remain a valid method for Win8 and beyond...

[STC]

Yeah I think silent embedded devices will be an alternative method, hopefully.

[staknhalo]

It ain't TGB until you have the obligatory "is this the end of media center?" Thread!

Facepalm/chuckle

But tbh, it would still be a while until this would overtake Media Center. First off ATT U-Verse is the only provider that could implement this as far as I know, and they're not even on board yet. It would take nearly half of all cable companies providing IPTV service to be a real contender imo. And also with all the cable companies implementing bandwith caps, let's just say we'll wait and see.

[StumpyBloke]

Have they no idea how crap broadband speeds are in the UK unless you are a Virgin (Media et al customer )?? Where I live you are lucky to get 3mbps and thats capped!

[dduk]

Have they no idea how crap broadband speeds are in the UK unless you are a Virgin (Media et al customer )?? Where I live you are lucky to get 3mbps and thats capped!

Rich, I'm a VM customer in central Bristol on their 20Mb package and I wouldn't/couldn't go IP instead of DVB. The available bandwidth isn't an issue, it's the latency and the throttling that happens in the evening, usually around 'prime time'.

IPTV is a fantastic idea, and I've always thought it'll be the way that TV ends up (completely on demand), but the infrastructure to deliver it just doesn't yet exist.

The problem is, such infrastructure won't be built until there's a demand for it. Chicken, meet Egg Or Egg, meet chicken...

[StumpyBloke]

Yeah you are absolutely right...there is no doubt that TV will go that way at some point but, as you say, the current infrastructure, caps etc etc will completely hinder any such progress in the near future! I really hope MC as we know and 'love' it isnt going anywhere soon but we have to bear in mind that this is Microsoft we are talking about, and lets be honest here, they are not renowned for making particuarly good decisions!

[glugglug]

Personally I think this is a good thing for media center. More people with networked XBOXes = more people with media center extenders. And more will discover that Media Center EXISTS when going through the XBOX settings menus. Seriously I think the main reason Media Center hasn't taken off is MS doesn't tell anyone it's there!

[newfiend]

It ain't TGB until you have the obligatory "is this the end of media center?" Thread!

But seriously, WMC had one thing going for it no matter what other people threw at it- an awesome user interface for DVRing. Now Xbox IPTV could completely supplant the role of the HTPC. And the fact that it is being done by Microsoft themselves makes the future for Media Center a bit bleaker than if it were from some other company. The Xbox 360 has gradually become the all-in-one box.

So what does this mean for the future of Media Center?

http://www.engadget.com/2011/06/06/micr ... sky-tv-fo/

I think I just shed a tear of joy reading this Mark...Man ...its like coming home again...i am already really liking this site more and more. Maybe after this we could have a discussion on future posts discussing the future postings regarding the demise of media center ?..LOL.
newfiend

[dduk]

Personally I think this is a good thing for media center. More people with networked XBOXes = more people with media center extenders. And more will discover that Media Center EXISTS when going through the XBOX settings menus. Seriously I think the main reason Media Center hasn't taken off is MS doesn't tell anyone it's there!

I fully agree with you about the lack of MS pushing Media Centre as a product, but then it's never really been usable outside of a enthusiast environment. Perhaps if the embedded devices had been available a few years ago and were at a good point of maturity, things would be different.

I often wonder what things would be like if Sky or Virgin Media here in the UK had partnered with MS to base their set to boxes on Media Centre rather than their own build/Tivo...

[STC]

My line on this is that MC is a finicky thing and often throws curved balls into the mix. It's an enthusiasts product rather than a plug and play stb. Maybe with W8 embedded things will change.

[StumpyBloke]

My line on this is that MC is a finicky thing and often throws curved balls into the mix. It's an enthusiasts product rather than a plug and play stb. Maybe with W8 embedded things will change.

Couldn't agree more!

[TheOsburnFamil]

I think if they merge the Zune player in the XBOX with the Video Library so that you get your network player services (like playon) and any local network video library to all exist in the same place (same for music)... AND, if they make the darn thing quieter... AND, if they ever start to include a bluray drive... AND, they allow the IPTV client to connect to any digital network tuners (ceton, sd), then yeah-- I could see the end of Media Center. But c'mon, seriously? MS is about a decade away from something like that.

[Niall]

Hi -

I've been testing out the Foxtel on XBox360 service in Australia (as mentioned by that article) - as Foxtel and Microsoft were running a '30 day trial' in Australia to try and get users on board.

I'm not sure what's been reported - but just wanted to confirm this is definitely not a 'PVR' alternative at all - there's no concept of recording (and I'm pretty sure you can't even do timeshifting on live tv either). It's basically an alternative for a PayTV STB - which also has some limited VOD content as well.

The content appears to be borderline SD quality for the highest quality stream setting (around 800mb/hour) - so reasonably passable for movies etc - but not fantastic for sports (or other content with a lot of fast motion). On my 10mb connection (I'm about 2.5km from exchange on ADSL2+) - I generally have to completely disable any Channel BT stuff - otherwise it goes into buffering mode every few moments (which makes it pretty unusable).

In terms of comparison to the actual Foxtel PayTV service (which involves getting a STB / Satellite dish - both free on 12 month+ commitment) - the XBox360 offering it's pretty overpriced and only realistically offers a small subset of the content. You also need to pay for XBoxLive Gold access (about AUD$12/month here or USD$14) in order to use it - so it's all about Microsoft getting their pound of flesh.

Some of the gotcha's are :

- No HD Content.
- Only 36 channels of actual Live TV are available even if you get all the packages/addons. The real Foxtel service has 100-200 channels.
- No FTA TV - only Foxtel only channels are offered so you would still need to use a aerial/tv set to get most of the A-List content (which is on FTA).
- Due to the major telco (Telstra) having exclusive broadband rights to AFL Footy/NRL Rugby (the two major sports codes here) - all the good sport content normally found on Foxtel is not available - as the IPTV service is considered to be 'broadband/internet' content. Given the main selling point for having Foxtel in Australia is getting the AFL Footy - this is a major ommision (and something they have very carefully concealed to end users).
- Only 3 out of the 20-30+ movie channels are actually available. Even if you buy additional Movie packages - this only means you get a catch-up/VOD service for all these channels - which actually means a very small selection of 5-8 movies per channel (and in most cases a number of those slots are taken up by random/odd episoides of tv series). Similar tricks are done with most of the other add on packages - they only unlock a 'catch up' version with small number of on demand items.

Once you tally up the package costs, the XBoxGold subscription costs etc - it is actually getting very close to cost of the full blown Foxtel service - but as above - only offers small fraction of the actual content. (and the Foxtel service actually provides HD content and a locked down PVR system).

Then - you also need to factor in broadband costs - and if you are not connected to the totally overpriced/crap Bigpond (Telstra) service (which is only ISP that is unmetered on this service) - viewing content will count towards your monthly GB's.

The UI etc is pretty nice however - nowhere near as quick/easy to use as Media Center - but looks pretty slick given it uses the new dashboard style UX from the console. On the plus side - you can consume it 1 month at a time (no long lock in packages normally associated with getting STB's etc installed/subsidized).

Anyhow - it is definitely no replacement for Media Center - and not even a replacement for Foxtel - and is probably only worth it if you are in a satellite blackspot and can't get Foxtel normally (in which case it's highly likely you will also not be able to get a decent ADSL2+ connection either).

And by and large - you are paying this massive premium - simply to consume this service using latest technology (IPTV/XBox etc) - when in reality you are saving the PayTV company a bunch of money by not requiring any of their hardware or satellite services. Like we have seen with many other VOD services launched down here - you end up paying a lot more for substandard picture quality (no HD - worse than SD), less content and substantially more viewing/drm restrictions.

I definitely won't be continuing to use this service once my free month expires.

Anyhow - not saying Media Center isn't dead - but this is not the replacement. It's more of a money grab by Microsoft and Foxtel if anything and a way of extracting subscription service money out of existing XBox users. I was also quite disappointed at just how much lengths Microsoft/Foxtel had gone to conceal the fact that you were not getting all the channels/packages you were paying for - if I had not taken up a trial and paid for it I would be very angry.

Niall

[makryger]

I was curious to find out how much longer until I get my 5+ year badge... (yes, I know I could just give myself any badge I want ), when I found my first ever post on The Green Button...

December 28, 2006: I don't suppose you have a general time frame for when IPTV in Vista is coming?

It sounds like it will be the most realistic option for any DIY people who have been screwed by CableCard. I just read an article today that AT&T plans on rolling out such services in a few test areas in Connecticut, and it sounds like it not only removes the need of a high definition tv tuner, but it can also act as multiple tv tuners! What was not clear was whether all the info is sent through the ethernet cable, or whether it goes through a STB first.

One of these days, there shall be a decent option for putting high definition TV signals directly onto your computer (without fiddling with an antenna). Could this be it?

Amazing... cable cards still a pipe dream, UVerse just beginning to rear its head (although we didn't know at the time that not only would it be a Microsoft product, but a Microsoft product that is not compatible with WMC!)- and then our conversation discusses how IPTV should be coming to the XBOX in 2007. Well, 4 years later, here we go!

[gofeet]

My line on this is that MC is a finicky thing and often throws curved balls into the mix. It's an enthusiasts product rather than a plug and play stb. Maybe with W8 embedded things will change.

It depends on how deep you want to go with it. For the "average" user's requirements, I think that it's pretty straightforward out of the box. WMC7 did a great job of simplifying the setup process. If the machine is pre-configured, then you just follow the wizard. If not, then it's a matter of how good of a job the tuner manufacturer did with the install process. Solid step-by-step instructions and drivers are crucial. If you have those, then the process is a breeze.

Certain file-format/codec support is undeniably a PITA though.