Amidst the wave of speculation on Microsoft’s upcoming next-gen console throughout the past few weeks comes an unconfirmed rumor of the company’s plan to completely own the home television experience.
Amidst the wave of speculation on Microsoft’s upcoming next-gen console throughout the past few weeks comes an unconfirmed rumor of the company’s plan to completely own the home television experience.
Earlier today, unconfirmed sources close to Microsoft revealed to The Verge its plans to include cable TV functionality in the next Xbox console. Similar to Google TV, the console will integrate with a set-top cable box via HDMI cable. This will activate an Xbox interface overlay on live television, allowing for a more seamless transition between watching live TV and playing games. Microsoft will then take it one step further than Google TV with the next iteration of the Kinect hardware, which will incorporate motion control into the experience.
This move has arguably been in the works for some time, given the console’s increased involvement in live video streaming. With Xbox's substantial lead in sales over the past few years and the increasing amount of nontraditional TV programming with services like Netflix and Hulu, it's clear that this focus is working to bring in customers.
