Sky High

By Ellie Gibson Published 28 May, 2009

A closer look at the Xbox 360 Sky TV deal.

Some days it feels as though Microsoft's been banging on about Xbox 360 being a 360-degree entertainment platform for 360 years. Today is one of those days. "When we launched Xbox 360 four years ago, we called it Xbox 360 for a reason," says UK boss Neil Thompson. "We wanted to deliver an entertainment experience that was 360 degrees, as wide-ranging and broad for consumers as we could possibly create." We know.

Thompson is speaking during a Microsoft press event held in a posh hotel in central London. You can tell it's a posh hotel because they're serving canapés made of organs you never even knew fish had. You can tell it's a Microsoft event by the colour of the trimmings they've used to decorate the room - there are even acid green flowers on the tables. But there are blue blooms tucked in there too, and the Xbox 360 logo isn't the only one displayed on the big plasma tellies hanging on the walls.

Microsoft has invited us here to introduce its new best friend, Sky, and tell us about the beautiful babies they're going to make together. Come autumn, everyone who owns a broadband-connected Xbox 360 will be able to access Sky content through their console. Everyone in the UK and Ireland, anyway; there's no word on when, or indeed whether, the service will be available in the rest of Europe.

"This is a local announcement. Today we're really focused on the partnership between Sky and Xbox 360 here in the UK and Ireland," says Xbox Live Europe boss Jerry Johnson. "We're always evaluating how we continue to grow the business, but today really is about how we're going to build on this relationship here."

Johnson begins a demo of the service by bringing up the content menu. It looks just like all the other menus on the 360's dashboard - the items available are shown as a queue of big square images, and you can flick between them by pressing left and right. The only difference is the background colour is Sky blue.

The content is divided into genres. These include sport (as denoted by a big Arsenal logo), movies (a still from Transformers) and entertainment (the first time Lorraine Kelly's face has appeared on the 360 - officially anyway). Two avatars are standing idly by the Arsenal logo. Johnson explains this means two of his friends are watching the Arsenal match, and he can ask to join their Xbox Live Party.

Microsoft is keen to highlight access to Sky's sports content as one of the biggest attractions of the new service. You'll be able to watch events live, though you'll have to pay for the privilege in some cases. No one will discuss pricing today but we're repeatedly told to refer to the Sky Player, which allows you to watch Sky's content online, for an idea of what will be available and how much it will cost.

Unless you're a Sky subscriber already the content is unlikely to come cheap. A quick look at the price list reveals the basic Sky Player package for PC is GBP 15 per month. That gets you Sky News, Sky Sports News, the Disney Channel, Eurosport, National Geographic, MTV and Nickelodeon. It's an extra 11 quid if you want the single sports pack. Access to all of Sky's sports channels costs a total of GBP 34 per month. It's not yet clear whether you'll have to commit to similar packages and subscription fees to get the same content via Xbox 360 - or whether you'll be able to pay a one-off fee to see a single match, for example.

Back to Johnson's Xbox Live Party, and one of the features you can't get with the PC Sky Player no matter which package you choose. With the 360, you and up to seven friends can watch sporting events in a virtual stadium. Your avatars sit in a VIP viewing box, surveying the surrounding crowd and watching the live action on a big screen. You can chat via headsets and press buttons to make your avatars cheer, laugh, wave and so on.

You can flick back to the full-screen view of the match at any time, and keep talking away to the rest of your party even when the avatars aren't on screen. As with the regular Sky Sports service you'll be able to access special features such as match stats, fixture lists, news updates and so on. But the real highlight, as far as Johnson's concerned, is being able to watch sporting events with your friends without having to be in the same room.

"It's about building richer experiences, like the ability to get a group of eight people together - you can't do that on another platform," he says. "We have 20 million users worldwide playing games and interacting on Xbox. How can we bring content together with that community and those interactive experiences? In a rich way you can only do with the power of Xbox Live and the power of the console itself." Except not all those 20 million users live in the UK and Ireland, of course.

Johnson moves on to the regular TV content; Are You Smarter Than a Ten Year-Old? and Ross Kemp on Gangs are given as examples of what you'll be able to access. TV will be streamed live and direct to your Xbox 360, without the need for a satellite dish, and you'll be able to watch it in full-screen.

There's an EPG that looks similar to the regular Sky+ one and pretty simple to use. You can't record programmes but you can choose from a library of content that's already been broadcast. "If I miss a TV show I wanted to watch, I can get it streamed on demand," explains Johnson. "So it's almost like the Sky service provides PVR functionality. I kind of look at this as a PVR in the sky."

Now he turns to the part of the service that will be the biggest attraction for many people - the movies. Microsoft's Video Marketplace will continue to exist, and you'll still be able to download films from it as usual. But you'll also have a library of Sky Box Office films to choose from and, again using the Sky Player as a model, buy packages which give you access to a selection of movies. For example, right now a Sky Player user could choose to watch The Incredible Hulk at no extra charge, or view Open Season 2 for just under GBP 3.50. But won't there be overlap with the Video Marketplace?

"Yes," admits Johnson. "Not to draw too many comparisons but we have the Netflix deal in the US, and you'll find movies that appear in both of those markets. It comes back to choice for the consumer; the breadth and depth of content Sky's bringing to the platform means a big win-win for us."

Under the terms of the Netflix deal, American Xbox 360 owners who pay a subscription fee can access Netflix's entire library of films via their consoles. The service has been up and running in the US since November but there's been no suggestion anything similar could be launched in Europe. Is this what we're getting instead?

"I look at this experience and I think what we're bringing to the UK is better..." says Johnson, and someone in a Microsoft bunker presses a button which makes the chip in his brain Taser his central nervous system.

"I better watch what I say. Um, we think this is unique and different from what's going on in the rest of the world. The ability to have video-on-demand, to have choices of the type of contact, to have an interactive experience around sports - it's something you can't get anywhere else."

But will we be able to demand as much video as our American friends, who can choose from more than 10,000 Netflix movies? A lady from Sky chips in: "Looking at the Sky Player online service, there are around 500 movies at any one time on-demand. What we're saying today is the service will be similar to the Sky Player service we offer now."

That's certainly a healthy number. But 500 is not as good as 10,000, is it? "I look at the frequency and how fresh the content is that's coming on Sky, and I don't think there's a better partner if we want to get relevant, up-to-date content - the latest features, the latest movies, the latest television programming," says Johnson.

Unlike with the sports offering, you won't be able to watch avatars watching movies in a virtual cinema - at least not yet. "Right now, we're really focused on sports. Of course as we look at this, group experiences are always part of it," Johnson says. "Another thing about Xbox Live is you can always start up a voice chat, whether you're playing Halo, watching a movie or just sitting in the dashboard. So that functionality will always be there."

There will also be a wait for high-definition content, if it ever arrives at all. "Right now, we're committing to bringing standard definition and DVD-quality content to the Xbox," says Johnson. "But we'll always be evaluating, based on technical limitations and consumer demand."

There are still many questions hanging over Sky's Xbox 360 deal, not least with regard to how much it's all going to cost. What if you're a Sky subscriber already? What if you don't want to commit to a monthly package, but just want to watch the odd match? How long will you be able to access content you've downloaded for? Will there be adverts involved?

The execs aren't answering any of those questions today, preferring to concentrate on seeing how many times they can squeeze the words "entertainment" and "choice" into a single sentence. But if anyone has experience of providing paid-for sports, movie and TV content, it's Sky. And if anyone knows how to build and sell to a huge online community, it's Microsoft. This could be the start of a beautiful friendship. And a profitable one; they're likely to make more than 360 pounds out of it, that's for sure.

Picture of Ellie.

About Ellie Gibson

Since joining Eurogamer in the mid 2000s, Ellie has written about subjects as diverse as the fall of Gizmondo, the rise of Hollyoaks actresses in Red Alert games and the noise a bear makes under NSFW circumstances.

Read more articles from Ellie by visiting the Ellie Gibson archive page.

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Comments (86) Latest comment 2 years ago

Comments threads automatically close after 30 days, but please feel free to continue chatting on the forum!

  • Vice.Destroyer #1 3 years ago

    It's not going to be cheap. That's for sure. But that is still an excellent proposition for the Xbox. I am very interested. In all honesty, for the right price and with the right content, I would say goodbye to scheduled TV forever.

  • PrivateFloyd #2 3 years ago

    i currently pay 13 quid for BT Vision and love it with the back catalogue available through the tv pack and the on demand service. What it is lacking in is sports.

    If this is competitively priced and offers the same content as normal sky sports then consider me SOLD. wont be too interested in the movies but the standard pack + sports would be pure win.

    Good move MS lets just for once see some great pricing.

  • El-Dev #3 3 years ago

    Surely most 360 owners would have Sky or some sort of other digital package, not too sure there is a massive market for this.

  • Carlo #4 3 years ago

    360 in "Me too" shocker.

    Too late. Too shit to try and vendor-lock-in your customers.

  • Carlo #5 3 years ago

    "There will also be a wait for high-definition content, if it ever arrives at all. "Right now, we're committing to bringing standard definition and DVD-quality content to the Xbox," says Johnson. "But we'll always be evaluating, based on technical limitations and consumer demand."


    Hahahahhahaha.... 360 degrees of shit

  • Linkified #6 3 years ago

    This I personally feel is Netflix plus announcement for people from here in the UK, now we need LoveFilm like streaming service and then Microsoft will be a go to box.

  • Linkified #7 3 years ago

    @El Dev: For me it is I don't wanna buy a sky box for the bedroom but if they have there full on demand catalogue for every category, and we still get the on demand content from the likes of Sky One etc. Then as long as you have an exceptional connection, a gold member, and have/or thinking about going sky - you won't need the dish, there setup box etc. I say win win.

    And everyone who moans about being gold is retarded the cost for maintaining and expanding servers to allow for more connections is about £40 per year. More people should buy gold membership as I would rather being games on Live than my PS3.

  • El-Dev #8 3 years ago

    Linkifield: Sky don't really offer an on demand service, just what is on the Sky player on line or anytime TV(only available to Sky+ users I think). I have never used the on line player so I'm not too sure what is available on it. I suppose not having to buy a Sky box is a good thing for bedroom use but I think it'll be an expensive method of watching Sky depending how long you are in your bedroom, a TV with built in freeview is more than adequate for myself but I don't really watch a lot of TV.

  • Linkified #9 3 years ago

    @El-Dev: Youve never used it well I have, if your a current subscriber theres quite a bit of free ontent that you can access at any time, i.e. on demand. And yes some of the on demand stuff costs a nominal charge but hey ho thats a given for episodes of prison break. And of course theres the new sky player, for live tv as well. There is quite a bit of video content sky offers free to subscribers and/or to pay certainly better than microsofts video store unless they will overhaul that this year, but I feel this is to what Netflix did for the Xbox 360 brand image in the us

  • GamerG #10 3 years ago

    This is amazing!

    Only last week, my Sky HD box messed up and I missed an episode of 24 so set up sky player on my PC to watch it and it was great but this means I can easily watch it on my big tv without lots of new cables!! You can watch the last 4 programs of a series for free but older episodes cost a pound something.

    Infact I will probably buy a new 360 for my bedroom so I can watch it all in my bedroom as well as i'm loathed to pay the extra £15 a month for a sky box there..

    Goals on Sunday without getting out of bed = win!

    I can see loads of kids wanting this for their bedroom 360s and may even sell quite a few units if kids choose the 360 over other consoles because they can nab their parents sky subscription.
    Edited by 3 at 29/05/09 @ 07:37

  • BOFH_UK #11 3 years ago

    Hmmm, not too sure about this. On the one hand it's a nice bonus for those who already have sky subscriptions but if it's priced along the lines of Sky Player.... well let's be honest it's a bit light on content for what you pay isn't it? £34 for access to the three Sky Sport channels plus a handful of other channels that you're probably not going to use that often (out of those available I'd be surprised if I personally used more than Eurosport).

    Compare and contrast to the Netflix deal in the US - less than $20 for access to their entire move catalogue on demand - and it seems VERY expensive. Shame really.

  • GamerG #12 3 years ago

    @ BOFH_UK yer I agree its not the best value unless of course you can not have a dish and dont live in a cabled area but if you already have a subscription to SKy its fantastic news!

    Here are some screens of it in action, looks slick to me!

    http://ww w.neogaf.com/forum/showpost.php...

    Notice you can watch sky one and the football can be watched full screen or in party mode with your avatars chatting!

    SKY and the Murdoch empire will push this like a MFer imo
    Edited by 1 at 29/05/09 @ 07:25

  • Widge #13 3 years ago

    It'd be madness if you have to pay for that AND Sky on top of things if you have it already. Shame you can't get the proper Sky service but naturally that would incur installation charges etc. If they can shoehorn all that functionality in the future though, its one step nearer the one box dream. Best scenario for me is TV has 2 things sat under it, amp and entertainments box. If this takes off well, Sky might have a word...

    Although there is the one huge massive problem that stopped me going for Play TV. Noise. The PS3 is meant to be the quiet machine and it was still would be too much to have its fan going on in the background all the time while watching TV. "Hroooooooo"

    More features is all round good stuff, I don't see anyone crying "ITS A GAMES CONSOLE ONLY MAKE GAMES" either which is unusual for once.
    Edited by 1 at 29/05/09 @ 07:42

  • Moz #14 3 years ago

    So actually going round a friends house to do anything is officially dead then!

  • GamerG #15 3 years ago

    How will Microsoft stop people taking the Xbox round other peope's houses so that they have sky on your subscription?

  • peterfll #16 3 years ago

    Hmm. I can see how this might be a nice addition to the 360's functional palette if you're not a Sky customer.

    But I'm already a Sky HD subscriber. Giving me another way to deliver content I can already access albeit in a substandard SD form hardly excites me.

    One thing I will say, Sky have continued to impress me over the years in terms of providing new services and functionality (Multi-Start, Sky Anytime, Sky Player, the new HD EPG etc etc). If they have a hand in developing the service, it actually might be quite good.

  • JohnnyWashnGo #17 3 years ago

    Microsoft and British Sky Broadcasting go together quite well. Gates empire and Murdochs empire are both evil in different ways and will likely compliment each other rather well.

  • evild_edd #18 3 years ago

    Need to see more details on pricing before I can fully comment. If there is decently priced pay-per-view contents then this is a real winner for me. THe idea of accessing Sky content for me on an infrequent basis is much better than the over-priced subscriptions they usually want to tie you in to (for people like me who don't watch a huge amount of telly)....

    I'll be keeping an eye on this O.o

  • septimus #19 3 years ago

    Just got rid of Sky+ HD as the cost/content ratio was utterly shit. I guess this way I haven't lost everything, but as mentioned, none of this stuff is going to be cheap.

    For the most part I am now sticking with BT Vision. Much cheaper, and HD content.
    Edited by 1 at 29/05/09 @ 08:48

  • GamerG #20 3 years ago

    @JohnnyWashnGo How sad, I guess from your point of view Sony are somehow different?


    As far as payments go I expect it will be like netflix in the US, you'll need a gold live account and Sky subscription to get everything, otherwise you'll need a gold live account and have to pay for individual programs as you can on your PC but that will not get you the live channels.

    The big winners here are the people who have both as I and I know quite a few people who will also benefit (I dont think I know anyone without sky!)

  • S.J.Rogers #21 3 years ago

    The XBOX 360 is turning into a Chav sports system...

    I love the 360 but my respect for it has just dropped alot.

    :-(

  • JohnnyWashnGo #22 3 years ago

    @GamerG
    Nope - Sony are just as bad as the others. However, I don't think they are in the same league as Microsoft and certainly nowhere near Murdoch.

    'I dont think I know anyone without sky!'
    Me, me, I don't have Sky. Never have done and never will. I don't watch television enough to make it worth the stupid amount of money it costs per month. If you like sports or find reading difficult, Sky is perfect for you. Myself, I can't stand sports.

  • GamerG #23 3 years ago

    @ S.J.Rogers

    WHAT?

    You can watch Sky on it so now its a "chav sports system"

    Your reaching mate you really are


    Its pretty pathetic seeing the people trying to discredit this new feature, you all know its going to be very popular, loads of people have sky and loads of people will like having an extra box in the house, get over yourselves!

  • wayneh #24 3 years ago

    I've already got sky WTF do I want it on my360 for?

  • GamerG #25 3 years ago

    @ JohnnyWashnGo

    MS Sony are all Mega Corporations and they all act in the same way for the benefit of shareholders, for example Sony has installed vulnerable Spyware on their music CDs and driven companies like Sega out of the console business with a succession of lies that they never intended to keep, they also stamp over patent law regularly and have to pay up all the time when taken to court. At least Bill Gates gives most of MS's profits away to extremely good causes!

    You are just exposed to what MS and Murdoch do more because they based in thethe US and what goes on in Japan is more tight lipped and not scrutinised as much at least my our media.

    Its pretty sad that you try to discredit this feature by suggesting people read books instead, I mean why play games then or use the internet or go to the movies?

    If this doesn't effect you because you are a PS3 only owner then why are you even in this thread?! Patehtic if you ask me, go read a book!!
    Edited by 3 at 29/05/09 @ 09:24

  • GamerG #26 3 years ago

    @ wayneh

    If the 360 and your sky box are in the same room you can use your 360 to watch on demand programming for instance the last 4 episodes of all Sky's major series like 24 and Battle star Galactica when ever you want (older episodes are about £1)

    You could also move the 360 to a different room and watch some live channels there along with the on demand service

    Edited by 3 at 29/05/09 @ 09:23

  • kangarootoo #27 3 years ago

    I'm not really the right market for this. I don't watch enough TV to warrant spending £15 a month extra on it. I realise that for many this will be a great move though.


    "The XBOX 360 is turning into a Chav sports system...
    I love the 360 but my respect for it has just dropped alot."


    Love? Respect? Its a box full of metal and plastic ffs. Get what you can from it, and ignore the features you don't like. Simple.

    Fanboy lunacy.

  • christourlord #28 3 years ago

    So this is what the J Allard wand is for then?

  • RexRunti #29 3 years ago

    So not the set top box taking over consoles as Mr Ubisoft thought but consoles taking over set top boxes.

    To be honest I'll doubt I'll ever use this feature (I have a full Virgin media subscription), but I do think it's a fantastic idea and at least it gives the option for a couple more on demand movies if Virgin's and MS's catalouges don't excite (though I expect 95-99.9% overlap). Or if I miss an episode of some Sky One program (and the 15+ repeats on Skys 1-3 (and didn't V+ it)).

  • 3william56 #30 3 years ago

    Downloadable content sounds ok - still waiting for the PS3 movie download service promised here in Aus. But a live sports event? You fellas better have a much better internet connection than me; I can imagine the legovision slideshow it will turn into during a Germany penalty shootout.

    Party function is typical service designed by poindexters though if they reckon watching the footy on your own with someone yelling on a headset and waving a cartoon avatar is anything like having mates and a slab of beer in the same room.

  • penhalion #31 3 years ago

    :)

    Yesterday I was saying that consoles and sky boxes would remain seperate because of the corporate deals that would need to be done to get the whole experience into one box. I guess for once Microsoft actually saw the whole picture and were already making the necessary deals!

    Come on Sony don't be left behind yet again!

  • AaronTurner #32 3 years ago

    For those concerned about quality, I already subscribe to a broadband sports channel and whilst it isn't broadcast quality it most certainly isn't poor quality and I was surprised at how good it is.

  • GamerG #33 3 years ago

    I wouldn't worry about the streaming tech, I signed up for the netflix service (before european xbox's got banned from the service) and was able to stream HD (you may laugh but it was certainly better than DVD) from the US servers no problem, it should be even better with more local servers

  • roz123 #34 3 years ago

    I am at uni and i use sky player alot through my familys home sky account. The movie selection is massive, something like 500 films. You get the extended highlights of all the premier league and champions league matches. Aswell as the live channels.
    Its definatly worth checking out if you have sky already.

  • wittynic #35 3 years ago

    If you can pay for one off footie matches/tv episodes, i'd certainly take part. Don't really want to sign up for a monthly contract though.

  • crispyduckman #36 3 years ago

    Sounds good in theory, but I'm not holding my breath on this one. I seem to recall a previous "deal" with BT to bring us IPTV. Where's that? HD appears even more unlikely.

    Having said that, this type of service is a move in the right direction. Sky+ is not really much of a substitute for a true on-demand service. Currently, a lot of people download torrents purely because they don't have a lifestyle compatible with scheduled TV. Improve the service and they might use that instead.

  • stepneg #37 3 years ago

    I have Sky with sports so this soudns pretty good to me, I can watch it all in bed without having to shell out for a multiroom subscription!

  • Vordred #38 3 years ago

    seems like a waste of time to me. all the channels you can watch are complete crap, unless you like sport i guess.

    thier so called entertainment pack is mostly sport and documentry channels.

    and going by the subscription costs, you could get the real thing plus All channels for the same price as the limited selection on there.

    so they can shove this one.

    here are the packs and prices
    http://sk yplayer.sky.com/aboutskyplayer/...
    Edited by 1 at 29/05/09 @ 10:08

  • grayn #39 3 years ago

    Didn't Sony have a deal with Sky to provide content to the PSP? What happened to that?

  • Kill_Crazy #40 3 years ago

    I've got Sky HD and broadband and can watch the sky stuff on my laptop (including sky sports) for free. Very handy for when working on nights as you can use any internet connection for the stream. Will be a good idea if the price is right.

  • Widge #41 3 years ago

    Well, the SkyPSP thing is out there still I believe but bugger me if you hear anything about it ever.

  • chubster2010 #42 3 years ago

    This sounds pretty good (though it will be interesting to see how many people are willing to pay for the privilege).

    Re '"When we launched Xbox 360 four years ago, we called it Xbox 360 for a reason," says UK boss Neil Thompson. "We wanted to deliver an entertainment experience that was 360 degrees, as wide-ranging and broad for consumers as we could possibly create."

    If they want to make the 'entertainment experience that was 360 degrees, as wide-ranging' as possible, where's the 360s web-browser (for youtube and iPlayer access)? It could be easily added to the console - a case of MS not wanting to relinquish control over what it's users are viewing perhaps?

  • Slim #43 3 years ago

    No mention of HD? Also, this is potentially a way to get cheaps multiroom isn't it? A 360 in the kids room without the extra tenner you have to pay sky normally?

  • Quickstick4 #44 3 years ago

    So, whats happening with the BT vision praetorship M$ announced ages ago?

  • GamerG #45 3 years ago

    @ Quickstick4

    I reckon Sky probably said they wanted to get involved and as Sky are much bigger than BT in the TV department and hold all the best content it was a no brainer to switch to Sky

  • rob76 #46 3 years ago

    "But the real highlight, as far as Johnson's concerned, is being able to watch sporting events with your friends without having to be in the same room."

    errr...if I wanna watch a match with mates i'd rather go down the pub. If I'm gonna watch it at home, on my Sky HD may I add, whilst chatting with my mate, then i'll pick up the phone!!

  • Britesparc Verified Creative, ITV #47 3 years ago

    I think, theoretically, this sounds like a good deal. It all hinges on the pricing: it'd be nice if you could just pay, say, 1200 points to watch one match (a Championship match in my case, grumble...) but I fear you'll be tied into monthly subscriptions which, frankly, I can do without (don't watch enough TV, don't like enough sports, and already buy too many DVDs).

    All in all tho, I can see this doing really well, and it's a another good string on MS's bow.

  • CHAZBIGPOTATO #48 3 years ago

    Sky tv are daylight robbery, can't see that changing with this.

  • jonsaan #49 3 years ago

    Why not HD? Probably because Sky haven't finished shafting their own customers over that one just yet.

  • jess456 #50 3 years ago

    Unfortunately I can't see this catching on in Ireland. The biggest ISP (Eircom) has a monthly cap of just 30-50 GB. People aren't going to pay for Sky on their Xbox if it runs the risk of pushing them over their download limit.

  • Fallen_Angel #51 3 years ago

    @roz123 Aha, I was wondering if that was possible. Guess I'll at least check this out on my parents Sky account then. Unfortunately they cancelled the movie package a few weeks back so no On Demand films for me :(

  • GamerG #52 3 years ago

    @ jess456

    bit of a short sighted view, if people are given reasons to demand higher bandwidth the will demand it and the market will respond

    besides an episode of 24 is 650mb, so you could still get quiet a lot of viewing out of a 30/50gig monthly limit

  • nickfernando #53 3 years ago

    Have Sky said that it would be free like the Sky Player content to existing subscribers? I didn't see a confirmation of that. If they're going to charge a subscription service then it should be available to silver members too. I think it would be seriously daft to charge the fee to existing users but then again we are talking about two greedy corporations here.

    Perhaps they could do a Gold + Sky deal that works out a bit cheaper than separately to tempt some silver users. I started out as monthly Gold and then I realised that there had been around 4 months where I hadn't played online and cancelled it. Cancelling the monthly service was a pain in the butt and a good reason why you're better off getting a 3 or 12 month up front service.

    Perhaps Sky might start providing 360's instead of Sky+ boxes, they both have the same reliability! (That was a joke before anyone gets their flame on)

  • Fallen_Angel #54 3 years ago

    @nickfernando They haven't said any pricing info, but most people (me included) are taking the likely pricing and set up ideas from them saying "Look at Sky Player Online".

  • thepiedpiper #55 3 years ago

    so if i already have sky, would i still need to pay to watch stuff via my xbox? if so, why would i if it would technically be cheaper to just get multiroom?

  • Fallen_Angel #56 3 years ago

    Just noticed something very interesting. Sky On Demand also has all the Iplayer stuff on it, and since non-subscribers may well be able to download shows for a price like they do online, this may well be Iplayer in disguise at least.

  • jess456 #57 3 years ago

    @GamerG I hope that happens, but Eircom dominates the market and hasn't been keeping up with existing demand for broadband for years now. Ireland is a small country with a small market that doesn't attract all that many players. Lots of people (especially families) are already hitting or near to their cap with regular use, so they wouldn't be able to watch many episodes of 24 on their Xbox without passing it. Ah well, just another one of the many things to complain about over here :)
    Edited by 1 at 29/05/09 @ 13:19

  • peterfll #58 3 years ago

    So you must be a tard if you watch Sky? There's nothing on it to watch unless you like sport?

    Well I'm very clever. I hate sport. But I have Sky HD. And I really enjoy it. I love movies and a lot of my regular TV shows are now broadcast by Sky in HD.

    My personal opinions are: I don't like Rupert Murdoch and I do believe the service could be cheaper. But they are just that - my opinions.

  • jambo74 #59 3 years ago

    Got Sky+ HD so who cares about some items being on the 360 as I have them anyway. Free mobile or skype calls can handle any conversations with people in another location. For big games I would go to the pub anyway!

    Non Starter.

  • grandmaster Verified Director, Digital Foundry #60 3 years ago

    Some nice ideas but apparently it's streaming at 1mbps. Assuming Microsoft is using VC1/WMV that ain't gonna look pretty. The SD content on the Live Marketplace is supposed to be DVD quality but it's nowhere near. In fact, the whole concept of DVD quality at 1mbps is borderline-laughable.

  • Sutekh #61 3 years ago

    So, I'd have to pay over the odds to get a fully expanded 360, pay over the odds to get the premium Live service, and now pay over the odds to get access to tv shows from Sky?

    Do Microsoft think their customers are made of money? Beside which, I'm guessing most 360 owners will have Sky or Virgin, Freeview, BBC iPlayer etc etc.

  • Grayvern #62 3 years ago

    Seems pointless if you have sky and even 1 friend to watch sports with if you watch sports and have friends.

    Seems pointless if you'll need to subscribe too because then you may as well take advantage of the free sky+ box offers that come around every few months.

    Seems pointless if you allready have sky and use sky online cause you can just download and stream to tv (through media player + xbox or ps3 or any number of other devices or even inbuilt tv capability) and many tvs are now coming with net access and net video playing capability.

    In short seems pointless all over.
    Edited by 1 at 29/05/09 @ 14:00

  • Grayvern #63 3 years ago

    Retard means to hinder progress it is inapropriately used as an insult. That and its offensive and stupid.

    Also as detailed by my previous post its not nifty or even that sensible given current technology. Its aimed at console users more lightly to already know of the myriad ways they can get content from a PC to their tv.

    And the people who took the 360's brand message on board who aren't gamers are very lightly to have a similar service already, as pointed out by others.

    Play Tv was ok because it was an extender, it made the PS3 into a straight up PVR for digital which is far different than an offer of web tv. However Play TV was gimped at least in England when they took out HD compatability, and charged too much. (Almost seemed to market Humax's lower end PVR's)

  • geeza2020 #64 3 years ago

    no thanks Sky/MS. I already feel a little cheated by having to pay to play games on Live, and i just dont watch tv enough to warrant pumping more money every month into my 360.

  • chrisjm #65 3 years ago

    good luck watching football in low bitrate.

  • spenner #66 3 years ago

    Well babestation is on freeview now as well so this is just pointless....

    In all honesty though I like the room to be quiet while Im watching tv, to watch it through my 360 would remind me of being back at me mams trying to watch the footy with her hoovering around me

  • jambo74 #67 3 years ago

    Sky actually say:

    Meanwhile existing Sky customers who own an Xbox will gain another viewing option, in addition to their Sky set-top box and PC or Mac

    Source:

    http://ne ws.sky.com/skynews/Home/Busines...

  • GamerG #68 3 years ago

    Jesus Christ some of these comments are pathetic,

    People bending over backwards to say why they "do not care", "I read books", "I go to the pub", "I can use Skype" bla blah

    We all know if this was a new feature of the PS3 the same people would be going nuts, pretty sad really..


    Truth is tonnes of people will love these features, imagine kids at school finding out that if they had a 360 they'd also be able to effectively have a sky box in their bed rooms? for no additional cost assuming their parents already have a subscription? Imagine how many people will buy 2nd 360's so they can stick one in their room (like myself).

    This is an extremely clever move by MS and everyone knows it..

  • woodnotes #69 3 years ago

    I'll sign up to Sky on XBL if it includes Sky 1 etc. I'll want my House and 24 fix.

  • GamerG #70 3 years ago

    @ woodnotes

    It seems it does, check the third picture down

    [link url=http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showpost.php?p=16042 758&postcount=99
    ]http://ww w.neogaf.com/forum/showpost.php...[/link]

  • woodnotes #71 3 years ago

    "@ woodnotes

    It seems it does, check the third picture down"

    Yes, but the date on that is 28th May, and the programmes on that screen don't match up to what was actually on at that time, so it is obviously just a mock-up.

    Sky 1 isn't on PC Sky Player and unless you actually have Sky TV, you have to pay for Sky 1's on-demand stuff, even if you subscribe to the entertainment pack.
    Edited by 1 at 29/05/09 @ 15:51

  • Hypercube #72 3 years ago

    I have a 360, don't have Sky but I'd be very interested in this if
    a) They offered more movies than MS do and in HD and
    b) The pricing was reasonable, e.g. about the same as hiring a Blu-ray disc from Blockbusters.

  • Sonic_D #73 3 years ago

    If you get live HD sports working and charge me less than £40 a month for all three channels I will buy.

  • El-Dev #74 3 years ago

    GamerG, you can currently get a Sky+HD box for £49. Why would you buy a 2nd 360?

  • gammonbanter #75 3 years ago

    All I want is a netflicks style package for my PS3/xbox360!

    That's not hard!

  • prolific8 #76 3 years ago

    I haven't read all the comments here, so I'm not sure if anyone has already mentioned the fact that even with a Sky subscription you have to pay for multiroom in order to access anything other than a few crappy channels on the Sky Player. So if this is just an extension of said player, then it's barely worth it even if you do have an existing subscription.

  • Calgon #77 3 years ago

    Well Im still confused on this... so if you already have multiroom you dont have to pay anything extra for it and you get all the channels you would get on the STB plus extras?

    Thats still good news for existing customers unless you live in a household consisting of two people(in which case the multiroom and extra STB will have you covered). There seems to be alot of people trying to convince themselves its crap before they even know whats what, that can only mean one thing imo.(bias)

    P.S Bwahahahah! I see the usual Sony fanboys are having cold sweats over this news, pretty funny actually and these same people will probably turn up in another thread next week complaining about someone else being a fanboy. I actually enjoy seeing these sad trolls getting worked up over good news for the 360 and its fans, the bigger the reaction they give you know MS has done something right. ;)
    Edited by 1 at 29/05/09 @ 19:00

  • GamerG #78 3 years ago

    @ El-Dev

    because the 2nd HD box would also cost £15 a month

    Edited by 1 at 29/05/09 @ 19:31

  • GamerG #79 3 years ago

    @ justanotherdave

    So you can watch the premier league live or 24 and so on instantly on your PS3?

  • RESIDENT_nEVILe #80 3 years ago

    Sounds pretty good. Any extra functionality is a plus and I'm sure there are many sports fans rejoicing that now they can get pay per view events without a subscription.

    Personally, I would love access to those 10,000 Netflix movies. That's mass appeal right there.

    I use Sky Player, 4 On Demand and Iplayer on my laptop and PC, and out of the three of them Sky Player is by far the worst.

    It tears like a bastard on both my setups. I think it's because it uses some SilverLight player or some crap which produces a lovely picture, but can't handle any horizontal panning. I've been through grfx card settings, player settings to no avail.

    So if the Xbox version gets rid of the tearing then I will probably use it once in a blue moon.

  • Markusdragon #81 3 years ago

    Ugh, Rupert.

  • GamerG #82 3 years ago

    @ RESIDENT_nEVILe

    SIlverlight runs fine for me on my 3 year old box standard HP laptop and I use the Sky player all the time when away with work

    With a closed system like the 360 there will be no settings to tweak so I'm sure they'll get it working great just like netflix

  • RESIDENT_nEVILe #83 3 years ago

    @GamerG

    Ah, cheers for the info. I will have a mess about with my settings again. I guess it probably is a better player, it just annoyed me a tad because all the flash based players work like a charm.

    I'm pretty hopeful that the Xbox version will be fine from the get go, because it is common knowledge that screen tear = the Devil's own handiwork :)

  • TRUTH #84 3 years ago

    Be great laugh when watching live sports and switching on/off live camera (with Avatars! onscreen) to join in the events & scream, swear, laugh, gossip. cuss with mates/fans around the country.

  • dhughes147 #85 3 years ago

    I hate Rupert Murdoch and I hate paying for TV, why couldn't they have just got iPlayer?

  • hiddenranbir #86 2 years ago

    Already a sky customer. Don't need this, do I?