Xbox Live
Encyclopedia
Xbox Live is an online
multiplayer gaming and digital media
delivery service created and operated by Microsoft Corporation
. It is currently the only online gaming
service on consoles
that charges users a fee to play multiplayer gaming. It was first made available to the Xbox
system in 2002. An updated version of the service became available for the Xbox 360
console at that system's launch in 2005. The service was extended in 2007 on the Windows
platform, named Games for Windows – Live, which makes most aspects of the system available on Windows computers. Microsoft has announced plans to extend Live to other platforms such as handhelds and mobile phone
s as part of the Live Anywhere
initiative. With Microsoft's new mobile operating system
, Windows Phone 7
, full Xbox Live functionality is integrated into new Windows Phones that launched in late 2010.
The Xbox Live service is available as both a free and subscription-based service, known as Xbox Live Free and Xbox Live Gold respectively, with several features such as online gaming restricted to the Gold service. Prior to October 2010, the free service was known as Xbox Live Silver.
It was announced on June 10, 2011 that the service is going to be fully integrated into Microsoft's upcoming Windows 8
.
developed the original Xbox
console, online gaming was designated as one of the key pillars for the greater Xbox strategy. Sega
had made an attempt to capitalize on the ever-growing online gaming scene when it launched the Dreamcast video game console in 1999, including online support as standard. Nevertheless, due to lack of widespread broadband adoption at the time, the Dreamcast shipped with only a dial-up modem while a later-released broadband adapter was neither widely supported or widely available. Downloadable content
was available, though limited in size due to the narrowband connection and the size limitations of a memory card
. The online features, while praised as innovative, were largely considered a failure, and the Dreamcast's immediate competitor, the PlayStation 2
did not initially ship with built-in network adapters.
Microsoft, however, hoped that the Xbox would succeed where the Dreamcast had failed. The company determined that intense online gaming required the throughput of a broadband
connection and the storage space of a hard disk drive, and thus these features would be vital to the new platform. This would allow not only for significant downloadable content, such as new levels, maps, weapons, challenges and characters, to be downloaded quickly and stored, but also would make it possible to standardize bandwidth intensive features such as voice communication. Steve Ballmer
and Bill Gates
both had a vision of making premium download content and add-on
s that would attract many new customers. Based on this reasoning, the console included a standard Ethernet
port (10/100) in order to provide connectivity to common broadband networks
, but did not include a modem or any dial-up support, and its online service was designed to support broadband users only. Critics scoffed at the idea, citing poor broadband adoption at the turn of the century.
When the Xbox launched on November 15, 2001, the as-yet unnamed online service was destined for a Summer 2002 deployment. Xbox Live was finally given a name at E3 2002 when the service was unveiled in its entirety. Sound-dampened booths and broadband-connected Xbox consoles—featuring an early version of Unreal Championship
—demonstrated the service on the show floor. The Epic
title was one of the flagship titles for the service, which was slated for a debut on November 15, 2002, marking the anniversary of the Xbox launch. Microsoft announced that 50 Xbox Live titles would be available by the end of 2003. Utilizing the required broadband bandwidth, Xbox Live featured a unified gaming "Friends List", as well as a single identity across all titles (regardless of the publisher), and standardized voice chat
with a headset and communication, a feature that was still in its infancy.
Leading up to the launch, Microsoft enlisted several waves of beta testers to improve the service and receive feature feedback. The first wave of beta testers were given Revolt! (which never was released officially) and NFL Fever to beta test. Once beta testing concluded, Microsoft sent these beta testers a translucent orange memory card, a headset carrying case, and a beta tester tshirt with the slogan "I have great hands". When the service debuted, it lacked much of the functionality that later titles included, but Xbox Live grew and evolved on the Xbox and many aspects of the service were included with the Xbox 360
console out of the box
, rather than through a later update. Microsoft's 5000th patent was Live-related and gave Xbox 360 users access to watch other gamers compete against each other over Xbox Live.
The packaging for playable Xbox Live titles on the original Xbox console featured the trademark gold bar
underneath the Xbox header. Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell and Brute Force
sported a Live "bubble" design, as they only featured downloadable content. This was changed later, wherein all Xbox Live titles included the universal gold Live bar. By the time of the Xbox 360, all titles were required to provide at least a limited form of Xbox Live "awareness".
On November 15, 2007, Microsoft celebrated Xbox Live's 5th anniversary by offering its then over 8 million subscribers the title Carcassonne
free of charge and awarding gamers who had subscribed to Live since its inception 500 free Microsoft Points
. Due to intermittent service interruptions during late December 2007 and early January 2008, Microsoft promised to offer a free Xbox Live Arcade
game to all Xbox Live users as compensation, in an open letter
to all Xbox Live members from Mark Whitten, Xbox LIVE General Manager. Increased demand from Xbox 360 purchasers (the largest number of new user sign-ups in the history of Xbox Live) was given as the reason for the downtime. On January 18, 2008, Microsoft announced Undertow
would be offered free to both Gold and Free members for the week starting January 23 through January 27 as compensation.
On November 12, 2009, Dennis Durkin, COO of Microsoft's interactive entertainment business, announced that November 10, 2009, the release of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2
marked the busiest day ever on Xbox Live, with over two million active users simultaneously.
On February 5, 2010, Marc Whitten announced that Xbox Live had reached 23 million members. That same day, Larry Hyrb, Xbox Live's Major Nelson, announced on his blog that Xbox Live support for the original Xbox would be discontinued on April 15, 2010. This included online play through backwards compatibility on the Xbox 360 and all downloadable content for original Xbox games.
In August 2010, Microsoft announced an increase to the cost of Xbox Live Gold in several countries by 20%, for the first time since its inception.
In October 2011, Microsoft announced live streaming cable television with various providers.
c Available in UK and Ireland only
d Over 18's Only/Parental Permission Required
e Various Rental Fees Apply
f Available in Portugal only
g Available in Australia only
h Available in France only
i Available in Spain only
j Available in US only
k Available in Canada only
|}
Internet
The Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard Internet protocol suite to serve billions of users worldwide...
multiplayer gaming and digital media
Digital media
Digital media is a form of electronic media where data is stored in digital form. It can refer to the technical aspect of storage and transmission Digital media is a form of electronic media where data is stored in digital (as opposed to analog) form. It can refer to the technical aspect of...
delivery service created and operated by Microsoft Corporation
Microsoft
Microsoft Corporation is an American public multinational corporation headquartered in Redmond, Washington, USA that develops, manufactures, licenses, and supports a wide range of products and services predominantly related to computing through its various product divisions...
. It is currently the only online gaming
Multiplayer game
A multiplayer video game is one which more than one person can play in the same game environment at the same time. Unlike most other games, computer and video games are often single-player activities that put the player against preprogrammed challenges and/or AI-controlled opponents, which often...
service on consoles
Video game console
A video game console is an interactive entertainment computer or customized computer system that produces a video display signal which can be used with a display device to display a video game...
that charges users a fee to play multiplayer gaming. It was first made available to the Xbox
Xbox
The Xbox is a sixth-generation video game console manufactured by Microsoft. It was released on November 15, 2001 in North America, February 22, 2002 in Japan, and March 14, 2002 in Australia and Europe and is the predecessor to the Xbox 360. It was Microsoft's first foray into the gaming console...
system in 2002. An updated version of the service became available for the Xbox 360
Xbox 360
The Xbox 360 is the second video game console produced by Microsoft and the successor to the Xbox. The Xbox 360 competes with Sony's PlayStation 3 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles...
console at that system's launch in 2005. The service was extended in 2007 on the Windows
Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal...
platform, named Games for Windows – Live, which makes most aspects of the system available on Windows computers. Microsoft has announced plans to extend Live to other platforms such as handhelds and mobile phone
Mobile phone
A mobile phone is a device which can make and receive telephone calls over a radio link whilst moving around a wide geographic area. It does so by connecting to a cellular network provided by a mobile network operator...
s as part of the Live Anywhere
Live Anywhere
Games for Windows – Live is an online gaming service for Games for Windows-branded PC titles. It enables Windows PCs to connect to the Live service, which will eventually include other devices including Windows Mobile and Zune...
initiative. With Microsoft's new mobile operating system
Mobile operating system
A mobile operating system, also known as a mobile OS, mobile software platform or a handheld operating system, is the operating system that controls a mobile device or information appliance—similar in principle to an operating system such as Windows, Mac OS X, or Linux distributions that controls a...
, Windows Phone 7
Windows Phone 7
Windows Phone is a mobile operating system developed by Microsoft, and is the successor to its Windows Mobile platform, although incompatible with it. Unlike its predecessor, it is primarily aimed at the consumer market rather than the enterprise market...
, full Xbox Live functionality is integrated into new Windows Phones that launched in late 2010.
The Xbox Live service is available as both a free and subscription-based service, known as Xbox Live Free and Xbox Live Gold respectively, with several features such as online gaming restricted to the Gold service. Prior to October 2010, the free service was known as Xbox Live Silver.
It was announced on June 10, 2011 that the service is going to be fully integrated into Microsoft's upcoming Windows 8
Windows 8
Windows 8 is the codename for the next version of the Microsoft Windows computer operating system following Windows 7. It has many changes from previous versions. In particular it adds support for ARM microprocessors in addition to the previously supported x86 microprocessors from Intel and AMD...
.
History
As MicrosoftMicrosoft
Microsoft Corporation is an American public multinational corporation headquartered in Redmond, Washington, USA that develops, manufactures, licenses, and supports a wide range of products and services predominantly related to computing through its various product divisions...
developed the original Xbox
Xbox
The Xbox is a sixth-generation video game console manufactured by Microsoft. It was released on November 15, 2001 in North America, February 22, 2002 in Japan, and March 14, 2002 in Australia and Europe and is the predecessor to the Xbox 360. It was Microsoft's first foray into the gaming console...
console, online gaming was designated as one of the key pillars for the greater Xbox strategy. Sega
Sega
, usually styled as SEGA, is a multinational video game software developer and an arcade software and hardware development company headquartered in Ōta, Tokyo, Japan, with various offices around the world...
had made an attempt to capitalize on the ever-growing online gaming scene when it launched the Dreamcast video game console in 1999, including online support as standard. Nevertheless, due to lack of widespread broadband adoption at the time, the Dreamcast shipped with only a dial-up modem while a later-released broadband adapter was neither widely supported or widely available. Downloadable content
Downloadable content
Downloadable content is official additional content for a video game distributed through the Internet. Downloadable content can be of several types, ranging from a single in-game outfit to an entirely new, extensive storyline, similarly to an expansion pack. As such, DLC may add new game modes,...
was available, though limited in size due to the narrowband connection and the size limitations of a memory card
Memory card
A memory card or flash card is an electronic flash memory data storage device used for storing digital information. They are commonly used in many electronic devices, including digital cameras, mobile phones, laptop computers, MP3 players, and video game consoles...
. The online features, while praised as innovative, were largely considered a failure, and the Dreamcast's immediate competitor, the PlayStation 2
PlayStation 2
The PlayStation 2 is a sixth-generation video game console manufactured by Sony as part of the PlayStation series. Its development was announced in March 1999 and it was first released on March 4, 2000, in Japan...
did not initially ship with built-in network adapters.
Microsoft, however, hoped that the Xbox would succeed where the Dreamcast had failed. The company determined that intense online gaming required the throughput of a broadband
Broadband Internet access
Broadband Internet access, often shortened to just "broadband", is a high data rate, low-latency connection to the Internet— typically contrasted with dial-up access using a 56 kbit/s modem or satellite Internet with inherently high latency....
connection and the storage space of a hard disk drive, and thus these features would be vital to the new platform. This would allow not only for significant downloadable content, such as new levels, maps, weapons, challenges and characters, to be downloaded quickly and stored, but also would make it possible to standardize bandwidth intensive features such as voice communication. Steve Ballmer
Steve Ballmer
Steven Anthony "Steve" Ballmer is an American business magnate. He is the chief executive officer of Microsoft, having held that post since January 2000. , his personal wealth is estimated at US$13.9 billion, ranking number 19 on the Forbes 400.-Early life:Ballmer was born in Detroit, Michigan to...
and Bill Gates
Bill Gates
William Henry "Bill" Gates III is an American business magnate, investor, philanthropist, and author. Gates is the former CEO and current chairman of Microsoft, the software company he founded with Paul Allen...
both had a vision of making premium download content and add-on
Video game accessory
A video game accessory is a distinct piece of hardware that is required to use a video game console, or one that enriches the video game's play experience. Essentially, video game accessories are everything except the console itself, such as controllers, memory, power adapters , and audio/visual...
s that would attract many new customers. Based on this reasoning, the console included a standard Ethernet
Ethernet
Ethernet is a family of computer networking technologies for local area networks commercially introduced in 1980. Standardized in IEEE 802.3, Ethernet has largely replaced competing wired LAN technologies....
port (10/100) in order to provide connectivity to common broadband networks
Broadband Networks
The ideal telecommunication network has the following characteristics: broadband, multi-media, multi-point, multi-rate and economical implementation for a diversity of services [1][2]. The Broadband Integrated Services Digital Network provides these characteristics in today's networks...
, but did not include a modem or any dial-up support, and its online service was designed to support broadband users only. Critics scoffed at the idea, citing poor broadband adoption at the turn of the century.
When the Xbox launched on November 15, 2001, the as-yet unnamed online service was destined for a Summer 2002 deployment. Xbox Live was finally given a name at E3 2002 when the service was unveiled in its entirety. Sound-dampened booths and broadband-connected Xbox consoles—featuring an early version of Unreal Championship
Unreal Championship
Unreal Championship is a first-person shooter video game co-developed by Epic Games and Digital Extremes. It was published by Infogrames and released on November 12, 2002, for the Xbox. Unreal Championship is essentially a console version game of the PC-based Unreal Tournament 2003, developed...
—demonstrated the service on the show floor. The Epic
Epic Games
Epic Games, Inc., also known as Epic and formerly Epic MegaGames, is an American video game development company based in Cary, North Carolina. Its most recent success has been the Gears of War series of games, although it is also known for its Unreal Engine technology. It is the parent company of...
title was one of the flagship titles for the service, which was slated for a debut on November 15, 2002, marking the anniversary of the Xbox launch. Microsoft announced that 50 Xbox Live titles would be available by the end of 2003. Utilizing the required broadband bandwidth, Xbox Live featured a unified gaming "Friends List", as well as a single identity across all titles (regardless of the publisher), and standardized voice chat
Voice chat
Voice chat is a modern form of communication used on the Internet. The means of communicating with voice chat is through any of the messengers, mainly Skype, Yahoo! Messenger, AOL Instant Messenger, inSpeak Communicator or Windows Live Messenger...
with a headset and communication, a feature that was still in its infancy.
Leading up to the launch, Microsoft enlisted several waves of beta testers to improve the service and receive feature feedback. The first wave of beta testers were given Revolt! (which never was released officially) and NFL Fever to beta test. Once beta testing concluded, Microsoft sent these beta testers a translucent orange memory card, a headset carrying case, and a beta tester tshirt with the slogan "I have great hands". When the service debuted, it lacked much of the functionality that later titles included, but Xbox Live grew and evolved on the Xbox and many aspects of the service were included with the Xbox 360
Xbox 360
The Xbox 360 is the second video game console produced by Microsoft and the successor to the Xbox. The Xbox 360 competes with Sony's PlayStation 3 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles...
console out of the box
Out of the box
Out of the box is the term used to denote items, functionalities, or features that do not require any additional installation. In addition to being used for tangible products, the phrase is often used in a less literal sense for software, which may not be distributed in an actual box but offer...
, rather than through a later update. Microsoft's 5000th patent was Live-related and gave Xbox 360 users access to watch other gamers compete against each other over Xbox Live.
The packaging for playable Xbox Live titles on the original Xbox console featured the trademark gold bar
Gold bar
A gold bar is a quantity of refined metallic gold of any shape that is made by a bar producer meeting standard conditions of manufacture, labeling, and record keeping....
underneath the Xbox header. Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell and Brute Force
Brute Force (video game)
Brute Force is a video game released for the Xbox by Microsoft in 2003. The game is a squad-based third-person shooter that uses four members of a team which fight in numerous battles. These members in the squad include Flint, a sniper, Brutus, a shock trooper, Tex, a heavy assault trooper, and...
sported a Live "bubble" design, as they only featured downloadable content. This was changed later, wherein all Xbox Live titles included the universal gold Live bar. By the time of the Xbox 360, all titles were required to provide at least a limited form of Xbox Live "awareness".
On November 15, 2007, Microsoft celebrated Xbox Live's 5th anniversary by offering its then over 8 million subscribers the title Carcassonne
Carcassonne (video game)
Carcassonne is the Xbox Live Arcade version of the popular board game of the same name designed by Klaus-Jürgen Wrede for the Xbox 360, and developed by Sierra Studios. The game was released on June 27, 2007, and is the second designer board game to be released on Arcade, the first being Catan. It...
free of charge and awarding gamers who had subscribed to Live since its inception 500 free Microsoft Points
Microsoft Points
Microsoft Points are the currency of the Xbox Live Marketplace, Games for Windows - Live Marketplace, Windows Live Gallery, and Zune online stores. The points allow users to purchase content without a credit card and to reduce the number of small credit card transaction fees, which Microsoft would...
. Due to intermittent service interruptions during late December 2007 and early January 2008, Microsoft promised to offer a free Xbox Live Arcade
Xbox Live Arcade
Xbox Live Arcade is a type of video game download distribution available primarily in a section of the Xbox Live Marketplace, Microsoft's digital distribution network for the Xbox 360, that focuses on smaller downloadable games from both major publishers and independent game developers...
game to all Xbox Live users as compensation, in an open letter
Open letter
An open letter is a letter that is intended to be read by a wide audience, or a letter intended for an individual, but that is nonetheless widely distributed intentionally....
to all Xbox Live members from Mark Whitten, Xbox LIVE General Manager. Increased demand from Xbox 360 purchasers (the largest number of new user sign-ups in the history of Xbox Live) was given as the reason for the downtime. On January 18, 2008, Microsoft announced Undertow
Undertow (video game)
Undertow is an original video game developed by Chair Entertainment for the Xbox 360's Xbox Live Arcade service.-Gameplay:Undertow features a 15 level campaign for single-player or co-op and two multiplayer modes for up to 16 players. Players select their race and unit type and are then launched...
would be offered free to both Gold and Free members for the week starting January 23 through January 27 as compensation.
On November 12, 2009, Dennis Durkin, COO of Microsoft's interactive entertainment business, announced that November 10, 2009, the release of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 is a first-person shooter video game developed by Infinity Ward and published by Activision for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 video game consoles and the Microsoft Windows operating system. Officially announced on February 11, 2009, the game was released worldwide on...
marked the busiest day ever on Xbox Live, with over two million active users simultaneously.
On February 5, 2010, Marc Whitten announced that Xbox Live had reached 23 million members. That same day, Larry Hyrb, Xbox Live's Major Nelson, announced on his blog that Xbox Live support for the original Xbox would be discontinued on April 15, 2010. This included online play through backwards compatibility on the Xbox 360 and all downloadable content for original Xbox games.
In August 2010, Microsoft announced an increase to the cost of Xbox Live Gold in several countries by 20%, for the first time since its inception.
In October 2011, Microsoft announced live streaming cable television with various providers.
Xbox Live features
b Available in US & Canada onlyc Available in UK and Ireland only
d Over 18's Only/Parental Permission Required
e Various Rental Fees Apply
f Available in Portugal only
g Available in Australia only
h Available in France only
i Available in Spain only
j Available in US only
k Available in Canada only
|}
Windows Live Messenger
Windows Live Messenger
Windows Live Messenger is an instant messaging client created by Microsoft that is currently designed to work with Windows XP , Windows Vista, Windows 7, Windows Mobile, Windows CE, Xbox 360, Blackberry OS, iOS, Java ME, S60 on Symbian OS 9.x and Zune HD...
allows users of Xbox Live, PCs (Both on the Windows
Windows Live Messenger
Windows Live Messenger is an instant messaging client created by Microsoft that is currently designed to work with Windows XP , Windows Vista, Windows 7, Windows Mobile, Windows CE, Xbox 360, Blackberry OS, iOS, Java ME, S60 on Symbian OS 9.x and Zune HD...
and Macintosh platforms), and Windows Mobile
Windows Mobile
Windows Mobile is a mobile operating system developed by Microsoft that was used in smartphones and Pocket PCs, but by 2011 was rarely supplied on new phones. The last version is "Windows Mobile 6.5.5"; it is superseded by Windows Phone, which does not run Windows Mobile software.Windows Mobile is...
devices to connect and directly message each other. It is possible for eight people to chat with one another at one time, while playing games, listening to music, or watching movies. This complements the existing voice and video chat
Videoconferencing
Videoconferencing is the conduct of a videoconference by a set of telecommunication technologies which allow two or more locations to interact via two-way video and audio transmissions simultaneously...
of Xbox Live. Users will see at a glance if their existing contacts on Windows Live Messenger
Windows Live Messenger
Windows Live Messenger is an instant messaging client created by Microsoft that is currently designed to work with Windows XP , Windows Vista, Windows 7, Windows Mobile, Windows CE, Xbox 360, Blackberry OS, iOS, Java ME, S60 on Symbian OS 9.x and Zune HD...
have Gamertags. As of the December 4, 2007 dashboard update, Windows Live Messenger
Windows Live Messenger
Windows Live Messenger is an instant messaging client created by Microsoft that is currently designed to work with Windows XP , Windows Vista, Windows 7, Windows Mobile, Windows CE, Xbox 360, Blackberry OS, iOS, Java ME, S60 on Symbian OS 9.x and Zune HD...
on Xbox Live is now available to child accounts if the user is 13 years of age or older.
On September 4, 2007, Microsoft launched the Xbox 360 Messenger Kit, a small QWERTY
QWERTY
QWERTY is the most common modern-day keyboard layout. The name comes from the first six letters appearing in the topleft letter row of the keyboard, read left to right: Q-W-E-R-T-Y. The QWERTY design is based on a layout created for the Sholes and Glidden typewriter and sold to Remington in the...
keypad that connects directly into the Xbox 360 controller, either wired or wireless, to support text and instant messaging.
Current features
- Virtual avatars representing the user's likeness.
- Achievements earned during gameplay.
- Gamerscores amounting the total of a user's Achievement points.
- Rep voted by other users preferring or avoiding the user. Rep defaults to five stars over time after the user has been preferred by at least one other user.
- FriendsContact listA contact list is a collection of screen names in an instant messaging or e-mail program or online game or mobile phone. It has various trademarked and proprietary names in different contexts....
list displaying the user's chosen friends of up to 100. - Recent players list displaying the last 50 players the user has met.
- Complaint system allowing users to file reports of other users that have broken Xbox Live Terms of Use.
- Windows Live MessengerWindows Live MessengerWindows Live Messenger is an instant messaging client created by Microsoft that is currently designed to work with Windows XP , Windows Vista, Windows 7, Windows Mobile, Windows CE, Xbox 360, Blackberry OS, iOS, Java ME, S60 on Symbian OS 9.x and Zune HD...
integration. - Xbox Live MarketplaceXbox Live MarketplaceThe Xbox Live Marketplace is a virtual market designed for Microsoft's Xbox 360 console that allows Xbox Live members to download purchased or promotional content...
offering downloadable content for games, music and movies. - VoiceVoice chatVoice chat is a modern form of communication used on the Internet. The means of communicating with voice chat is through any of the messengers, mainly Skype, Yahoo! Messenger, AOL Instant Messenger, inSpeak Communicator or Windows Live Messenger...
and VideoVideoconferencingVideoconferencing is the conduct of a videoconference by a set of telecommunication technologies which allow two or more locations to interact via two-way video and audio transmissions simultaneously...
chat. - Multiplayer gameplay for up to four players via system link or Xbox Live.
- Cross-platformCross-platformIn computing, cross-platform, or multi-platform, is an attribute conferred to computer software or computing methods and concepts that are implemented and inter-operate on multiple computer platforms...
multiplayer with Windows gamers on select games via Games for Windows - Live - Matchmaking depending on the user's cumulative gamerscore, rep, location, language and gamer zone.
- Party system for up to eight users for playing games and watching movies.
- Family settingsParental controlsParental controls are features which may be included in digital television services, computer and video games, mobile phones and computer software...
controlling younger users' exposure to other users. - Inside Xbox video newsletter detailing Xbox 360 news, events, products, interviews and games. Content is streamedStreaming mediaStreaming media is multimedia that is constantly received by and presented to an end-user while being delivered by a streaming provider.The term "presented" is used in this article in a general sense that includes audio or video playback. The name refers to the delivery method of the medium rather...
directly from the Xbox 360 Dashboard. - NetflixNetflixNetflix, Inc., is an American provider of on-demand internet streaming media in the United States, Canada, and Latin America and flat rate DVD-by-mail in the United States. The company was established in 1997 and is headquartered in Los Gatos, California...
video service offering unlimited streaming for thousands of television shows and movies. - Zune video marketplace offering streaming of video content instantly in 1080p1080p1080p is the shorthand identification for a set of HDTV high-definition video modes that are characterized by 1080 horizontal lines of resolution and progressive scan, meaning the image is not interlaced as is the case with the 1080i display standard....
HDHigh-definition videoHigh-definition video or HD video refers to any video system of higher resolution than standard-definition video, and most commonly involves display resolutions of 1,280×720 pixels or 1,920×1,080 pixels...
with 5.1 surround sound5.1 surround sound5.1 is the common name for six channel surround sound multichannel audio systems. 5.1 is now the most commonly used layout in both commercial cinemas and home theaters. It uses five full bandwidth channels and one low frequency enhancement channel . Dolby Digital, Dolby Pro Logic II, DTS, and...
. - Sky Go live and on-demand television service offering content from Sky MoviesSky MoviesSky Movies is the collective name for the premium subscription television movie channels operated by Sky Television, and later British Sky Broadcasting. It has around 5 million subscribers, via satellite, cable and IPTV in the UK and Ireland...
, Sky NewsSky NewsSky News is a 24-hour British and international satellite television news broadcaster with an emphasis on UK and international news stories.The service places emphasis on rolling news, including the latest breaking news. Sky News also hosts localised versions of the channel in Australia and in New...
and Sky SportsSky SportsSky Sports is the brand name for a group of sports-oriented television channels operated by the UK and Ireland's main satellite pay-TV company, British Sky Broadcasting. Sky Sports is the dominant subscription television sports brand in the United Kingdom and Ireland...
. - Last.fmLast.fmLast.fm is a music website, founded in the United Kingdom in 2002. It has claimed 30 million active users in March 2009. On 30 May 2007, CBS Interactive acquired Last.fm for UK£140m ....
music streaming service offering artist radio stations and related music. - Halo Waypoint multimedia hub for all HaloHalo (series)Halo is a multi-million dollar science fiction video game franchise created by Bungie and now managed by 343 Industries and owned by Microsoft Studios. The series centers on an interstellar war between humanity and a theocratic alliance of aliens known as the Covenant...
-related content. - Game RoomGame RoomGame Room is a gaming service for the Xbox 360 video game system, Microsoft Windows PCs, and Windows Phone 7. Launched on March 24, 2010, Game Room lets players download classic video games and compete against each other for high scores...
virtual arcade space offering a library of classic retro games. - MSNMSNMSN is a collection of Internet sites and services provided by Microsoft. The Microsoft Network debuted as an online service and Internet service provider on August 24, 1995, to coincide with the release of the Windows 95 operating system.The range of services offered by MSN has changed since its...
entertainment portal providing the latest news and gossip in the world of celebrities, music and movies. - Foxtel On Xbox LiveFoxtelFoxtel is an Australian pay television company, operating cable, direct broadcast satellite television and IPTV services. It was formed in 1995 through a joint venture established between Telstra and News Corporation....
live and on-demand television service offering content from Showtime, CNNCNN InternationalCNN International is an international English language television network that carries news, current affairs, politics, opinions, and business programming worldwide. CNN is one of the world's largest news organizations. It is owned by Time Warner, and is affiliated with CNN, which is mainly...
, and Fox SportsFox Sports (USA)Fox Sports is a division of the Fox Broadcasting Company . It was formed in 1994 with Fox's acquisition of broadcast rights to National Football League games...
. - ESPN live and on-demand sports service offering streaming of up to 3,500 sporting events.
- AT&T U-Verse set-top boxSet-top boxA set-top box or set-top unit is an information appliance device that generally contains a tuner and connects to a television set and an external source of signal, turning the signal into content which is then displayed on the television screen or other display device.-History:Before the...
functionality. - Windows Phone 7Windows Phone 7Windows Phone is a mobile operating system developed by Microsoft, and is the successor to its Windows Mobile platform, although incompatible with it. Unlike its predecessor, it is primarily aimed at the consumer market rather than the enterprise market...
compatibility allowing users to manage their Xbox Live profiles, send and receive messages, play video games, as well as earn achievements exclusive to Windows Phone 7 titles. - Zune music marketplace offering unlimited streaming of music and music videos.
- Avatar Kinect social media service allowing users to interact with one another and create media using their Avatars.
- Hulu PlusHuluHulu is a website and over-the-top subscription service offering ad-supported on-demand streaming video of TV shows, movies, webisodes and other new media, trailers, clips, and behind-the-scenes footage from NBC, Fox, ABC, and Obstacle on October 20th 2011 Nickelodeon and CBS and many other...
video streaming service offering commercially-supported television and movie content from networks such as NBCNBCThe National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
, FoxFox Broadcasting CompanyFox Broadcasting Company, commonly referred to as Fox Network or simply Fox , is an American commercial broadcasting television network owned by Fox Entertainment Group, part of Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation. Launched on October 9, 1986, Fox was the highest-rated broadcast network in the...
and ABCAmerican Broadcasting CompanyThe American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
(US). - Kinect Fun Labs development hub allowing users to play, create and share their own Kinect experiences.
- Telus Optik TVTelus TVTelus TV is a product of Telus that provides IPTV and Satellite service across the Canadian provinces of British Columbia and Alberta. Telus launched its IPTV based service in November 2005 to Telus customers in select communities of Alberta but is now available in several communities throughout...
set-top boxSet-top boxA set-top box or set-top unit is an information appliance device that generally contains a tuner and connects to a television set and an external source of signal, turning the signal into content which is then displayed on the television screen or other display device.-History:Before the...
functionality.
Upcoming features
- YouTubeYouTubeYouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....
application allowing for unlimited access to shared video content (requires Gold membership and YouTube account). - BingBingBing is a web search engine from Microsoft.Bing may also refer to:* An onomatopœia of a bell sound* Bing cherry, a variety of cherry* Bing , Chinese flatbread* Bing , a German company that manufactured toys and kitchen utensils...
search engine allowing users to search for any piece of content on their console. - IPTVIPTVInternet Protocol television is a system through which television services are delivered using the Internet protocol suite over a packet-switched network such as the Internet, instead of being delivered through traditional terrestrial, satellite signal, and cable television formats.IPTV services...
service offering region-specific television content. - Cloud storageCloud storageCloud storage is a model of networked online storage where data is stored on virtualized pools of storage which are generally hosted by third parties. Hosting companies operate large data centers; and people who require their data to be hosted buy or lease storage capacity from them and use it for...
allowing users to access their profiles and save data from any console. - SkypeSkypeSkype is a software application that allows users to make voice and video calls and chat over the Internet. Calls to other users within the Skype service are free, while calls to both traditional landline telephones and mobile phones can be made for a fee using a debit-based user account system...
chat engine allowing users to video chat and voice chat with each content (requires Gold membership, Skype account and Kinect). - UFC on Xbox Live allows users to view pay-per-view events in 1080p HD, access a library of live and on-demand video content, connect with friends to predict fight results and have the ability to compare fighter statistics and records.
- iHeartRadioIheartradioiHeartRadio is a Clear Channel Radio network to aggregate local radio brands, personalities and on-demand content. It is best known as a mobile application...
streaming service, which streams over 800 US-based radio stations (requires Gold membership and iHeartRadio account) - Live streams of all the Miss Universe OrganizationMiss Universe OrganizationThe Miss Universe Organization is the organization that currently owns and runs the Miss Universe, Miss USA and Miss Teen USA beauty contests. Based in New York, it is owned jointly by NBC Universal and Donald Trump. The current president is Paula Shugart...
beauty pageants, which include Miss UniverseMiss UniverseMiss Universe is an annual international beauty contest that is run by the Miss Universe Organization. The pageant is the most publicized beauty contest in the world with 600 million viewers....
, Miss USAMiss USAThe Miss USA beauty contest has been held annually since 1952 to select the United States entrant in the Miss Universe pageant. The Miss Universe Organization operates both pageants, as well as Miss Teen USA...
and Miss Teen USAMiss Teen USAMiss Teen USA is a beauty pageant run by the Miss Universe Organization for girls aged 14–19. The reigning titleholder is Danielle Doty of Texas....
(requires Gold membership and Club Universe subscription). - Bravo TV offering television content from Bravo.
- Best Buy CinemaNowCinemaNowCinemaNow is an Internet-based digital video distribution company founded in 1999.The CinemaNow library contains approximately 14,000 feature-length films, shorts, music concerts and television programs from more than 250 licensors, including 20th Century Fox, ABC News, Disney, Endemol, MGM,...
offering instant access to an extensive library of premium video content for rent or purchase (requires Gold membership and CinemaNow subscription). - CrackleCrackleCrackle is a digital network and studio, featuring commercially supported streaming video content in Flash Video format. It is owned by Sony Pictures Entertainment, and its content consists primarily of Sony's library of films and television shows...
on Demand offering premium television content (requires Gold membership and Crackle subscription). - VEVOVevoVevo is a music video website. It is a joint venture among Sony Music Entertainment, Universal Music Group, and Abu Dhabi Media with EMI licensing its content to the group without taking an ownership stake. The service was launched officially on December 8, 2009...
on Xbox Live offering streaming music videoMusic videoA music video or song video is a short film integrating a song and imagery, produced for promotional or artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a marketing device intended to promote the sale of music recordings...
s and concerts (requires Gold membership). - DailymotionDailymotionDailymotion is a video sharing service website, headquartered in the 18th arrondissement, Paris, France. According to Comscore, Dailymotion is the second largest video site in the world after YouTube....
allowing users to access television and movie content (requires Dailymotion subscription). - Epix offering movies-on-television content.
- HBO Go offering all movies-on-television content from HBO (requires Gold membership and HBO Go subscription).
- Manga EntertainmentManga EntertainmentManga Entertainment is a producer, licensor and distributor of Japanese animation in the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, France, Australia and New Zealand...
streaming service from all television and movie content from Starz (requires Gold membership). - msnbc.comMsnbc.commsnbc.com is a news website owned and operated as a joint venture by NBCUniversal and Microsoft.In addition to original content from its news staff, msnbc.com is the news website for the NBC News family, with content from the cable television news channel MSNBC, NBC shows such as Today, NBC Nightly...
offering news to all users from MSNBCMSNBCMSNBC is a cable news channel based in the United States available in the US, Germany , South Africa, the Middle East and Canada...
.
Gamertag
A Gamertag is the universal name for a player's usernameUser (computing)
A user is an agent, either a human agent or software agent, who uses a computer or network service. A user often has a user account and is identified by a username , screen name , nickname , or handle, which is derived from the identical Citizen's Band radio term.Users are...
on Microsoft's Xbox Live. A Gamertag used online must be unique and can be up to 15 characters in length, including numbers, letters, and spaces. Gamertags can be changed using a premium service on the Xbox 360 console (for a price of 800 Microsoft Points), the system supports 8 Xbox Live-enabled profiles per memory unit and 32 profiles on the hard drive.
A player's Gamertag account status can be checked using a variety of online tools, which is useful especially when looking for a new Gamertag, or confirming that a Gamertag exists. Using a valid Gamertag, any player can be located and messaged from within Live. There are also several websites which allow users of Gamertags to upload photos and information about themselves.
Gamertags can be used in a variety of places, including the original Xbox
Xbox
The Xbox is a sixth-generation video game console manufactured by Microsoft. It was released on November 15, 2001 in North America, February 22, 2002 in Japan, and March 14, 2002 in Australia and Europe and is the predecessor to the Xbox 360. It was Microsoft's first foray into the gaming console...
, the Xbox 360
Xbox 360
The Xbox 360 is the second video game console produced by Microsoft and the successor to the Xbox. The Xbox 360 competes with Sony's PlayStation 3 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles...
, Games for Windows – Live, Zune
Zune
Zune is a digital media brand owned by Microsoft which includes a line of portable media players, a digital media player software for Windows machines, a music subscription service known as a 'Zune Music Pass', music and video streaming for the Xbox 360 via the Zune Software, music, TV and movie...
, and XNA
Microsoft XNA
Microsoft XNA is a set of tools with a managed runtime environment provided by Microsoft that facilitates video game development and management. XNA attempts to free game developers from writing "repetitive boilerplate code" and to bring different aspects of game production into a single system...
Creators Club.
Gamertags also contain avatar images (or "gamer pictures"), often associated with certain games or game characters. Individual gamerpics cost between 15 and 20 Microsoft Points, but they are usually bundled into packs; packs of four or five gamerpics usually cost 80 Microsoft Points, while packs of ten typically cost 150. "Personal" pictures (which are only shown when friends view a profile) can be taken with an Xbox Live vision camera. It is also possible to take "Public" pictures (which are shown to all that view a profile, unless the user has a different "personal" picture set) can be taken of avatars while using the avatar editor
Users were formally forbidden to use strings such as "gay" or refer to homosexuality in any way in their Gamertag or profile due to it being considered "content of a sexual nature", even if the string occurs in a legitimate surname. Incidents where a woman was suspended from the service for identifying herself as a lesbian
Lesbian
Lesbian is a term most widely used in the English language to describe sexual and romantic desire between females. The word may be used as a noun, to refer to women who identify themselves or who are characterized by others as having the primary attribute of female homosexuality, or as an...
, and an incident where a male user was suspended for using his surname "Gaywood" in his username attracted controversy. In February 2009, Xbox Live Lead Program Manager for Enforcement Stephen Toulouse
Stephen Toulouse
Stephen Toulouse, also known as Stepto, is the Director of Xbox LIVE Policy and Enforcement at Microsoft. He frequently represents Microsoft and Xbox Live in various media, including on Larry Hryb's "Major Nelson Radio" Xbox-related podcast, to discuss security and policy issues.Prior to joining...
clarified the service's policy on sexual identification, stating that "Expression of any sexual orientation
Sexual orientation
Sexual orientation describes a pattern of emotional, romantic, or sexual attractions to the opposite sex, the same sex, both, or neither, and the genders that accompany them. By the convention of organized researchers, these attractions are subsumed under heterosexuality, homosexuality,...
[...] is not allowed in Gamertags" but that the company is "examining how we can provide it in a way that won't get misused." Changes announced in March 2010 permit Xbox Live members to express sexual orientation in their gamertags and profiles.
Gamerscore
The Gamerscore (G) is an achievementsAchievement (video gaming)
In video gaming parlance, an achievement, also sometimes known as a trophy or challenge, is a meta-goal defined outside of a game's parameters...
system that measures the number of Achievement points accumulated by a user with a LIVE profile. These Achievement points are awarded for the completion of game-specific challenges, such as beating a level
Level (computer and video games)
A level, map, area, or world in a video game is the total space available to the player during the course of completing a discrete objective...
or amassing a specified number of wins against other players in online matches.
Initially, retail Xbox 360 games offered up to 1,000G spread over a variable number of Achievements, while each Xbox Live Arcade
Xbox Live Arcade
Xbox Live Arcade is a type of video game download distribution available primarily in a section of the Xbox Live Marketplace, Microsoft's digital distribution network for the Xbox 360, that focuses on smaller downloadable games from both major publishers and independent game developers...
title contained 12 Achievements totaling 200G. On February 1, 2007, Microsoft
Microsoft
Microsoft Corporation is an American public multinational corporation headquartered in Redmond, Washington, USA that develops, manufactures, licenses, and supports a wide range of products and services predominantly related to computing through its various product divisions...
announced on their Gamerscore Blog some new policies that developers must follow related to Gamerscore and Achievements in future releases. All regular disc-based games must have 1,000 Gamerscore points in the base game; the title can ship with fewer than 1,000 points, but anything added later must be free. Game developer
Video game developer
A video game developer is a software developer that creates video games. A developer may specialize in a certain video game console, such as Nintendo's Wii, Microsoft's Xbox 360, Sony's PlayStation 3, or may develop for a variety of systems, including personal computers.Most developers also...
s also now have the option of adding up to 250 points via downloadable content every quarter after the first year of release (for a total of 1,750 points). Xbox Live Arcade titles must have 200 Gamerscore and may add up to 50 points via downloadable content (for a total of 250 points).
On May 26, 2007, Halo 2
Halo 2
Halo 2 is a first-person shooter video game developed by Bungie Studios. Released for the Xbox video game console on November 9, 2004, the game is the second installment in the Halo franchise and the sequel to 2001's critically acclaimed Halo: Combat Evolved...
was the first Games for Windows
Games for Windows
Games for Windows is a brand owned by Microsoft and introduced in 2006 to coincide with the release of Windows Vista. The brand represents a standardized technical certification program and online service for Windows games, bringing a measure of regulation to the PC game market in much the same way...
title to feature Achievements, which counted towards a player's Gamerscore.
On March 25, 2008, Microsoft cracked down on "Gamerscore cheaters" (those who used external tools to artificially inflate their Gamerscore), and reduced their Gamerscores to zero without the option to recover the scores that had been "earned", and branded the player by denoting on their Gamertag that they were a "Cheater".
The development of the Gamerscore system has created a new niche in the internet economy. Many websites have been created to provide gamers with tips and tricks for getting achievement points. Some sites are solely devoted to these achievement guides, and some blogs provide gaming guides in addition to their other content.
Gamercard
The Gamercard is an information panel used to summarize one's user profile on Microsoft's Xbox Live. The pieces of information on a Gamercard include:- Gamertag (in front a silver or gold bar)(active gold members who have had Xbox Live for less than a year feature small bubbles.Anything a year or over will feature the number of years.)
- Gamer picture (avatar)
- Reputation
- Gamerscore
- Gamer Zone
- Recent games played
A player's Gamercard can be viewed via the Xbox 360 Dashboard, or online through Xbox.com. The top bar that displays the Gamertag is shown in front of either a silver or gold bar which designates if the gamer has an Xbox Live Free or Gold subscription (respectively). If the gamer is part of the Xbox 360 Launch
Xbox 360 launch
The Xbox 360 launch marks the release of the first high-profile seventh generation video game console. It is Microsoft's second foray in console development succeeding their 2001 launch of the original Xbox.-Viral advertising and alternate reality games:...
Team, the top bar will also have additional text stating "Launch Team" in the background. Third party sites allow users to post a rendered version of their Gamercard as a small Flash
Adobe Flash
Adobe Flash is a multimedia platform used to add animation, video, and interactivity to web pages. Flash is frequently used for advertisements, games and flash animations for broadcast...
applet or JPEG
JPEG
In computing, JPEG . The degree of compression can be adjusted, allowing a selectable tradeoff between storage size and image quality. JPEG typically achieves 10:1 compression with little perceptible loss in image quality....
image on any website or Internet forum
Internet forum
An Internet forum, or message board, is an online discussion site where people can hold conversations in the form of posted messages. They differ from chat rooms in that messages are at least temporarily archived...
.
Similarly, Mac OS X
Mac OS X
Mac OS X is a series of Unix-based operating systems and graphical user interfaces developed, marketed, and sold by Apple Inc. Since 2002, has been included with all new Macintosh computer systems...
users can download widgets that display their Xbox Live Gamercard within Mac OS X
Mac OS X
Mac OS X is a series of Unix-based operating systems and graphical user interfaces developed, marketed, and sold by Apple Inc. Since 2002, has been included with all new Macintosh computer systems...
's Dashboard. These can be downloaded onto any Mac with OS X 10.4 or higher via Apple's widget download page.
There are four Gamer Zones; Recreation is for casual gamers, Family is for family-friendly
Family-friendliness
Entertainment or information is called "family friendly" if it is considered suitable for all members of the average family. In particular it means that it is not considered inappropriate for children, which may imply restrictions on engagement in, or depiction of, nudity, sex, violence, horror,...
gamers (without profanity, etc.), Pro is for competitive gamers who enjoy a challenge, and Underground is for no-holds-barred gaming where anything goes (as long as it does not violate the Xbox Live Terms of Use). However, in practice these gamer zones are displayed only on the Gamercard of the player, and do not tend to affect the gameplay experience or the matching of players in online game
Online game
An online game is a game played over some form of computer network. This almost always means the Internet or equivalent technology, but games have always used whatever technology was current: modems before the Internet, and hard wired terminals before modems...
s.
TrueSkill
TrueSkillTrueSkill
TrueSkill is a Bayesian ranking algorithm developed by Microsoft Research and used in the Xbox matchmaking system built to address some perceived flaws in the Elo rating system...
is a ranking and matchmaking system which has first implemented as part of the Xbox 360's Live services. Developed at Microsoft Research
Microsoft Research
Microsoft Research is the research division of Microsoft created in 1991 for developing various computer science ideas and integrating them into Microsoft products. It currently employs Turing Award winners C.A.R. Hoare, Butler Lampson, and Charles P...
Cambridge
Cambridge
The city of Cambridge is a university town and the administrative centre of the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It lies in East Anglia about north of London. Cambridge is at the heart of the high-technology centre known as Silicon Fen – a play on Silicon Valley and the fens surrounding the...
(United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
), the TrueSkill ranking system is now used in over 150 titles for the Xbox 360 and in the Games for Windows – Live game Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War II
Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War II
Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War II is a real-time strategy/tactical role-playing video game developed by Relic Entertainment and published by THQ for Microsoft Windows based on the fictional Warhammer 40,000 universe. It is the sequel to the Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War video game series...
. It uses a mathematical model
Mathematical model
A mathematical model is a description of a system using mathematical concepts and language. The process of developing a mathematical model is termed mathematical modeling. Mathematical models are used not only in the natural sciences and engineering disciplines A mathematical model is a...
of uncertainty to address weaknesses in existing ranking systems such as Elo
Elo rating system
The Elo rating system is a method for calculating the relative skill levels of players in two-player games such as chess. It is named after its creator Arpad Elo, a Hungarian-born American physics professor....
. For example, a new player joining million-player leagues can be ranked correctly in fewer than 20 games. It can predict the probability of each game outcome, which enhances competitive matchmaking, making it possible to assemble skill-balanced teams from a group of players with different abilities.
When matchmaking, the system attempts to match individuals based on their estimated skill level. If two individuals are competing head-to-head and have the same estimated skill level with low estimate uncertainty, they should each have roughly a 50% chance of winning a match. In this way, the system attempts to make every match as competitive as possible.
In order to prevent abuse of the system, the majority of ranked games have relatively limited options for matchmaking. By design, players cannot easily play with their friends in ranked games. However, these countermeasures have failed due to techniques such as alternate account(s) and system flaws where each system has its own individual trueskill rating. To provide less competitive games, the system supports unranked Player Matches, which allow individuals of any skill level to be paired (often including "guests" on an account). Such matches do not contribute to the TrueSkill rating.
Clans are a popular idea for gamers to create a group with their friends online and play together. These clans can also play against other clans, called clan battles. Clan battles have become very popular with the xbox live family.
New Xbox Experience
At E3 2008, Microsoft announced that all Xbox 360 owners would receive a new dashboard update, titled New Xbox Experience (NXE), on November 19, 2008 that has added many new features. Though the new interface is generally downloaded when a new Xbox is connected to Xbox Live, some games, including Fight Night Round 4Fight Night Round 4
Fight Night Round 4 garnered positive reaction from critics for its strategic gameplay and strong multiplayer component. The PlayStation 3 version received an 87.89% and an 88% from review aggregate websites GameRankings and MetaCritic respectively...
and Dragon Ball: Raging Blast
Dragon Ball: Raging Blast
is a video game based on the manga and anime franchise Dragon Ball. It was developed by Spike and published by Namco Bandai for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 game consoles throughout North America, while everywhere else it would be published under the Bandai label. It was released in Japan, North...
, will also update it.
One feature is the ability to watch standard quality and 720p
720p
720p is the shorthand name for 1280x720, a category of High-definition television video modes having a resolution of 1080 or 720p and a progressive scan...
streaming movies and TV shows from Netflix
Netflix
Netflix, Inc., is an American provider of on-demand internet streaming media in the United States, Canada, and Latin America and flat rate DVD-by-mail in the United States. The company was established in 1997 and is headquartered in Los Gatos, California...
through the Xbox 360. This feature is only available in the US and Canada, and requires an Xbox Live Gold subscription and Netflix Unlimited. Users are also able to watch Netflix titles with their friends in a party of up to 8 players. Xbox Live members have the ability to view over 12,000 movies and episodes. Users can browse for titles based on their interests and Netflix ratings with the Xbox interface. Users no longer need to visit the website to choose the content to watch. When a player parties up with a group, they also have the ability to join games together, chat together or view a slideshow of photos.
Another feature gives players the ability to create Avatars
Avatars (Xbox 360)
Xbox 360 Avatars are avatars that represent users of the Xbox Live service on the Xbox 360 video game console. Avatars debuted on the Xbox 360 as part of the "New Xbox Experience" system update released on November 19, 2008....
. Players are able to customize avatars by changing body shape, facial features, hair and clothes, as well as new clothing being released from time to time. Xbox Live requires that users select an avatar. Another feature is the ability to install an entire game disc onto the Xbox 360's hard drive, which decreases loading times, and significantly reduces noise due to the game being read from the hard drive and not the louder disc drive (similar to the PS2 HD LOADER Feature). For most games this feature also reduces the amount of time spent reading the disc, thereby helping to extend the life-span
Life expectancy
Life expectancy is the expected number of years of life remaining at a given age. It is denoted by ex, which means the average number of subsequent years of life for someone now aged x, according to a particular mortality experience...
of the optical drive
Optical storage
Optical storage is a term from engineering referring to the storage of data on an optically readable medium. Data is recorded by making marks in a pattern that can be read back with the aid of light, usually a beam of laser light precisely focused on a spinning disc. An older example, that does...
mechanism.
During the Press Conference at E3, Microsoft announced Xbox Live Primetime, a series of scheduled programs where Xbox Live members can play against each other. The first announced game is an adaptation of the Endemol
Endemol
Endemol is an international television production and distribution company based in the Netherlands, with subsidiaries and joint ventures in 23 countries, including the United Kingdom, the United States, France, Mexico, Spain, Italy, Germany, Brazil, Chile, Argentina, Dominican Republic, Poland,...
game show
Game show
A game show is a type of radio or television program in which members of the public, television personalities or celebrities, sometimes as part of a team, play a game which involves answering questions or solving puzzles usually for money and/or prizes...
1 vs. 100
1 vs. 100
1 vs. 100 is a game show created by Endemol that is aired in several countries. The game pits one person against 100 others for a chance to win a large cash prize. The game first aired in the Netherlands as Eén tegen 100, sponsored by the Nationale Postcode Loterij .- General format :In all...
in which one Xbox Live member will play against 100 other members with a live host and prizes awarded. This service is currently in an open beta in Canada and the United States.
The Xbox Guide has also been redesigned. Players are not only able to view their friends and messages, but are able to access their game library. If a user has installed any game onto their Xbox 360 Hard drive, they are able to immediately start the game from the guide, whether they are in a game or in the dashboard. Microsoft also confirmed that every new 360 comes with 3 free Xbox Live Gold trial accounts, upon creating a new account the player is allowed to claim a trial period upon refusing to pay for Gold subscription; therefore allowing the user to try online gameplay for that one month trial period, after which the player is required to pay subscription fees to continue matchmaking online. Major Nelson also announced that the update supports 16:10 on VGA or HDMI, expanding the choice of resolutions.
While previous system updates have been stored on internal memory, this is the first update to require a storage device. The update requires at least 128MB free space on either a memory card or a hard drive. Microsoft has stated that many Core or Arcade users will not have sufficient space on their limited memory cards for the new update and thus provided them with a free 512MB memory card or a discounted 20GB hard drive for a limited time. This promotion has since ended and all new arcade units now come with 512MB of internal memory.
The NXE was leaked onto Torrent sites and could be installed via a USB drive
USB flash drive
A flash drive is a data storage device that consists of flash memory with an integrated Universal Serial Bus interface. flash drives are typically removable and rewritable, and physically much smaller than a floppy disk. Most weigh less than 30 g...
. Microsoft's Major Nelson stated that unauthorized installation of NXE would result in the users console being banned from Xbox Live until its official release which was on November 19, 2008.
Update
On September 22, 2010, Major Nelson announced that the Xbox Live dashboard will be redesigned once again. The new design incorporates the MetroMetro Design Language
Metro is an internal code name for a typography-based design language created by Microsoft, originally for use in Windows Phone 7. Early uses of the Metro principles, such as the typography, began as early as Microsoft Encarta 95, and later evolved into products such as Windows Media Center and Zune...
interface used in other Microsoft products, such as Zune HD
Zune HD
The Zune HD is a portable media player in the Zune product family released on September 15, 2009 by Microsoft. It is a direct competitor with the Apple iPod and iPhone series of mobile devices. It was initially released in 16 and 32 GB capacities. A 64 GB version was released on April 9, 2010...
and Windows Phone 7
Windows Phone 7
Windows Phone is a mobile operating system developed by Microsoft, and is the successor to its Windows Mobile platform, although incompatible with it. Unlike its predecessor, it is primarily aimed at the consumer market rather than the enterprise market...
. As well as a new color scheme and other minor tweaks to the overall layout, the update will also include a "Kinect hub", designed specifically for the Kinect sensor for easier dashboard navigation. Xbox Live members were able to sign up for a preview program, which opened on September 29, 2010. The new dashboard officially went live on November 1.
On June 6, 2011 at E3, it was announced that the dashboard will be updated again to include the Bing
Bing
Bing is a web search engine from Microsoft.Bing may also refer to:* An onomatopœia of a bell sound* Bing cherry, a variety of cherry* Bing , Chinese flatbread* Bing , a German company that manufactured toys and kitchen utensils...
search engine, allowing users to search for games, trailers, movies etc. Kinect will also be updated allowing users to navigate the dashboard and Bing using their voice. Other updates includes cloud storage, YouTube access and live television streaming. The dashboard update will be released on 6th December 2011.
Xbox Live Marketplace
Xbox Live Marketplace is a unified storefront which offers both free and premium content for download including Xbox Live ArcadeXbox Live Arcade
Xbox Live Arcade is a type of video game download distribution available primarily in a section of the Xbox Live Marketplace, Microsoft's digital distribution network for the Xbox 360, that focuses on smaller downloadable games from both major publishers and independent game developers...
titles, Xbox indie games, original Xbox games, Xbox 360 game demos, game expansion material (e.g. extra maps, vehicles, songs), trailers, gamer pictures and themes, television shows, music video
Music video
A music video or song video is a short film integrating a song and imagery, produced for promotional or artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a marketing device intended to promote the sale of music recordings...
s, movie rentals, and more.
On 17 November 2009, Microsoft released a downloadable Zune application for the Xbox 360. This application turns the Xbox 360 into a Zune device. Once you download the Zune application, it takes over the Marketplace menus and sections of the console. With the addition of the Zune Marketplace to a Xbox 360 console, you are able to purchase movies instead of only being able to rent them. The Zune Marketplace has a much more extensive content offering compared to the classic Xbox Live Marketplace.
Video Marketplace
On November 6, 2006, Microsoft announced the Xbox Video Marketplace, an exclusive video store accessible through the console. Launched in the United States.. on November 22, 2006, the first anniversary of the Xbox 360's launch, the service allows users in the United States to download high-definitionHigh-definition television
High-definition television is video that has resolution substantially higher than that of traditional television systems . HDTV has one or two million pixels per frame, roughly five times that of SD...
and standard-definition television
Standard-definition television
Sorete-definition television is a television system that uses a resolution that is not considered to be either enhanced-definition television or high-definition television . The term is usually used in reference to digital television, in particular when broadcasting at the same resolution as...
shows for purchase and movies for rental onto an Xbox 360 console for viewing. With the exception of short clips, content is not currently available for streaming, and must be downloaded. Movies are available for rental from the Video Marketplace.. They expire in 14 days after download or at the end of the first 24 hours after the movie has begun playing, whichever comes first. Television episodes can be purchased to own, and are transferable to an unlimited number of consoles. Downloaded files use 5.1 surround audio
Surround sound
Surround sound encompasses a range of techniques such as for enriching the sound reproduction quality of an audio source with audio channels reproduced via additional, discrete speakers. Surround sound is characterized by a listener location or sweet spot where the audio effects work best, and...
and are encoded using VC-1
VC-1
VC-1 is the informal name of the SMPTE 421M video codec standard, which was initially developed as a proprietary video format by Microsoft before it was released as a formal SMPTE standard video format on April 3, 2006...
for video at 720p, with a bitrate
Bitrate
In telecommunications and computing, bit rate is the number of bits that are conveyed or processed per unit of time....
of 6.8 Mbit/s. Television content is offered from MTV
MTV
MTV, formerly an initialism of Music Television, is an American network based in New York City that launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs....
, VH1
VH1
VH1 or Vh1 is an American cable television network based in New York City. Launched on January 1, 1985 in the old space of Turner Broadcasting's short-lived Cable Music Channel, the original purpose of the channel was to build on the success of MTV by playing music videos, but targeting a slightly...
, Comedy Central
Comedy Central
Comedy Central is an American cable television and satellite television channel that carries comedy programming, both original and syndicated....
, Turner Broadcasting, and CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
; and movie content is Warner Bros.
Warner Bros.
Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc., also known as Warner Bros. Pictures or simply Warner Bros. , is an American producer of film and television entertainment.One of the major film studios, it is a subsidiary of Time Warner, with its headquarters in Burbank,...
, Paramount
Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film production and distribution company, located at 5555 Melrose Avenue in Hollywood. Founded in 1912 and currently owned by media conglomerate Viacom, it is America's oldest existing film studio; it is also the last major film studio still...
, and Disney, along with other publishers.
Programs
The "Game with Fame" initiative has been Microsoft's way to connect Xbox Live members with celebrities and game developers. Notable participants of "Game With Fame" include Shia LaBeoufShia LaBeouf
Shia Saide LaBeouf is an American actor who became known among younger audiences for his part in the Disney Channel series Even Stevens and made his film debut in Holes . In 2007, he starred as the leads in Disturbia and Transformers...
, Jack Black
Jack Black
Jack Black , is an American actor and musician, notably of Tenacious D.Jack Black may also refer to:* Jack Black , late 19th - early 20th Century author and hobo* Jack Black , drummer for 1970s UK punk band The Boys...
, Rihanna
Rihanna
Robyn Rihanna Fenty , better known as simply Rihanna, is a Barbadian recording artist. Born in Saint Michael, Barbados, Rihanna moved to the United States at the age of 16 to pursue a recording career under the guidance of record producer Evan Rogers...
, Velvet Revolver
Velvet Revolver
Velvet Revolver is an American hard rock supergroup consisting of former Guns N' Roses members Slash, Duff McKagan, and Matt Sorum, alongside Dave Kushner formerly of punk band Wasted Youth. Stone Temple Pilots vocalist Scott Weiland was Velvet Revolver's lead singer from their formation until...
, Victoria Justice
Victoria Justice
Victoria Justice is an American actress, singer-songwriter, and dancer. She debuted as an actress at the age of 10 and has since appeared in several films and television series including the Nickelodeon series Zoey 101 and Victorious...
, Shaun Wright-Phillips
Shaun Wright-Phillips
Shaun Cameron Wright-Phillips is an English footballer who plays for Queens Park Rangers and the England national team. He is the adopted son of former England international, Ian Wright and the half-brother of fellow professional football player Bradley Wright-Phillips...
, Scissor Sisters
Scissor Sisters
Scissor Sisters are an American band "spawned by the scuzzy, gay nightlife scene of New York" who took their name from a sexual position between two women also known as tribadism...
, Paramore
Paramore
Paramore is an American rock band from Franklin, Tennessee, formed in 2004. The band consists of lead vocalist Hayley Williams, bassist Jeremy Davis, and guitarist Taylor York...
, KoЯn
Korn
Korn is an American nu metal band from Bakersfield, California, formed in 1993. The current band line up includes four members: Jonathan Davis, James "Munky" Shaffer, Reginald "Fieldy" Arvizu, and Ray Luzier. The band was formed as an expansion of L.A.P.D.The band released their first demo album,...
, OK Go
OK Go
OK Go is a rock band originally from Chicago, Illinois, USA, now residing in Los Angeles, California, USA. The band is composed of Damian Kulash , Tim Nordwind , Dan Konopka and Andy Ross , who joined them in 2005, replacing Andy Duncan...
, Red Jumpsuit Apparatus, Dream Theater
Dream Theater
Dream Theater is an American progressive metal band formed in 1985 under the name Majesty by John Petrucci, John Myung, and Mike Portnoy while they attended Berklee College of Music in Massachusetts. They subsequently dropped out of their studies to further concentrate on the band that would...
, Linkin Park
Linkin Park
Linkin Park is an American rock band from Agoura Hills, California. Formed in 1996, the band rose to international fame with their debut album, Hybrid Theory, which was certified Diamond by the RIAA in 2005 and multi-platinum in several other countries...
and Green Day
Green Day
Green Day is an American punk rock band formed in 1987. The band consists of lead vocalist and guitarist Billie Joe Armstrong, bassist and backing vocalist Mike Dirnt, and drummer Tre Cool...
.
"Xbox Ambassadors" are Xbox Live members selected by Microsoft who have proven themselves to be helpful towards others, and are willing to assist new Xbox Live users and answer their questions. As of March 2009, there are ambassadors representing 18 countries in more than 30 languages.
Xbox Rewards
Xbox Rewards
Xbox Rewards is a Microsoft program designed to give both casual and hardcore players incentives to play games on the Xbox 360. This works by having gamers register online for specific challenges, with completion then tracked by the system whenever the gamer is connected to Xbox Live...
was a promotion designed to provide gamers incentives to play on Xbox Live by subsidizing achievement points earned with actual rewards. Gamers were required to register for specific challenges which, if successfully completed, would yield a challenge-specific reward.
Xbox LIVE Rewards
Xbox LIVE Rewards
Xbox Live Rewards is a Microsoft program that started on December 1, 2010 that is designed to give both casual and hardcore players incentives to play games on the Xbox 360...
is a current promotion providing Xbox LIVE Members Microsoft Points
Microsoft Points
Microsoft Points are the currency of the Xbox Live Marketplace, Games for Windows - Live Marketplace, Windows Live Gallery, and Zune online stores. The points allow users to purchase content without a credit card and to reduce the number of small credit card transaction fees, which Microsoft would...
when they renew their Gold Membership, buy something on the Marketplace, etc.
SentUAMessage is a show which aims to answer questions sent in by viewers on anything related to the world of Xbox. The show is currently in its fourth series and is released every other Saturday. The show is driven entirely by user-generated questions. To ensure the volume of questions remains high, fans can contact the show in a variety of ways, including sending questions to the SentUAMessage Gamertag over Xbox LIVE; writing an email or, using social network websites.
Social network integration
On November 19, 2009, integration with FacebookFacebook
Facebook is a social networking service and website launched in February 2004, operated and privately owned by Facebook, Inc. , Facebook has more than 800 million active users. Users must register before using the site, after which they may create a personal profile, add other users as...
Twitter
Twitter is an online social networking and microblogging service that enables its users to send and read text-based posts of up to 140 characters, informally known as "tweets".Twitter was created in March 2006 by Jack Dorsey and launched that July...
and Last.fm
Last.fm
Last.fm is a music website, founded in the United Kingdom in 2002. It has claimed 30 million active users in March 2009. On 30 May 2007, CBS Interactive acquired Last.fm for UK£140m ....
was added with access available to all Xbox Live Gold subscribers. These features were initially only available to adult (18+) accounts, but Microsoft has since made the service available to users under the age of 18, subject to parental permission (use must be authorized using the parent's account and password).
Facebook features on the console are limited compared to the browser-based version, with users currently only able to update their status, comment on and "like" friends' statuses, and view their own and friends' pictures. There are also some features on the Xbox 360 that are not included on the main website; the Xbox Live Friend Finder allows users to see which Facebook friends use Xbox Live, while the Facebook Friend Finder allows users to see which Xbox Live friends use Facebook.
Security
Microsoft implements a number of different security measures on its Xbox Live service. One of these takes the form of a proactive security check that assures that only unmodified machines may access their service. On May 17, 2007, Microsoft banned consoles with modified firmwareFirmware
In electronic systems and computing, firmware is a term often used to denote the fixed, usually rather small, programs and/or data structures that internally control various electronic devices...
from Xbox Live. According to Microsoft, consoles with firmware of unknown origin, quality or intent were banned permanently from Xbox Live. A Microsoft representative indicated that the action was taken to assure "the integrity of the service and protect our partners and users."
It has been discovered that pretexting has been used to impersonate an Xbox Live user for sabotage. Microsoft has implemented greater security to decrease the service's susceptibility to social engineering
Social engineering (security)
Social engineering is commonly understood to mean the art of manipulating people into performing actions or divulging confidential information...
.
In early November 2009 Microsoft banned approximately 1 million consoles with modified firmware from Xbox Live.
In October 2011, users of Xbox Live reported having unauthorized access to their Xbox Live accounts, with Microsoft points subsequently being used and/or bought to purchase various in-game items for FIFA 12
FIFA 12
FIFA 12 is the nineteenth game in Electronic Arts' FIFA series of association football video games. It was developed by EA Canada, and published by Electronic Arts worldwide under the EA Sports label. David Rutter, the line producer for FIFA 12, promised "a revolutionary year for FIFA .....
. Microsoft is responding to such incidents by restricting access to the account for 25 days whilst the fraud team investigates. Both EA and Microsoft have denied that there is a problem with security.
Availability
As of November 10, 2010, Xbox Live is currently available in 35 countries/territories:Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
Chile
Chile
Chile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...
Colombia
Colombia
Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia , is a unitary constitutional republic comprising thirty-two departments. The country is located in northwestern South America, bordered to the east by Venezuela and Brazil; to the south by Ecuador and Peru; to the north by the Caribbean Sea; to the...
Czech Republic
Czech Republic
The Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Poland to the northeast, Slovakia to the east, Austria to the south, and Germany to the west and northwest....
Denmark
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
Finland
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
Hong Kong
Hong Kong
Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...
Hungary
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
Ireland
Republic of Ireland
Ireland , described as the Republic of Ireland , is a sovereign state in Europe occupying approximately five-sixths of the island of the same name. Its capital is Dublin. Ireland, which had a population of 4.58 million in 2011, is a constitutional republic governed as a parliamentary democracy,...
Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
Portugal
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
Singapore
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
South Korea
South Korea
The Republic of Korea , , is a sovereign state in East Asia, located on the southern portion of the Korean Peninsula. It is neighbored by the People's Republic of China to the west, Japan to the east, North Korea to the north, and the East China Sea and Republic of China to the south...
Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
Taiwan
Republic of China
The Republic of China , commonly known as Taiwan , is a unitary sovereign state located in East Asia. Originally based in mainland China, the Republic of China currently governs the island of Taiwan , which forms over 99% of its current territory, as well as Penghu, Kinmen, Matsu and other minor...
United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
Users from other countries are not officially supported, although it is possible for them to access Xbox Live if they provide an address located in a country where Xbox Live is officially available.
Xbox Live content and services available in different countries vary. The country selected during account creation affects available payment options, disallowing usage of international payment cards issued in different country. Users are not allowed to change their account country.
Live Anywhere
Live Anywhere is an initiative by Microsoft to bring the Live online gaming and entertainment network to a wide variety of platforms and devices, including XboxXbox
The Xbox is a sixth-generation video game console manufactured by Microsoft. It was released on November 15, 2001 in North America, February 22, 2002 in Japan, and March 14, 2002 in Australia and Europe and is the predecessor to the Xbox 360. It was Microsoft's first foray into the gaming console...
, Xbox 360
Xbox 360
The Xbox 360 is the second video game console produced by Microsoft and the successor to the Xbox. The Xbox 360 competes with Sony's PlayStation 3 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles...
, Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal...
(XP SP2/SP3, Vista
Windows Vista
Windows Vista is an operating system released in several variations developed by Microsoft for use on personal computers, including home and business desktops, laptops, tablet PCs, and media center PCs...
and 7), Windows Phone
Windows Phone
Windows Phone is a mobile operating system developed by Microsoft, and is the successor to its Windows Mobile platform, although incompatible with it. Unlike its predecessor, it is primarily aimed at the consumer market rather than the enterprise market...
, Java
Java Platform, Micro Edition
Java Platform, Micro Edition, or Java ME, is a Java platform designed for embedded systems . Target devices range from industrial controls to mobile phones and set-top boxes...
-based phones and Zune
Zune
Zune is a digital media brand owned by Microsoft which includes a line of portable media players, a digital media player software for Windows machines, a music subscription service known as a 'Zune Music Pass', music and video streaming for the Xbox 360 via the Zune Software, music, TV and movie...
. The concept service for mobile devices has been demonstrated at E3 and CES
Consumer Electronics Show
The International Consumer Electronics Show is a major technology-related trade show held each January in the Las Vegas Convention Center, Las Vegas, Nevada, United States. Not open to the public, the Consumer Electronics Association-sponsored show typically hosts previews of products and new...
on a Motorola Q
Motorola Q
The Motorola Q is a Windows Mobile smartphone first announced in the Summer of 2005 as a thin device with similar styling to Motorola's immensely popular RAZR. Motorola in a partnership with Verizon Wireless released the Q on May 31, 2006...
mobile phone.
Microsoft's Chris Early clarified that Live Anywhere is a long-term project expected to be rolled out over several years.
On February 15, 2010, Microsoft announced its new mobile operating system
Mobile operating system
A mobile operating system, also known as a mobile OS, mobile software platform or a handheld operating system, is the operating system that controls a mobile device or information appliance—similar in principle to an operating system such as Windows, Mac OS X, or Linux distributions that controls a...
, Windows Phone 7
Windows Phone 7
Windows Phone is a mobile operating system developed by Microsoft, and is the successor to its Windows Mobile platform, although incompatible with it. Unlike its predecessor, it is primarily aimed at the consumer market rather than the enterprise market...
. With Windows Phone 7, Microsoft has integrated full Xbox Live functionality into Windows Phone.
Revenue
BloombergBloomberg L.P.
Bloomberg L.P. is an American privately held financial software, media, and data company. Bloomberg makes up one third of the $16 billion global financial data market with estimated revenue of $6.9 billion. Bloomberg L.P...
estimates that Xbox Live probably made over US$1 billion in revenue in the 2010 fiscal year, which ended on June 30, 2010.
See also
- DSi Shop
- Games for WindowsGames for WindowsGames for Windows is a brand owned by Microsoft and introduced in 2006 to coincide with the release of Windows Vista. The brand represents a standardized technical certification program and online service for Windows games, bringing a measure of regulation to the PC game market in much the same way...
- Games for Windows – Live
- List of Games for Windows titles
- List of Games for Windows – Live titles
- Nintendo Wi-Fi ConnectionNintendo Wi-Fi ConnectionThe is an online multiplayer gaming service run by Nintendo to provide free online play in compatible Nintendo DS, Nintendo 3DS and Wii games. The service includes the company's Wii Shop Channel, DSi Shop, and Nintendo eShop game download services...
- PartnerNetPartnerNetPartnerNet is the name of the developers-only alternative Xbox Live network used by developers to beta test game content downloads, and games developed for Xbox Live Arcade...
- PlayStation Network
- PlayStation StorePlayStation StoreThe PlayStation Store is an online virtual market available to users of Sony's PlayStation 3 and PlayStation Portable game consoles via the PlayStation Network. The Store offers a range of downloadable content both for purchase and available free of charge. Available content includes full games,...
- Xbox Live ArcadeXbox Live ArcadeXbox Live Arcade is a type of video game download distribution available primarily in a section of the Xbox Live Marketplace, Microsoft's digital distribution network for the Xbox 360, that focuses on smaller downloadable games from both major publishers and independent game developers...
- Xbox Live Indie GamesXbox Live Indie GamesXbox Live Indie Games are user created video games released on Microsoft's Xbox Live Marketplace for the Xbox 360. The games are developed using Microsoft XNA, and developed by one or more independent developers that are registered with App Hub...
- Xbox Live MarketplaceXbox Live MarketplaceThe Xbox Live Marketplace is a virtual market designed for Microsoft's Xbox 360 console that allows Xbox Live members to download purchased or promotional content...
- Wii Shop ChannelWii Shop ChannelThe Wii Shop Channel is an online shop for the Wii video game console that allows users to download Virtual Console and WiiWare games, and new channels. Downloading may require redeeming Wii Points. The channel launched with Wii on November 19, 2006...
- WiiConnect24WiiConnect24WiiConnect24 is a feature of the Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection for the Wii console. It was first announced at E3 2006 by Nintendo. It enables the user to remain connected to the Internet while the console is on standby...
- WiiWareWiiWareWiiWare is a service that allows Wii users to download games and applications specifically designed and developed for the Wii video game console made by Nintendo. These games and applications can only be purchased and downloaded from the Wii Shop Channel under the WiiWare section...
- Windows LiveWindows LiveWindows Live is the collective brand name for a set of services and software products from Microsoft, part of their software plus services platform. A majority of these services are Web applications, accessible from a browser, but there are also client-side binary applications that require...
External links
- Major Nelson's Blog, by Larry Hryb, Xbox Live Director of Programming
- Gamerscoreblog, The InsideThe InsideThe Inside is an American crime drama television series created by Tim Minear and Howard Gordon and produced by Imagine Television. The Inside follows the work of the FBI's Los Angeles Violent Crimes Unit , a division dedicated to investigating particularly dangerous crimes. The Inside initially...
Scoop from Microsoft Xbox and Games Employees - The US Xbox Live Site