Communications

Partnership streams entertainment to TV

16 July 2008

For Netflix, it represents an important step forward in making instantly streaming movies on the TV more broadly available to our members

Reed Hastings, chairman and CEO of Netflix Microsoft and online movie rental service Netflix, have unveiled an exclusive partnership at the E3 Media and Business Summit in Los Angles, USA. The collaboration will enable consumers to instantly stream movies and TV episodes from Netflix to the television via the Xbox 360 console.

Around 10,000 movies and TV episodes will be available from Netflix when it launches on Xbox LIVE in late autumn. Through the agreement, along with the existing Xbox LIVE Marketplace Video Store, Xbox 360 will be home to more movies and TV shows on demand than any other device connected to the TV.

“Netflix on Xbox 360 is an entertainment first,” said John Schappert, corporate vice president of Interactive Entertainment LIVE, Software and Services Business at Microsoft. “We are creating a completely new social entertainment experience, and Xbox 360 will be the only video game system where you can access your library of instantly streamable movies from Netflix and turn any room into a virtual movie theatre.”

From the Netflix Web site, members add movies and TV episodes to their individual instant Queues. The choices are automatically displayed on the TV screen via Xbox 360, and once selected, movies will begin playing in as little as 30 seconds. In addition to instantly streaming movies to the TV, Xbox LIVE Gold members can fast-forward, pause and rewind, using either their Xbox 360 Controller or Media Remote.

“Netflix and Xbox 360 are a perfect combination, the leading online movie rental service and the leading games and entertainment system joining forces to create an all-in-one entertainment experience with content for everyone,” said Reed Hastings, chairman and CEO of Netflix. “For Netflix, it represents an important step forward in making instantly streaming movies on the TV more broadly available to our members.”