Posts with tag microsoft
Posted Sep 5th 2008 10:00AM by Brett Love
Filed under: Video, Commercials, Celebrities, Reality-Free
We talked about this when they announced that Jerry Seinfeld had signed on to promote Windows for Microsoft. If you were watching the big NFL kickoff Thursday night, you might have seen what that looked like. If you missed it, it's embedded after the jump. I've watched the commercial a few times now, and I'm torn. I agreed with Brad's take in the original post, that Seinfeld may be a few years past the point of ideal pitchman.
That being said, the first half of the commercial is quirky, and pretty funny. The idea of stumbling on Bill Gates in a discount shoe shop is an amusing place to start. And Gates does a good job as the straight man for Seinfeld. I really like the odd cut to the family watching through the glass. "They run tight." It all pays off nicely with that familiar image of Gates on his Platinum Shoe Circus Clown Club card. It loses steam when they leave the mall. A moist and chewy cake computer? I think the writers got tripped up by the iffy tag. The future. Delicious.
Continue reading Bill Gates and Jerry Seinfeld go to Shoe Circus - VIDEO
Posted Aug 21st 2008 2:25PM by Brad Trechak
Filed under: Celebrities, Reality-Free

In an attempt to appeal to the hip, mod audience, Microsoft is hiring
Jerry Seinfeld to be its pitchman for the Vista operating system. This is being considered as a counter to Apple's successful "Mac vs. PC" commercials. It is expected that he'll use a variation of the new "Windows, not walls" slogan.
There are two problems with this strategy. First off, while he was an icon of the 90's, Jerry Seinfeld hasn't been relevant for a few years now (
Bee Movie didn't do so well, despite his major attempts at promotion). American Express got him when he was a big deal and I'm sure more people used their production as a result, but I'm not so sure that would work now. Plus, it's not like he needs the money.
Second, the Vista operating system has gotten bad press. I mean baaaaaad press. Much of it deserved. Microsoft would be better served by having Jerry pitch whatever operating system came next rather than Vista, because there is a lot of negative publicity there to counteract.
Posted Jul 14th 2008 3:27PM by Brad Linder
Filed under: HDTV, PVR Wire, Web, Hardware
Microsoft has announced plans to expand the internet video content available to Xbox Live users. Probably the most exciting new feature (although also the most predictable) is a
partnership with Netflix that will let Netflix customers stream video using an Xbox 360 starting this fall.
Netflix currently lets users stream selected content using a web browser or a dedicated set top box developed by
Roku. You won't need to pay any additional fees to watch Netflix videos. But you will need a Netflix subscription. Microsoft says the Xbox 360 will be the only video game console to support Netflix videos, but I wouldn't be surprised if what Microsoft is really saying is that the Xbox 360 will be the
first video game console with Netflix support.
Microsoft has also announced that customers will be able to purchase and download videos
from NBC and Universal. Titles will include
Battlestar Galactica, The Office, Monk, The Mummy, and the Bourne Supremacy. The videos will be available in high definition. Microsoft says there are now over 10,000 movies and TV shows available through the Xbox Live marketplace.
Posted Jul 1st 2008 11:20AM by Brett Love
Filed under: Other Sci-Fi/Supernatural Shows, Industry, Programming, OpEd, PVR Wire, Reality-Free

At least that's the somewhat sarcastic conclusion I'm jumping to. As I started watching the east coast feed, an email bounced into the TV Squad inbox from reader 'Jay.' He noted that when he tried to record The Middleman on his PC, he was greeted with an error message. I had to wait three hours for the regular airing on the left coast, but I dusted off an old Media Center PC and got that very same error, as you see in the picture. I like to think that Wendy is showing her shock and outrage at the snafu in that shot. But wait, there's more ... after the jump.
Continue reading ABC Family doesn't want you to watch The Middleman
Posted Jun 24th 2008 4:07PM by Brad Linder
Filed under: PVR Wire, Software

Microsoft has been offering Windows Media Center since 2002. But six years later, many PC users don't even know the 10-foot interface for viewing media and recording TV shows exists -- even if it's already installed on their computers.
But does that make Windows Media Center a failure? MSNBC seems to think so. In an article on Microsoft's hits and misses during Bill Gates tenure, MSNBC
calls Windows Media Center a miss.
It's true that other products like TiVo and generic set top boxes have been more successful at infiltrating the living room. Not only do these consumer devices let users record and pause television, but in many cases they're letting users access internet services without a TV.
Meanwhile, few people want to stick a computer next to their television set. But that might not be the point. Windows Media Center might not be as familiar a name as TiVo, but the software is powerful and well thought out. And high end home theater PC makers have been designing fancy computers to take advantage of the software for years. And a growing number of companies are releasing Windows Media Extenders that let users access media on a PC connected to a home network without sticking a PC next to the television.
What do you think? Is Windows Media Center a hit or a miss? Keep in mind, MSNBC considers Halo a hit and Clippy a miss. So what I'm really asking is whether MCE fits in the same category as Clippy.
[via
Chris Lanier]
Posted May 21st 2008 11:04AM by Brad Linder
Filed under: PVR Wire, Software

Microsoft has reportedly begun testing the next generation of Windows Media Center, which bears the codename Fiji. There's not a lot of information about the beta test. We can't say for sure how many users are involved, or if and when Microsoft will expand the beta.
It's likely that the update will add support for the upcoming DirecTV tuner. But other than that, it's not entirely clear whether Fiji will sport any new features, or whether it'll just be a refined version of Windows Vista Media Center.
Microsoft is on track to release Windows 7 sometime around 2010. Windows 7 is the codename for the operating system that will eventually replace Windows Vista. Fiji, on the other hand, will be an intermediate update that will basically bring a new version of Media Center to Vista users. There's no official word on when Fiji will be released, but it could be out by the end of this year.
Participants in the private beta are bound by a pretty strict non-disclosure agreement, which is why it's been difficult to get any real information about the beta. But if anyone feels like sharing some info feel free to hit the tips link at the top of this page.
Posted May 6th 2008 1:35PM by Brad Linder
Filed under: PVR Wire, Web, Software

You know how Apple's iTunes store was once music only, and then the company added TV and movies? Yeah, replace the word Apple with Microsoft and you've pretty much got today's news. Well most of it, anyway. Microsoft has rolled out an updated version of its Zune Marketplace software. And while movies are nowhere to be seen, there are about 800 episodes from popular TV shows available for purchase at $1.99 a pop.
Titles include South Park, The Office, Heroes, 30 Rock, Battlestar Galactica, Eureka, Robot Chicken, and Rock of Love. All of the shows are from NBC Universal, MTV, or Turner. While the pricing in competitive with Apple's iTunes Store, it'd be nice to see a slightly larger content library. I'm going to go out on a limb and guess that if the networks currently on board sell a decent number of TV episodes, we'll see other networks join soon enough.
Posted Feb 21st 2008 6:01PM by Allison Waldman
Filed under: Other Drama Shows, Sports, Other Sci-Fi/Supernatural Shows, Web

Recently, TV Squad reported that
NBC has added all kinds of classic TV shows to their online outlets. Now comes the
announcement that CBS is also bringing a variety of well-loved TV dramas to the web. CBS Interactive is raiding the CBS Library, which is "one of the largest television programming libraries in the entertainment business," to present TV series online across the CBS Audience Network.
Like the NBC fodder, the CBS offering is gangbusters: full-length episodes of classic
Star Trek, Rod Serling's
The Twilight Zone,
MacGyver, Hawaii Five-O and
Melrose Place. CBS plans to add more programs and clips in the coming months, including sports and other kinds of entertainment.
Continue reading CBS adds TV classics to web line up
Posted Jan 7th 2008 10:23AM by Brad Trechak
Filed under: Industry, OpEd, PVR Wire, Software

From the CES, Disney-ABC
has announced it will start selling shows on Microsoft's XBox gaming console via the XBox Live and XBox Live Marketplace. This includes material from two Disney Channels, three ABC Channels and material from the MGM video library.
This move is yet another step in putting a ubiquitous entertainment console in the living room. Not that this is a bad thing. Some of the content will be available in HD, despite the fact that Microsoft is not offering HD-DVD in the console. Maybe they're going Blu-ray?
Continue reading Disney-ABC will sell TV shows on Xbox Live
Posted Dec 24th 2007 3:29PM by Brad Linder
Filed under: PVR Wire, Software

Microsoft is a big company. And while I'm not trying to imply that one arm might not have known what the other was doing, any company with a lot of arms is bound to flail them occasionally. So it's kind of nice to see that Microsoft is
combining several related departments into a new Connected TV business group.
On the other hand, you would have thought that a company that is focusing as heavily on digital technology for the living room would have already had a strategy for coordinating its various entertainment divisions. But until a few months ago, separate teams were responsible for IPTV, HD-DVD, and Windows Media Center developments.
I think that's the sort of discoordination that leads a company to launch a new software feature called "Internet TV" that is essentially just a 10-foot interface for MSN Video while Microsoft had a team of people working on providing actual TV through Internet protocols. I'm not saying that Microsoft should deliver IPTV solutions for free to Windows Vista Media Center users, but if you're going to call something "TV", perhaps you should provide more than just 3 seasons of the brilliant but canceled
Arrested Development. Otherwise, just call that ta what it is: Internet Video.
Posted Oct 21st 2007 3:00PM by Brad Linder
Filed under: HDTV, PVR Wire, Hardware

It's no secret that Sony and Microsoft have big plans for their Playstation 3 and Xbox 360 consoles. As video game systems, both consoles are already in millions of homes. But they each contain plenty of advanced features that make them good building blocks for complete home entertainment systems.
Sony has already announced plant to
launch a TV-tuner add-on for the PS3 that will turn the system into a PVR complete with a hard drive, electronic program guide, and the ability to watch and record live TV. Now it looks like there's talk that Microsoft may
issue an updated version of the Xbox 360 with an HDTV tuner as well.
The new unit would reportedly have an HD-DVD drive built in. Right now you need to buy an external device if you want to use your Xbox 360 to watch HD-DVD movies. Sony's PS3 has an internal Blu-Ray drive, which is one of the reasons the video game system launched at a significantly higher price than the Xbox 360 (or any other video game console in history). But with the cost of next generation DVD players coming down, it's getting cheaper to build HD video support directly into a gaming console.
Maybe one day we'll stop calling them game consoles and begin referring to them as entertainment systems. Even though I don't play games very often, for the right price, I'd be willing to buy a single box that can watch and record TV, play music, movies, internet video, and video games.
[via
Slashdot]
Posted Oct 1st 2007 6:00PM by Brad Linder
Filed under: PVR Wire, Software

Although none of the
new media center extenders announced last week have actually been released yet, Microsoft has
issued a software update that will enable their use with Windows Vista machines.
The update is available for Windows Vista Home Premium and Windows Vista Ultimate users. There's no word on what the update actually entails, but Microsoft describes it as enabling support for "new types of Windows Media Center Extenders, such as digital televisions and networked DVD players."
That certainly makes it sound like there's no reason to download the update if you're using an Xbox 360 right now. But if you have a chance to try it out, let us know if you notice any changes in the Xbox 360 extender interface or performance.
[via
Jason Tsang]
Posted Sep 30th 2007 8:00AM by Brad Linder
Filed under: PVR Wire, Software
One of the nice things about open source media center applications like
Media Portal is that you can create custom skins that rival, and might even surpass anything you can find in Windows Media Center, or even TiVo. A Media Portal has released a new skin that might just be cooler looking than any of the videos you'll use it to open.
The
Xface skin borrows heavily from Apple's coverflow style. And the play/pause, fast forward/rewind buttons look an awful lot like the buttons in Windows Media Center 11. But copyright issues aside, the interface is sleek and offers a visually interesting and useful way to organize your movies, music, and photos.
On the other hand, this
isn't the first time we've seen Media Portal developers rip off graphics from other products. But we're betting Apple and Microsoft lawyers might be too busy to take notice of Media Portal with its relatively small number of users. Still, we'd recommend redoing the media control buttons.
[via
Missing Remote]
Posted Sep 27th 2007 1:00PM by Brad Linder
Filed under: PVR Wire, Software
Microsoft is showing off its new
Internet TV platform at Digital Life, a whole one day before the service is rolled out to every Windows Vista machine.
Here's the good news: It looks pretty cool and dramatically increases the amount of internet video you can access from within the Windows Vista Media Center interface. Here's the bad news: The content is only kind of interesting.
While we were hoping to see Microsoft take on
Joost and
VeohTV here by offering full length streaming episodes of TV, so far the only content you can access is the same material available via
MSN Video. That means the only TV series you can watch is
Arrested Development and while there's a movies section, it currently includes nothing but trailers.
There are full length music concerts, and links to content from various TV networks. But again, most of what you get are clips, not full length episodes.
Internet TV launches tomorrow as a public beta, so there's a chance that Microsoft will sign up new partners before the official launch. But when your public beta is not just available to all users, but actually pushed out to their machines, the line between beta and full release is kind of blurry.
Posted Sep 27th 2007 8:59AM by Brad Linder
Filed under: PVR Wire, Web, Software
Microsoft is rolling out the
public beta of Internet TV for Windows Vista Media Center tomorrow. If you've got a machine running Windows Vista Home Premium or Windows Vista Ultimate, a new option should pop up inside of your media center interface, cleverly titled "Internet TV."
Windows Media Center already includes an online showcase section with access from content providers like Comedy Central, VH1, and MTV. But for the most part, those sites already have video content on their websites, and have simply designed a Media Center interface for accessing that video with your remote. Internet TV beta is a whole new platform for watching online video.
Continue reading Microsoft launches Internet TV for Windows Media Center
Next Page >