Zune Video on Xbox Live Could Finish Blu-Ray

E3 2009 had tons of surprises, but one that appears to have been truly over looked, has to be the so called 1080p HD technology Xbox Live has introduced through their new Zune video store. Folks at E3 witnessed Microsoft instantly fast forward a streamed 1080p movie right at start up. But how could this be possible? How can a streamed 1080p movie have instant access to every point of the movie? Doesn't it need to buffer that huge file? After seeing this at E3, we here at TQcast have been really eager to learned more about this 1080p instant streaming. Could this be Blu-Ray's true competitor? Or perhaps the beginning of the end for Blu-Ray? Let's face it, why can't Microsoft sell this same technology to other content distributors, such as Netflix. Or better yet, collaborate with them to create the biggest HD streaming option for consumers, while having the biggest movie library.

TQcast recently interviewed Michael Wolf, Senior Marketing Manager at Microsoft, about the upcoming Zune Video on Xbox Live.

[BulletToothtony]

on a big 1080p screen TV with a TRUE HD 7.1 Surround sound..

In their heads they think that a bluray or download looks and sounds the same.. the main problem is that they're probably still on sdtv, When you have spent so much money to have a crisp image and sound you know nothing replaces bluray..

People with this little iq lever shouldn't be allowed on the internet..

Stop it with the ps3/bluray is gonna fail already.. they're NOT going anywhere, no matter how much you hate them..

[qface64]

i honestly have to say that the headline alone is a very silly and stupid thing to say

seriously?

[Chupa-Chupa]

I agree with you on the best looking media part, but look at the big picture. Unless Blu-Ray drops prices, and continues to supply a Digital copy on each Blu-Ray, the streaming is undeniably the most convenient. As long as they have incredibly prices, this will succeed. Look at TQcast, we support the PS3 to the fullest, and love Blu-Rays, but when we see something that has tons of potential, we don't choose sides G.

[IdleLeeSiuLung]

It's pretty clear that streaming isn't going to beat blu-ray in quality, but if history has a say the most advanced format seems to loose quite frequently.

Personally, I prefer to own the media, but it seems the youngsters (ahhh that makes me sound sooo old) these days love digital content.

[LiL T]

Digital download movies have 7.1 uncompressed sound, comentaries that I can turn on and off at any time, extras I can watch halfway through the movies and continue wher I left off, picture in picture, bookmarks/chapter saves, multi language, ability to put a bookmarks/chapter saves where ever I want and i'm sure I am missing some features, than I highly doubt it will take over Blu-ray.

edit: @ HQLocated111
You need a good tv/lcd/plasma to have it look that good and yes the ps3's Blu-ray is one of the best on the market. Some of the cheaper one do not have internet connection, wich ads more features like movie related themes, mini games and trailers for other movies.

[InFAMOUS1]

PERSONALLY I think it is still to early for people to make a huge leap into streaming HD content. First of all, people have invested 1000's of dollars into their home theater experience, which includes BD players and titles. Secondly, ISPs are way behind on allocating bandwidth 2 it's customers. I for one have the best connection my provider offers. 10mb/s D/L with 6mb/s upload, HOWEVER I'm capped on the amount of bandwidth I'm allowed to download. I get 60GB a month, now granted thats quite a huge amount, however If I wanted to take in a movie a day, that would put me over the limit. That does not include online gaming, itunes, or any activity I use. In addition to that, my ISP throttles my connection during heavy traffic times, so during the hours of 6-10pm my connection is like 3mb/s download.

I guess all I am saying is that for a good number of people it will work, but for the majority of people it won't.. Also the PS3 plays blu ray... NOT the 360.. is MS planning on offering this service to the PS3?!?! (I THINK NOT) So MS will grab its little niche in the market all the while MOVIE STUDIOS continue to spend millions into blu ray technology.. Its the way it is. How does this article explain the end of BD technology???? I SMELL IGNORANCE

[HQLocated111]

I remember seeing Pirates of the carribean 3 on Blu ray last year at Circuit City. It looked like a live play or something, idk how to explain it. But yea how do you get the movie to look like that and is the PS3's blu ray good enough to make it look like that?

[Blaze929]

dumb articles like this give the wrong impression of what Microsoft is trying to do. obviously they aren't going to offer a blu-ray add-on for the Xbox 360, this is just an alternative to get those 1080p movies from Xbox LIVE. They aren't trying to "finish blu-ray", how dumb does that sound.

[phosphor112]

That have low level DSL, or no internet at all. The fact is, there are more people with HDTVs than high speed internet. This article is fail, not to mention that there STILL needs to be a storage medium.

[IcarusOne]

@ HQLocated111: many LCD's now feature 120hz playback, which basically means their refresh rate is super high, and depending on the setup of your player or media, this can make the image move in a hyper-real way. It's great for video games, but for movies, it often destroys the feeling of 24fps that gives movies their distinct look and feel. We have a 1080p Aquos hooked up to a PS3 which has a 24p mode. For some reason, when 24p mode is on, the playback looks fake, like video. So we turn that mode off to preserve the filmic look.

ON TOPIC: I love bluray and am skeptical of streaming content's ability to match quality. I watch movies downloaded from XBL and the PSN and they look fine - maybe not reference but certainly enjoyable and beautiful in HD. And the concern over how few households really have access to fast-enough internet connections is certainly valid. But I think a lot of this comes down to cost. Most of my friends rarely watch commentaries or special features. Most of us are in it for the actual movie. If streaming 1080p content (which by itself is a remarkable achievement, and regardless of this article frames it, should still be applauded) is priced appropriately, that's what will decide for most people which format wins.

If you're tired of spending close to $30 on a bluray and can watch the same movie streamed from XBL for 14 cents per day or $10 per download or something, that's an idea I would jump at. And as a techno-/video-/audio-phile myself, I see a lot of upsides to this.

The best format, especially in this climate, isn't just the quality. Convenience, saturation, and price have to factor in as well. As someone else said, victory doesn't always go to the best quality. It goes to the best solution.

[badz149]

most people are talking about 1080p and assume that it's the only thing that makes BD so great! 1080p is just one of the advantages of BD but what makes the pictures look so lively is the bitrate at which those data are 'streamed' off the discs! that's almost 54MBps and considering that this 1080p streaming requires only at least 8MBps, in terms of picture and sound quality, BD is leaps and bounds better! and then, depending on the internet connection, this service will strip 1080p to a much lower resolution to maintain the continuity of playback which will never happen using BD! the easiest comparison is if you are gaming on PC! you can put the resolution to 1920x1080 with other options set to low or medium to maintain playability! try comparing that to the same resolution with all set to max on a more powerful rig! the differences are there and there are significant!

plus, not to mention that there will be no PIP, no BD-live, no resuming from last watched scene and no extras, I don't think movie enthusiast will choose this service over the more superior BD! I won't be talking about internet caps because this service will require a lot less amount of data compared to those on BD but for casual movie watcher, yes, this maybe an alternative! but for enthusiasts, BD will be the medium of choice until there is anything that better it!

[C_SoL]

Watching planet earth on a real HDTV (not no vizio) with blu-ray is a true hd experience no doubt.

Also, regular movies like spiderman or ironman truely dont show the quality of blu-ray. I recommend watching a documentary where the framerate is higher to really show the quality of blu-ray.

[Pistolero]

I am an Xbox fan and there is no way I am giving up Bluray....for what?...downloads or streaming? Screw that.

[cliffbo]

microsoft cannot fool anyone with this B**l.
you need to be able to recieve 54Mbits a second to achieve FULL 1080p and the tech does`nt exist YET!.

[FamilyGuy]

What you saw was actually Tv related before the blu-ray player even comes into the picture, to answer your question, Yes, the PS3 IS capable of that but what you need in-order for it to look like that is a 120hz (or more) HDTV.

This article explains nothing as to how this will beat let alone kill blu-ray. I'm heavy into downloading, sometimes well over 60Gbs a month, and my speed the speed i pay for is 7mbps (i usually get about 1.2 mbps download). So even my speed isn't adequate for the full service.

Most people comfortable with digital content are pirates and we have tons of other means as to how to get those movies before we'd spend money on a service like this.

[Mindboggle]

Youve all missed out on one big thing here. There are only 30 million xbox 360's out there. That is no where near enough to beat the blu ray install base. Which is probably 50 million plus and rising. Also who owns Zunes ! FFS noone buys a zune over an iPod. Especially in Europe and the rest of the world outside US.

[likedamaster]

Bluray is sooo overrated. Sure it has its benefits, blah blah, especially disc space. Outside of that, its convenience that wins.

Title is a little silly though, but then again, this is n4g.

[jrsenkbe]

Unless digital media can provide me with something I can hold for spending my money and the government increases internet bandwidth than there will just be a happy medium.

[SuperM]

There is no magic in streaming HD video over the internet. The only reason this technology works is because it will compress the video to the exact size of your connection. When your connection goes down a little bit, the image will be more compressed and when it increase the quality will go up.

Even if you had the best connection imaginable you would stil get a compressed image and sound quality because the service is capped at about 5mbits. Blu ray is way beyond that in quality. But most people dont even have nearly that good connection, they will be stuck with a fairly low quality compressed image and bad sound quality.

The really bad thing about it is some people will be fooled to think that this is what HD content looks like, and it will add to the discussion that the difference between DVD and Bluray is not that big. But the truth is the difference is huge, but the ONLY way to see the real difference is to buy a real bluray disc. And preferably play it on the more or less best bluray player on the market, the PS3.

@ 1.16

Have you ever seen a bluray movie on a 1080p HD TV with 7.1 uncompressed surround sound? No? 5.1 surround even? No? Then shut up. Movies like the dark knight should not be seen on anything else then a bluray disc. You get so much more out of the experience. Calling it overrated is such a pointless and retarded thing to say, how can you overrate pretty much perfect picture quality? You dont get that anywhere else

[Boody-Bandit]

To me the pros and cons don't add up at all when comparing BluRay to DD. BluRay is far superior to what DD offers now or will in the near future. Let's not forget that more people own hi def displays then have high bandwidth broadband.

My short list of pros and cons tell me BluRay is here to stay
BluRay
Pros:
Full 1080p visuals
True 7.1 DD and DTS audio
Hardware calibrations for audio and video
Physical media:
Options, features and adjustments you can make from the menu. Being able to resell or loan it out to family or friends, watch on any display in the house that has a BluRay player hooked up to it.

Cons:
Price (but it's only a matter of time before this drops)

DD pros:
price (? <- because I'm not sure what the pricing is since I prefer True audio and 1080p visuals)

cons:
Not even close to True 1080p visuals
Not even close to True DD & DTS 7.1 audio
ISP Bandwidths. The world wont have ISP's that can handle true 1080p audio and video for years! ISP's in my area are already threatening bandwidth caps for DD.
Not owning the product: can't resell it, loan it out to family or friends or watch on any display in the house unless you unhook and move the storage to another display.

DD will never take over BluRay. Never. There will be a new visual and audio capacity before the world has ISP's strong enough to support even BluRay size audio and visuals. By then a new resolution in audio and visuals will have probably been created.

The fastest service I know about in my state is FIOS and even that doesn't come close to the speed needed to download what BluRay offers. Sorry but downloading music might be popular but they are blip in size compared to downloading Hi Def movies.

These articles are just desperate and pathetic. BluRay is here to stay and it will always be the market leader in this generation of hi def movies.

[JokesOnYou]

I can't help but laugh at "audiophiles" who really think this is a huge selling point for bluray.

Do you know how few people really have a setup to take advantage of that? Do you know how few avg consumers could tell which is which when they hear both and have to pick? I consider myself to have a really nice setup but I don't lose any sleep over 7.1 vs 5.1.

When will people learn that movie industry is based on the masses....most consumers still aren't convinced there is a huge difference in HD quality over DVD, and they've been to Best Buy and seen movies playing on the best setups in electronic stores, so how the hell do you think 9 out of 10 of the avg customer will see any discernable difference in this HD quality which is 1080p and looks great vs bluray? lol, the convenience of this will continue to grow its popularity quickly.

JOY

[xTruthx]

When i though people couldnt get any dummer, i was proven wrong

[Vo_Cal]

This site was so refreshing when it first started up. Now everyone comes onto a thread to defend Sony at every turn. I wish you fanboys would STFU and GTFO. This place was better before you arrived and has depreciated in value since you came. GO AWAYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY!!!!!! !!

[Christopher]

Sad as it is, Amazon.com and iTunes will still outsell Zune in the end. Why? Because it's a combination of the services, software, and hardware, and Zune/Microsoft only has the software.

[JeffGUNZ]

Blue-Ray is not going to be the NEXT DVD. 5 years earlier than it came out, yes, it would have. Streaming HD and 1080 quality with digital downloading is the direction it's going. Take a look at blockbuster, there profit is decreasing due to cable providers digital download and now with live streaming. Why would you take the time to drive to blockbuster, try and rent a movie that might not be in, when you could pay the same price and stream it in HD quality at the comfort of your couch and not have to worry if it will be "in" or not. For movies, digital downloading and streaming are the wave and if you don't see that than you need to open your eyes. In the case of movies, disks are going to be obsolete in a few years time. The technology is advancing and blue-ray is going to fall behind. It will still be around, of course, but it's not going to be as popular as everyone thinks it will.

[Boody-Bandit]

You do realize that TRUE DD & DTS supports 5.1 too?
It's not a matter of numbers of speaker but the discrete sound running to those speakers that is the magic of TRUE sound.

Trust me if you had the receiver to support this sound you would not so easily dismiss it. It's a huge difference, and although my setup cost a small fortune, you don't have to spend a ton of money to purchase a decent set up that supports this sound.

I have seen receivers as recently as this past week in retail locations that cost -$300. That is not a lot of money for a receiver.

[IdleLeeSiuLung]

You, I always thought that disc based system will be around for ever and that consumers what physical goods. Then just about a month ago I spoke to my brother, whom is about 10 years younger than me and he actually preferred his games in digital download format.

He cited:

a) no need to swap discs EVER
b) can't loose my discs
c) no discs, means no scratched or damaged discs
d) license is held with Sony and there might be some benefits (like Steam or Blizzard)

That is when it dawned upon me that I'm getting old and that youngsters these day grew up with DD and isn't attached to media. Blu-ray do have many benefits (and hence why I prefer it over DD if the price is good). However, convenience is the driving factor to switch. DVD had great quality, but the main reason why I switched was because rewinding a tape was a pain and tapes get worn out. The added benefit was the picture quality.

Furthermore, there is no reason why a purchased movie can't be stored on the hard drive (granted a Terabyte+ drive is recommended). Just 10 years ago, mp3 was relatively under-used (as in just catching on) and now it is frankly the de-facto standard. There are superior formats then and now, but mp3 remains. That is because the superior sound quality didn't outweigh the convenience factor.

I recon most people can see to some extent the increase in picture quality, but it is kind of like a PC (dual-core vs. quad-core). Once you hit a certain point, the difference isn't that remarkable anymore.

[ThanatosDMC]

Epic Phail...

[JokesOnYou]

No, that was me reponding to the 1st poster who is actually the one downplaying this instant 1080p streaming tech just because he himself wants 7.1 audio. Note that I said its not a feature that the "masses" will really make a buying decision based on. I have friends who work in Fry's, I talk to Best Buy near my house regularly, I love picking their brains about electronics...HDTV adoption is up, bluray is up & down, DVD of course is still king, but its very rare that a customer knows or requests 7.1 audio setups, even when given information on the better sound quality most just want a quality hdtv and audio setup that's reasonably priced...7.1 one is a plus but the avg joe isn't shoping with that feature in mind, if it comes with the setup he chose that fits in his budget great, if it doesn't most don't care...the difference between the two is mostly important to "audiophiles". I'm not downplaying 7.1 at all I'm just stating that this tech will still be popular because if its delivers good picture quality and works well the convenience factor will easily dwarf the lack of 7.1 audio for the overwhelming majority of consumers.

Also I'm sure if bothered to look there is a 2007 study I read from arstechnica that avg US internet speed was 1.9 at that time...I'm guessing it would be even better by now.

JOY

[cherrypie]

And you have *NO IDEA* what you sound like.

1080p is 1080p. Zune video on Xbox LIVE will stream -- instant on -- 1080p video.

Yes 5.1 vs. 7.1 audio -- but, I frankly dont give a flying frack about the difference in fidelity at that level. Unless you've got $5-7k worth of speakers, properly arranged in a good room, with a high-quality stereo, you will *NOT* be able to tell the audio difference.

[Christopher]

Actually, it's CAPABLE of streaming 1080p. The issue? The lofty requirements for the average user, let alone usual gamer, in regards to download capabilities.

The average download rate in the U.S. is 300 kb/s, which is enough to download 25GB in a day.

Guess what, a true 1080 movie is going to be at least 8 GB in size, and that's not 1080p, only 1080 resolution with some compression.

Add onto this that the 360 and PS3 typically utilize a wireless connection that has a max download rate that will never be able to provide a download speed good enough for 1080 resolutions.

=====

Now, someone brought up their 10-year younger brother talking the benefits of digital products. Let me expound on some negatives.

1. Portability. Can you play it everywhere? What does it take in a household to network it so that you can watch it from every TV and computer? How much of an investment is this in the common household? Now, what do you do when your friend wants to borrow one of your movies or you want to take it and watch it at a friend or relatives?

2. Licensing is not a replacement for ownership. Zune is a licensing structure for streaming 1080p with the option to purchase movies, meaning that at any time you could lose access to any movie you once had if you follow the licensing structure.

3. You can't lose a disc, but your HDD can get corrupted/destroyed/whatever. But, when you lose the HDD, you lose all of your media, not just one movie. Sure, you backup, but the likelihood of losing your data is about equal considering there being no news about a high rate of disc destruction. People who don't take care of their discs won't likely take care of their HDDs.

4. The infrastructure costs for supporting a digital system is ongoing and will likely increase over time whereas the infrastructure costs for hard media are finite (BD player and TV). Sure, most people would pay for an internet connection, but it then becomes a requirement at all times and at a higher rate that will cost more over time.

5. Assurance of quality. A BD movie will always provide the same quality at all times if you have the hardware to maximize the potential and has a massive amount of extras available that is growing every few months. Streaming technology is not an assurance of quality but an assurance of access if you have a connection.

[pppppeach]

Most poeple just want the watch the movie in HD with sound. only 5% of the hardcore people cares about the bits and hz and crap.

[IdleLeeSiuLung]

I agree with you for the most part as I'm a proponent of physical disc. However, many of your points can be applied in both cases, digital download and disc based.

1. Agreed, but in the same token you will have to buy a blu-ray player for each TV in the house as well.

"meaning that at any time you could lose access to any movie you once had if you follow the licensing structure. "

2. How do you loose license to something you already own in digital form? For all intensive purposes you already downloaded it. The only scenario I have seen this is when the company goes under or cease to exist and you can no longer re-download it. I do agree that digital content is tied to DRM.

"You can't lose a disc, but your HDD can get corrupted/destroyed/whatever.& amp; amp; quot;

3. Sure you can loose a disc! If anyone breaks into your house and steal the disc. What about your disc getting damaged? Basically storing the movie on the HD or the disc gives you no better protection against one or the other except with a digital download you can potentially re-download the movie and if you hard drive is broken all your movies are likely gone in one swoop.

"Sure, most people would pay for an internet connection, but it then becomes a requirement at all times and at a higher rate that will cost more over time."

4. If you already downloaded your media, there is no reason why you can't play it offline. Do you have to have an internet connection to play some of the XBL games? I recognized that this used to be an issue if you no longer own the console you initially purchased the game on, but this is now a non-issue. Now of course the issue is, do you have a large enough hard drive.

"A BD movie will always provide the same quality at all times if you have the hardware to maximize the potential"

5. Agreed, but if you already downloaded the movie and no longer stream it this is a non-issue.

I'm not for digital downloads, and personally is against it. Primarily because of three things (and a few minor things I won't mention here):

a) DRM. I hate DRM and it severely restricts how I can use my content and I'm at the mercy of the company that provided the content digitally.

b) I like to have a physical format that I can collect and share.

c) There is a re-sell (albeit most of the time very small) value to the physical media

There are plenty of advantages and disadvantages to both, but the above 3 will kill digital downloads for me. As a rental, sure, but not a purchase.

My point is that after a lengthy discussion, my brother didn't seem fazed by any of this and still preferred the digital download. It might just be him, but I'm also gone softer for digital downloads. I'm guessing that more and more people is getting used to this idea after all, music is practically shifted its trend to digital downloads so why wouldn't movies.

I hope not, but that appears to be the trend.

[specialguest]

First of all, I am a Blu-Ray supporter and continue to buy Blu-Ray movies, but I would like to make one contrasting point. Blu-Ray does offer the best image quality as well as sound, but I believe the average consumer may not be aware of this and often prefers convience and easy accessiblity.

Take for instants, the CD. CD quality music sounds much better than downloaded MP3s, yet most people don't care for that minimal difference and prefer downloading(or stealing) their songs. Let's not forget the price difference too.

There are tons of movies I wanna watch, but not necessarily own, and a service like this would be a nice option. I don't believe this is real competition for Blu-ray yet, but it surely is a step in the right direction.

[Arthur_]

1. Well, all my friends and family have 360s. So I can recover my account at their house, or bring a memory unit with me. Memory unit is pretty small, so yes, I would say the portability is there. OR like I said, you could just recover your account---and have it loaded up faster than the time it takes to make a bag of popcorn.

2. You have a point here. But you could always DL the movie to your computer and stream it over to your xbox OR go out and buy the disc, if you want it that bad. In between the marketplace, Netflix, and streaming from your pc---you should always have a way to get the content you want. But I can see your point.

3. You can lose a disc. You can also crack/scratch a disc. You can also have a disc stolen from you. Sure, a HDD can become corrupted, but you can always redownload what you have purchased, free of charge. I have redownloaded Arcade games, and TV shows, and DLC-packs before, at no cost to me, so corruption is not an issue.

4. Digital systems may have some increased cost over time. But this is price one pays for having the latest technology. A year ago, stand alone bluray players were at an ungodly price, and the cheapest route was a PS3. And now...there is a 98$ bluray player at walmart. Technology is getting cheaper, faster so those cost may increase but they wont be unbearable unless your a cheap@ss. And bluray is great, but its stuck at a maximum of 1080p. There are higher resolutions out there, and when they become widely available to the public, people can start DL and streaming them in those formats, without having to buy new equipment. Digital media allows for advancement in quality as it becomes available.

5. Well, i see your point. Its there, as long as I have access to it. Well, I pay my bills on time, and I have one hell of a connection speed---so it will be there when i need it. But sure, sometimes sh*t happens, and a thunderstorm will knock out my power----but how would a bluray player help me there? I thought they required a power source. And people can have solid high quality connections, if they are willing to pay for them. If the current tech of this Gen is too expensive for the average schmo, then maybe he should get a better job(or borrow the money from his parents lol).

But yeah, DRM = Gaytown.

[MmaFanQc]

as always, gj at messing with the perception of the ignorant peoples who dont know sht about HD.

streaming equal or better than blu-ray?.......LMAO double facepalm!

[MTEC8]

physical media is not going anywhere anytime soon!

[JokesOnYou]

"The average download rate in the U.S. is 300 kb/s, which is enough to download 25GB in a day." -cgoodno

May 29, 2007
"Data provided by the Communication Workers of America shows that the "average" speed of broadband in the US is a paltry 1.9Mbit."

"However, the CWA's data conflicts with that of the ITIF report. ITIF claims that the average broadband speed in the US is 4.8Mbps—still lower than Canada, many western European countries, Japan, and Korea—but more than twice as fast as CWA's numbers."
http://arstechnica.com/tech...

-So even in early 2007 these two sources who reported their findings to the House Subcommittee on Telecommunications and the Internet had the *AVG broadband speed measure at least at 1.9Mb.

June 17, 2009
"Home broadband adoption stood at 63% of adult Americans as of April 2009, up from 55% in May 2008."

"The greatest growth in broadband adoption in the past year has taken place among population subgroups which have below average usage rates. Among them:
Senior citizens: 19% in May 2008 to 30% in April 2009.
Low-income Americans: Overall below $30,000..34% growth 2008 to 2009.
High-school graduates: 40% in 2008 to 52% in 2009
Older baby boomers: ages 50-64...50% in 2008 to 61% in 2009.
Rural Americans: 38% in 2008 to 46% in 2009.

"Only 7% of Americans are dial-up internet users at home"
"Non-internet users, 21% of adults"
http://pewresearch.org/pubs...

July 9, 2009
"At present, average global connection speed to the Internet totals 1.7 Mbps"

"In the U.S., the average connection speed is now 4.2 Mbps, a 15 percent increase over the figure Akamai reported for the first quarter of 2008"
http://www.internetnews.com...

-So if you haven't noticed online broadband adoption and the average internet broadband speeds are growing very fast...the US is still far behind other developed countries but things are changing fast.

-Does this mean physical media will die?= Hell No.
-Is this a sensational/BS headline?= Yes
-Will this DD 1080p streaming tech be popular with the masses= If it works as advertised and the price is right, its almost garuanteed this will have a significant impact in the market well beyond what the 360's offering.

JOY

[DevastationEve]

...Zune Video on Xbox Live Could STILL Finish Blu-Ray :)

You PS3 fanboys are such a difficult species to understand.

*bitrate is what we've been accustomed to meaning quality. higher bitrate, higher quality. bitrate is also a common measurement for many things, like network bandwidth and connection speed. the point is that bitrate has been the essential form of quantification of quality for quite some time.

*there are other technologies that exist that can be measured in other ways than digital. an original analog ntsc broadcast signal for instance wasn't measured in bits, since there were no "binary digits" being processed. instead it was measured in hertz (UHF and VHF).

*video and audio codecs play a large role in how digital media works. some codecs just produce better results than others. some need a lot of space in the end if they are categorized as "lossless". some codecs can produce astonishing quality even at lower bitrates. however the general consensus is that higher bitrate = higher quality.

*dvd used the mpeg2 codec standard, while bluray uses h.264 vc-1. a rip of either can be made to fit a 700MB CD or a 4.5GB DVD, respectively. of course the loss in quality will be very noticeable. but again that's up to the codec being used.

*streaming a 1080p movie instantly over such a tight network would seem to defy common knowledge: it's just not possible as we know it right now. of course the key here is right now, maybe Microsoft has developed something new altogether that can can work out better than we think.

*bluray won't die because of streaming movies, but VOD has made INSANE progress in the last couple of years. Verizon FiOS/Hulu/Netflix have all proven that the demand is there. even on your cellphones, the point is that people want their entertainment on demand. of course not all cities have FiOS yet but make no mistake...the internet is getting faster and smarter.

[TheReaper42]

My old computer can stream downloaded 1080P movies also, but is it the same as a blu ray's quality when viewing? Hell no it isn't. The blu ray disc has higher quality visuals vs a digital download. Hate to break it to you, but that's the truth. Funny how when I watch S.W.A.T. through DD it shows signs of ghosting and some pixelation, yet when I watch S.W.A.T on the Blu Ray disc, it's flawless.

[Christopher]

A few comments to those who have replied to me above.

#1 - I mistyped a "can't" instead of a "can" in regards to losing discs. Reading beyond might make this clearer, considering my point was that people who are reckless enough to break/lose discs are more than likely to break/lose HDD data.

#2 - The reports that comment on average households using broadband haveing 1+ mb/s connections is based on the maximum potential as reported by the broadband provider, not by the ACTUAL CONNECTION SPEEDS. I have a 20 mb/s download package, and that's how it's reported to the government for rating connection speed. But, my actual is closer to 14 mb/s, and this is utilizing a cable company that is not heavily used in my area and therefore doesn't suffer further loss from shared lines.

[JokesOnYou]

Here's what it says about the Communication Workers of America(CWA)study:

"The organization conducted its own download/upload speed tests online, which were taken by roughly 67,000 people across the country,"

-If you read the link they actually tested the connection speeds in this study, "download/upload" speeds...which was the whole point of conducting the study to report to the House Subcommittee on Telecommunications and the Internet.
http://arstechnica.com/tech...

btw this is the study from May 2007...the avg speed has increased since then.

JOY

[usern4g]

The fact remains no one cares how much better BR is than DVD. The *CONVENIENCE* of Digital Distribution will trump

Look at DMP like Zune/ipod. They have skyrocketed in sales, services and sales of Digital Music are destroying audio-CD product -- why? Because it is a better format for users.

LaserDisk was *also* a better fidelity than VHS, but it wasnt as convenient -- so it lost the format war of it's day.

Bluray looks good certainly.

But Xbox 360 can stream 1080p instantly, and it looks TERRIFIC. Users on this board have to recognize, that this is the holy-grail of movie/tv distribution that people have dreamed about for so long: being able to play any movie they want instantly in their living room.

*THIS* convenience, this *feature* trumps any fidelity improvement with BR.

It's time to face up to this reality, Sony paid its MPAA partners to dump HD-DVD, but they *cant* stop Digital Distribution.

tldr version;

MP3 > CD Audio.
DD Films > BR.

[MGOelite]

this is bull, microsoft should have said "instant 1080p steaming IF you have a stable 1.2mb/s which most people do not have" the standard american connection is like 300kb/s which might get you summat like 480p streaming. i had a stable 800kb/s and i used silverlight and i got near 720p but it stopped and buffered every 2 seconds for a split second, not much but still distracting.

its an impressive service but microsoft blaintenly twisted words to make it seem impressive

[The Meerkat]

America is the problem.
Most western countries have much faster BroadBand.
Getting 1200kbs a second is easy in the UK and well bellow average in my area.

[Mindboggle]

What are you talking about. The UK is far behind the US on broadband speeds. My top speed is 450kbs and I live in one of the biggest citys and am on a 8mb package. If your getting 1200kbs i would like to know how.

[You Already Know]

exactly....and the ironic thing about that is the US is where the 360 sells the most...

this plan that they have isn't exactly very sound..

the bandwidth that Blu-ray offers alone will smash this on top of the fact that download storage is only really strong in the music department...I don't see it taking off in a portable medium for another 5-10 years....

[likedamaster]

And here I thought 20mb download(tested) was bad. UK broadband FTL?

[The Meerkat]

Glasgow, Scotland. We can get 50MB through Virgin Media. Fibre optic cable.

I can get well over 1200kps through Bit Torrent even more when downloading from reputable sites.

http://allyours.virginmedia...

[Tito Jackson]

You could stop b*tching about it, and tell your cheap@$$ parents to upgrade your connection speed.

http://i164.photobucket.com...

Yeah.....and this is a "slow" day for me.

EDIT: DRstrange--aw dude, no worries. I was referring my comment to MGO, and how he was b*tching about connection speeds. I dont see how people can live without under 10m anyhow.

[doctorstrange]

Most of the UK is renowned for terrible internet, I'm lucky to get 400kbs here in London, so the Zune service would be severely downgraded for me

edit: @Jackson: The problem here is that the entire infastructure is vastly outmoded, BT were going to spend 20Billion fixing it but the economic crisis made them pull out.

[The Meerkat]

I used to have BT.
I thought it was good before I got Virgin.
I would never go back to BT.

and Virgin have no download limits. I download well over 50GB a month.

[Sanzee]

Ok I have seen Blu-Ray and yes it does look fantastic. No doubts there. But I FEEL it isn't as significant as the jump from VHS to DVD was. Can I seriously freaking state my opinion without someone slashing all my bubbles? Come on guys, have some dignity. That's just my opinion. As for this whole zune thing, I too was far too lazy to read the article. The name of the article... it just sounds rediculous. But Digital Downloads are the future. Once again, my opinion, not the truth.

God Bless America

[Omegasyde]

Wow, are you serious?

You should really try pairing a HD TV with it that plays 1080p. There is a huge difference. No offense, but your opinion seems invalid with such a statement.

Digital distribution is nice when its in small packages.

Digital distribution of movies will become more mainstream onces TV start having hard drives standard. I highly doubt hi def streaming will truly take off till then. Pay per view, however has been around for quite a while.

[MEsoJD]

When you start noticing peoples flaws.

Yes I love it!!!^_^

[badz149]

or haven't seen the real deal! upscaled DVD movies look good but to even try to compare it to BD is a joke! I don't have a 1080p native tv myself (bravia 37" S series) so, 1080p doesn't look that amazing but considering most games are rendered at 720p, I think, I'm not missing much! but I did watch transformers on DVD upscaled and I thought it looks great - until I saw at a store playing BD version of transformers on a 42" 1080p plasma TV! I was totally blown away by the crisp image and how real it looks and suddenly the DVD version doesn't look that good anymore! for the mean time, 1080p streaming is just 1080p but with a much lower bitrate. getting bluray quality pictures is a dream! and sorry to bust your dream

[Pistolero]

They are right... there is a huge difference between DVd and Bluray. Anybody that says otherwise either has poor eyesight or hasn't really seen it.

[lagoonalight]

In fact the resolution difference is greater from dvd to bluray than vhs to dvd. No one would splash your bubbles if you knew what you were talking about. 35mm film has even greater resolution, tho slightly with moving pictures, than bluray. VHS to DVD was not THAT great of a jump all things considered. You still had all the artifacting, digital noise, and terrible detail of dvd. Nothing but Bluray gives you film like it was supposed to be seen. Although watch out for warner their encodes are usually ****!

[Aclay]

Zune Video on Xbox Live isn't finishing anything and this service will pretty much be relevant to Xbox consumers. Sony themselves already have HDTV's that have built in Netflix Movie Streaming capabilities, so it's not like this is anything new and Blu-ray definantly isn't going anywhere for a long time... I don't know why so many people just can't except the fact that Blu-ray is here to stay.

After reading the article it seems like the movie quality/experience itself for this service is based upon internet connection speed, but with Blu-ray you don't have to worry about how fast your internet connection is and you automatically know that you'll get Full 1080p with optimum sound quality.

And honestly, I really don't think that Sony would have integrated Movie streaming into their own HDTV's if they thought that it would threaten Blu-ray in a major way.

[Redempteur]

this article is so much crap ...
i can feel all the ms fanboys covering in fear since blu-ray has won the war with hd-dvd.

wake me up when i'll be able to watch a downloaded movie with the same specs of the ones on blu-ray. that's right blu -ray is just than a 25gb disc it's all the things WITH the HD movie .

[KingKionic]

No...

But i will be using it this fall though.

[leila01]

Yes...
And she/he won't be using it this fall?

[KingKionic]

damn i just lost a bubble for my comment.

oh lielia.... your not going to ?

[leila01]

I probably will, but it saddens me that we don't get to keep the movies.

[Abash]

Are they serious?

I won't hold my breath on Blu-Ray getting defeated.

[Once Upon a Fable]

I wouldn't hold my breath on Blu ray ever becoming more than a niche format either.

[starchild]

It's already more than a niche format.

I can rent Bluray movies in any video store and buy them in any electronics store in my city. That could never be said about any true niche product.

[Once Upon a Fable]

considering its not even 1/8th as big as DVD, it's very much a niche format. I doubt it will ever become 1/2 as big as DVD, nobody cares about Blu ray.

[ThatArtGuy]

If people want to stream that way, it's their prerogative. I will still strive for the best quality with my Blu-ray discs.

[KwietStorm_BLM]

How could a video service on a closed circuit, only available on a single available device, kill off an entire disc format that already has good market penetration? Am I missing something? Could someone educate me?

[TheBand1t]

Yea, and HD-DVD was supposed to murder Blu-Ray too.

[Game13a13y]

yep, and how Zune was supposed to kill off ipod. people think streaming will kill off Blu-ray are either ignorant fanboys, or are just too cheap to get a real HDTV.

[Magna Farta]

Full 1080p with 7.1 streaming would require absolute ridiculous amounts of bandwith. Pulling that off even on your average cable connection is a long shot.

These stories need to stop. Blu-ray won...like...more than a year ago, get over it.

[InFAMOUS1]

I agree with your statement 99%... However MS is not offering 7.1 audio, it will be 5.1 for those whom have a FAST connection, otherwise you wont get 5.1. But yes... WAY 2 MUCH BANDWIDTH

[cyclindk]

"we here at TQcast have been really eager to learned more about"

[ssipmraw]

this is stupid, there are many other video download services but none of the ever killed dvds or bluray.

[Omegasyde]

Pay per view has been around how long? Hmm last time I checked, Blockbuster etc. is still in business.

Only a new better format (2060p) will kill blu-ray.

[The Wood]

an how 'they' will beg for this format and lord its existence in spite and stubbornest. Why wait...? HD is here now with blur ray. Its the highest quality HD format right now so again, why wait?

[Knghtz]

I wouldn't reference Blockbuster too much as a means of surviving the forces.
Netflix's foray into online streaming is seriously hurting Blockbuster's rental service and I wouldn't be surprised if Blockbuster as a chain shuts down in the next 3 or 4 years if they don't adapt.

[cyclindk]

"The beauty of the experience is movies and TV shows on Zune video will automatically scale to the best possible resolution based on the speed of your connection."

ding, ding, ding... connection speed is still the determiner = all your magic encoder/decoder BS technology doesn't amount to squat..

[thereapersson]

Don't tell them that! You'll receive a ton of disagrees for your common sense!

[The Wood]

people really have nothing better to do or something. Anyway this article is like a classic throwback....like a retro 07 article...ar well

You and whoever can disagree a million and 1 times....bluray is here to stay so suck it up

[Masamori Sumimura]

not going to end well..

[leila01]

What do you mean?

[Masamori Sumimura]

Agrees,Disagrees,Bubbles down ,Bubbles up , Scares,blood,Sweat,Tears ,lambs , Multiple Accounts , Banned Accounts , WInners , Losers

[Knghtz]

There are no winners, only losers :p

[Grown Folks Talk]

you actually lose. & sometimes when you lose, you actually win. & sometimes when you win or lose, you actually tie. Come share in my drymouthedness.

[OGharryjoysticks]

360 owners weren't going to buy a bluray player because it goes against fanboy rules. And the non-gamer who wants 1080p HD movies isn't going to buy a 360 to watch movies. Basically this article is trash. Whatever the best resolution is that MS can deliver on movies is just an effort to provide current 360 owners a "me too" sense of "can do" and will have absolutely no effect on blu-ray which is the movie industry standard for HD.

[winlonghorn]

Not to mention the fact that the blu ray standards commission is working on adding stereo 3D to blu ray! The TVs and everything are already on the way and some are on the market. They have just come up with the preliminary version of HDMI 1.4 as well, so blu ray definitely has a lot of life left! :) On another note, these companies didn't invest billions in blu ray just to see it die like 2 years later! lol.

[glennc]

nothing worth buying anyway so it doesn't matter to me. blu-ray will still be around but not as much as DVD is because Hollywood have lost the plot. DD or streaming HD is good enough for me when i don't really care if i see the movie or not. anything worth seeing in blu-ray, e.g. CGI heavy movies, are a screaming pile of sh!t anyway when it comes to the script, you know the ACTUAL story. michael bay anyone?

[mirroredderorrim]

My question, will this look as good, running on Motion Flow tech?

I am used to solid frames, with pristine picture quality. Give me that at a competitive price, MS and I will look your way.

[Rocky89]

O_0

[user3915800]

Here its an example of the brainless PS3 fandroids that can not see past the garbage station 3. The patchstation 3 its a beta product that never gotten past been obsolete media and fandroids are cheering for a miracle, but the truth its that it will never go back to what was in the past.

If those of you can only take out your mask of fanboyisn and see what the best product its in the market (360), you will be enjoying more superiotrity and feeling less let down by an inferior product the PS3 in every word off its meaning (Jump in).

[ShabzS]

digital streaming will never take over hard retail discs.... we're still not there yet ... think of the die hard movie goers who think video games are for losers ... they dont have a xbox or a playstation... they dont even care... however they do have a 60" tv and a blu ray player to watch star wars ... blu ray will live along with 1080 p streaming ...

Microsoft is not trying to kill blu ray here ... they're providing the option to watch hd videos on the xbox and have a bite of that market..

[Knghtz]

I think this is one of the better assessments here. Obviously DD will eventually take over blu-ray, but I don't think we will see it for years. The key component that this service would provide is (relatively) high def movies with CONVENIENCE.

Just as an example: I know a lot of people who have DVDs of movies they rarely watch, but then when it comes on TV, they will watch it. Why is that? You could watch the movie commercial-free on the DVD.

I think this is a similar example. It would be very convenient to just kick it off and pick a movie.

The big downside here people mention (other than quality-loss) is not owning a hard copy. I've never been a very materialistic person but I know some people like that so that is definitely another point of concern.

[Jockamo]

Convenience is essential, but in the battle between streaming and disc, another huge factor is price. Honestly, I've been perfectly fine watching all these movies streaming on my netflix queue, although the quality may not be the highest.

But I'm only paying $8.95 a month for all the movies I could watch, whenever I want. People are quickly becoming spoiled with this convenience. My girlfriend wanted to go to the used dvd store to get a movie and I felt an incredible aversion--like, why in the world would you want to do that? One dvd for 7-8 dollars or a thousand movies for 9 dollars?

Yes Bluray is awesome, but people are becoming charmed by the price/convenience of streaming very quickly. It's only a matter of months before higher internet prices will cheapen and the technology to stream HD will become more common.

I'm seriously looking forward to it.

[strickers]

This is funny.This will not get close to Blu ray for quality,anyone that thinks it will is an idiot.Blu Ray is starting to take off nicley now with 91% increase this year.Cost of discs is coming down and you'll end up paying as much to stream inferior HD as you will to buy a disc.Not all 360 owners are online and some will have slow connections,so are 8 million 360 owners going to change the world or do you believe that everyone will stream to pc?This will be a tiny percentage too.Movies are not music,not all the same rules apply.

[Godmars290]

Wouldn't the 360 have to be as prolific as the PS3 + standalone BR players before such was even close to being true?

Forget that I can't see people who just want to watch moves go to the trouble of getting an online connection *and* subscribe to XBL. Ignoring their pre-existing DVD collections.

[Braid]

Stream = Quality loss. Theory refuted.

[NaiNaiNai]

not really, I watch 1080P video streams all the time. most of my Anime I watch online streams at 480P or 720P except Gundam Zero, it gets full 1080P....so streaming doesn't mean quality loss. unless your internet sucks, then you need to spend more then 30 bucks a month on some faster net.

[lagoonalight]

Stream is a HUGE quality loss. Stop with your denials. A good bluray is 35MB a sec where a quality stream is more like 5-10 at most people's connections. HUGE QUALITY LOSS.

[NaiNaiNai]

its no different then CD to MP3, your not gona notice the amount lost, 1080p is still 1080p....in the end it will still look just as good, unless you have a 50+" screen, and thats less then .5% of the people who watch HD movies.

[Braid]

Uh, excuse me... Just to eliminate confusion, what we're talking about here is watching videos in 1920x1080 resolution via internet, right? I can watch -so called- HD videos (which in fact is SD, meaning Sh*tty Definition) on YouTube too with my 2Mbit/s connection (which sucks indeed as you guessed). But do you honestly think that streaming videos in such a huge definition would be a better solution for all the people like me around the world who have no other chance but to use low-speed connections?

If you're going to outsmart Blu-ray -or any other disc format- you have create something that appeals to more people than the ones using those, so that you can break the old habits. And I don't think everyone would throw their Blu-ray or HD-DVD players away and start watching downloadable/streamable videos just because of the fact that not everyone has a fast internet connection like you. The argument of MP3 > CD doesn't prove that HD-DVD or Blu-ray technology will be replaced with downloadable/streamable HD videos in the short term. Guess why? I'll give you a clue, 4 letters starting with S and ending with E. The frikkin' gigantic ''SIZE''.

However I agree with you on stocking all those movies and games with their boxes is sometimes a pain in the neck, unless you're not a collector. And I hope to see downloadable/streamable content taking the place of disc media in the future, too. But wiping Blu-ray away from the world of technology, now, with Zune Video? Nope... I don't think it's possible under this circumstances.

[ThaOutKast]

It will have the same quality picture and sound and better features but when your trying to advertise this to a consumer, you say hey on this Console you can hook it up to your internet and stream a video in 1080p most people won't have a clue what you're talking about. However when you say on this console and numerous other players on the market you can go buy discs like you're accustomed and get the best out of your HDTV.

[Marty8370]

The writer is in la la land.

[NaiNaiNai]

Instant Stream - 1080P 5.1 max
Blue-ray - 1080P 7.1 known.

as for me Id take the stream, I still use 2.1 speaker system most of the time with headphones. If It cuts back on disk space ill go with it. I can't even stand having the stack of 30 games on my desk now. >.> not to mention my 300+ bookshelf dvd collection I have going.

[Theodore87]

Your preference has nothing to do with streaming. If you want to own a movie through Digital Distribution, you have to download it onto a HDD. The streaming service MS offers is mostly for rental contents.

I'm sorry to say this but what MS' PR said was very delusive. Instant streaming at 1080p 5.1 can only be achieved with optimal internet connections (which are >6MB/s at any point of time). Only a very small proportion of people in the US are lucky enough to have such luxury, let alone some parts of the world that are still using Dial-up.

If you have true a >6MB/s connection, streaming HD videos is not a big a deal. As a matter of fact, Like PC, PS3 can do this too. If you rent an HD movie on PSN, you can watch the movie at anytime even when the movie is still being downloaded as long as you have a good enough connection. It's called "Watch while downloading".

I'm not sure whether to praise Microsoft's PR team or criticize them. When PS3 and PSP owners had had an built-in internet browser for ages, MS suddenly came up with Twitter and Facebook for X360 and got everyone hyped about it.

Well, at the end of the day, would you wait for your HD movie to be downloaded and watch it in full HD, or would you settle with streaming it in SD although you've paid for the HD quality? Most people would go with download.

[KingKionic]

Well besides the headline of this article ...

The interview was very informative . Cant wait to use Zune video though .

Connection problem want be issue with me .

Also movie trailers will be 1080p too...that`s going be cool .

[Jeff257]

I dont see Blu Ray going anywhere anytime soon. I for one wouldnt ever take DD or even supposed streaming over a disc. One even with my bandwith which is the highest you can get in my area I still would run into issues. Also for anyone saying there isnt that much of a difference between a dvd and Blu Ray really hasnt seen Blu Ray on a HDTV. Ive re-bought a few movies on blu ray I had previously on DVD and thier is a huge difference. Anyway with more and more movies on Blu Ray going down in price as they get older or some even coming out at the usual DVD price the sales will get even better than they are now. With digital copies being included and in the case of some Disney movies even including the movie on DVD it will continue to push the format. Another big thing i see as an advantage to BD over DVD is the inclusion of BD-Live that allows the studios to add more bonus content or allow you to interact with other people while watching a movie.

[cc_star]

Horse crap, what a stupid statement!

Another thing is people don't know the true quality of Blu-ray

Not all 1080p is the same - downloads are vastly inferior

[NaiNaiNai]

so are MP3s compaired to the CD. yet there are more mp3 songs out there on CD-R, CD-RW, MP3 players and such. why, almost half the quality, yet to the average person its the exact same. the only way you will notice the difference between the stream and blu-ray is if you have a 50"+ size screen.

[Jockamo]

absolutely correct. people don't notice differences in picture quality after a certain point, or they simply don't care.

I think people base their experience primarily on the quality of movies in the theater which, quite honestly for most movies, is really sh!tty!

That's why bluray hasn't caught on. because people don't know any better.

[heylo]

Blu-ray movies reach bitrates like 50mbps
Who has an inet connection with constant 50mbps downstream???
I have only 16mbps and thats already considered fast here where I live

so 1080p BD >>>>>>>&g t;>>>>>>>& gt;>>>>>> 1080p IPTV
Blu-ray all the way! yay lol

[Defectiv3_Detectiv3]

I don't think this author realizes how massive HD movies are - all that uncompressed audio and video can day nearly a day to download on a standard hi speed connection(3-4 mbps).

Fact of the matter is, if you want to watch an HD movie, Blu Ray is still the best option you have. Downloads are still pretty far off, I can only imagine how expenisive the internet service would have to be that would allow you to DL this type of media efficiently, I'm sure you'd be better off just buying a Ray.

[Serg]

Here in Germany we are slowly getting where Sweden has been for 10 years. One provider offers up to 100 mbit connections for acceptable prices now (49,99 € / month). What I don't get is, 99% of websites who are posting BluRay-doom articles are based in the US. And all I know the standard there are 3-6 mbit connections. No way in hell could you stream a DVD quality movie over such connection, not to mention a 720p HD movie, forget 1080p this is completely out of question. This also includes sound, movie enthusiasts won't be satisfied with a clear DVD quality picture and 128 kbit MP3 audio. Lossless audio is extremely large and you couldn't even stream a 7.1 uncompressed audio file without video with these speeds.

Also a shocking lot of providers has bandwidth caps, one BluRay movie alone would just throw 20 GB of bandwidth away in 90 minutes, what are you going to do for the rest of the month? This again is only possible if you have a lightning fast connection.

I find it just sad how stupid people are, blinded by unjustified hate they pick up any bone which could be used against BluRay. What have BluRay/Sony done to you? Has the PS3 raped your entire family and recorded it on BluRays in 1080p HD, forcing you to watch it over and over again? I don't get it.

Trying to stop technological evolution is considered a crime in my book...

[Anon1974]

Video on demand services have been around for a decade from every cable provider around and it didn't even dent DVD sales. People want physical media still - there's no if's ands or buts about it. Recent polls have shown, despite the rise in music downloads the majority of music fans still want CD's.
What on earth makes them think that first off, there's enough 360's in the world to make a dent compared to standalone Blu-Ray players and PS3's, that enough people have a fast enough internet connection, that people with a choice between Blu-Ray and 1080p streaming are prepared to accept sub 5.1 sound if their connection isn't fast enough?
This just boggles my mind. There's some truly out of touch people out there reporting on the industry.

[MONOLITHICIDE]

seriously the author knows nothing, you see i work at UPS and you should see how many BluRay players come through its crazy, and Sony Bravias, we had a whole truck load today.

[siren]

One thing most people seem to be missing is that with the Zune service coming you can either Stream or Download. While streaming is nice, if you don't have a connection speed fast enough to handle it, you can still download the videos.

Couple of other points, Quality has nothing to do with Blu-Ray itself. Quality is solely based on the Video Codec that is utilized.

In the case of Blu-Ray you get a mixture of MPEG2, MPEG4, and VC1. All 3 can handle 1080p and based on the bitrate utilized will show roughly equivelent quality.

It would be a fair bet to say that the Zune download/streaming service will use VC1 as that is what the current Xbox video marketplace uses for 720p videos. Thus, in theory, the quality of the videos used on Zune will be identical to that of the videos on Blu-Ray.

I wouldn't be surprised if the videos provided to Zune for 1080p are identical to the ones that they press onto the Blu-Ray discs. Encoding 1080p twice for 2 different distribution methods that are both 1080p would be a waste of resources.

So in other words, quality is a non-issue on the video front. For Audio, that is based on your configuration and age (quality of hearing). If you only have a 5.1 system and are 28 or older, you will likely not notice any difference between 5.1 PCM on Blu-Ray and 5.1 WMAHD on Zune. If you have a 7.1 system, Blu-Ray wins, but 7.1 adoption is still quite low and adds significant cost to a configuration. Most people still use just the two speakers attached to their 1080p TV, in which case, the crappy speakers are likely going to kill any quality difference that might exist.

As far as this killing Blu-Ray, highly unlikely. This will only be available on Xbox360 and WindowsPCs. If MS expands this to be a service bundled into TVs like Netflix is doing, that will help but still not likely really impact Blu-Ray for 5 - 10 years, at which time a new standard might be coming along. Don't get me wrong, every person who adopts this instead of Blu-Ray impacts Blu-Ray, but realistically that will likely remain a very small part of the market for the forseeable future.

As an Xbox360 owner with a Comcast 50mb down connection a Samsung 52" HDTV and a 5.1 system; I am looking forward to this. I personally don't like collecting discs anymore. On top of that, most movies I only ever watch once, at the most 3 - 4 times. As a result, if I can rent HD movies for $5 or less, I save money compared to buying a Blu-Ray. Though it needs to be said, I never watch extra features on discs or utilize features like commentary or alternate language tracks. As a result, I derive no value from those aspects of disc purchasing, which some users may derive tremendous value from.

At the end of the day, the way I see it, MS is trying to get a jump on the next generation format (digital distribution) now. Work out the kinks that way when people do start moving to DD, MS is not just there but is quite possibly the leading company in the space.

[Big Boss Extreme]

to stream at 1080p

[NaiNaiNai]

I do it all the time on my PC. HD streaming is not far fetched. go to youtube. they have HD streaming as well. you just need a faster net connection. get off your 1.5Mb connection and you will see it.

[cyberwaffles]

youtube still doesn't offer 1080p streaming, just 720p. even then, the bitrate of most HD videos on youtube are pretty choppy and still need fixing especially if you have low bandwidth and/or low system specs.

not only that, you're most likely on a monitor smaller than 20 inches with a 4:3 screen ratio. i'm not saying that's the case for you, but you can't compare youtube's HD streaming on a computer monitor when we're mainly talking about 1080p resolution on a HD tv atleast bigger than 32" WITH 7.1 surround sound.

[Mo0eY]

I'll take what the writer's smoking please.

[Power_Of_Flops_]

It's more like "Blu-Ray Could Finish Zune Video on Xbox Live"

The fanboy writer kid got it the wrong way. He probably bought a HDDVD drive on 360.

[keysy420]

it's just too damn awesome

[cyberwaffles]

if downloading/streaming is going to finish blu-ray off, then i guess both legal and illegal digital distribution of movies, music, and games should've stopped CD and DVD formats years ago. funny how none of those physical media's are obsolete and they been around for decades longer than blu ray.

if i remembered correctly, i saw like a 200% increase in BD this year or something like that despite it being roughly new technology. blu ray is doing what DVD did to VHS, slowly but surely phased out older physical formats for new ones that last for years. streaming/downloading on the other hand have been around for years and that includes pay per view and on demand stations.

sure the internet has made dents to physical media sales, especially CD's and music, but if it has never run them obsolete in the past, then don't expect it with blu ray anytime soon.

[starchild]

If you are going to pit it against Blu-ray, I say 'no thanks, I'll take Bluray'.

[Nelson M]

Can The BoTs Get any Thicker

[Rusco87]

No Matter what, people will always want a Hard copy of a film. Blu-ray is the only thing at the moment that offers highest quailty picture and sound, no matter what anyone says an internet service will not be able to provide this through streaming untill everyone can get a stable broadband connection. Who here gets a stable connection in the UK after 5 oclock on Virgin or BT or anyother provider....No one at all, once people get in from work to sit down and watch a film with there dinner everyone on there street will be on the internet slowing everyone down. if they did manage to do it you would have to wait 4 hours for the film to fully stream before pressing play so there wont be any interruptions. Blu-ray will be here for the foreseeable future no matter what people will always want a hard copy of a film FACT

[fire23]

Comedy Gold

[Information Minister]

Who wrote this? Some Xbox fanboy still bitter about HD-DVD?

[Sir Ken_Kutaragi]

1 thing 'Micro$uck-You-Off-For-A-Fee' are good at is BRAINWASHING People with Vaporware!!! Well idiots anyway!!! ;-D

Didn't 'Zune' FAIL before??? Like 'Vista'??? Like the 'Original xBox'??? ;-D

[Shane Kim]

Yes because everyone will buy a xbox360 as their main "Blu-Ray player". Face it, Blu-Ray is here to stay. It's not like all the physical media will be gone just because 30 million GAMERS can stream "Blu-Ray" quality movies.

[evilmonkey501]

and even then only highly compressed hd "ish" movies....like cable tv....

[blackbeld]

Blu-Ray is the future...

Streaming is for stupid Xbots trying to watch HD movies on they're home cinema set.... Hahahaha so pathetic.... It's the ony way to watch HD movies...

Go figure Blu-ray is the true HD video that we all need.

[Smokzdaizm]

You keep believing that dude.. I'm sure Sony will send you a check or give some of the "FREE" stuff that they always give away

[Cherchez La Ghost]

1080p movie streaming and Blu-Ray. Best of both worlds. Besides, I don't see DD taking over Blu-Ray. I do hate the fact that some Blu movies prices are high. That's why I shop for them on Walmart website.

[Rowsdower]

hate articles with stupid titles

you wanna compare the two fine but dont make irresponsible choices like that title, it just leads to BS.

we can do better.

[badbond1]

Dumb article. I can't believe he took the time to write this stupid article! Blu-Ray is here to stay!

[dj55555555]

sounds like sour grapes from microsoft, cant take the fact that a competitor has pooped all over their own efforts in quality and convenience so they do what they always do use their infuence over the U.S. media to make sure sales of the competion stay low.

[shikwan]

Why? Look@ CDs. CD > MP3. MP3 outsells CD, to the point where major record stores such as Tower Records, went outta business or whatever.

So Bluray maybe better quality than a download but WHO CARES as long as it's a COMPARABLE quality.

Bluray features? HA!! Most people NEVER used similar features on their DVD players, so again...WHO CARES??!!

Without Zune video on 360, I can d/l movies to my Vista MediaCenter PC and then watch it via 360 in my living room or on the road via cell phone (Samsung Omnia) or laptop - no conversion necessary (thanks to WebGuide 4). Heck, I can even watch Live TV on my cell phone or laptop via MediaCenter! And if I want, I could take the time to convert my videos (depending on the file type) & push it to my Zune as well.

BluRay? No thanks. I'm good!

[dj55555555]

spoken like someone who has no clue. When I and most people spend their hard earned money you want the best quality for you buck, if we listened to you we would all still be watching VHS

[Guitardr85]

Finish blu-ray? I didn't know it was in the position to be finished...what with record sales every month and so on...

[watchman]

Don't believe it? see for your self

http://www.iis.net/media/ex...

And a question for you fanboys guys, what did MP3 replaced??

thanks you I rest my case

[John Kratos]

I really don't use my PS3 for bluray. I mainly just stream movies so the 1080 instant stuff that xbox is doing is going to be pretty beneificial for me.

[Guitardr85]

But it's not really 1080p that you are streaming and definitely not 7.1 surround...

[SRT4Chris401]

Yeah, he was able to fast forward a 1080p movie because it was streamed from a computer or media server in the same room behind some curtain dipsh*t god people are so f-ing dumb these days, and this guy probably thinks he's tech savy....

[guerojose]

Actually, Milo knew exactly where he wanted to fast-forward to, and did it automatically! All you're gonna have to do is wave your arm, or ask Milo, & it'll be incredible - like you're actually IN the Hi-Def movie!

(On and on it goes...)

[dj55555555]

When you say you feel like your in the movie is that because they both use scripts?

[SacredENA]

How long do you think a 30GB movie file download will take over DSL?

[RAVEN81]

pls stop trying to convince yourself that you'll out do blu-ray it's kind of annoying. just buy a ps3

[MakoXL]

i think the BIG issue is people who have a cap set on monthly downloads. For example i have a 95GB/month cap.

[xtremeimport]

There seems to me more and more gaming based websites popping up with the non-sense this generation than ever before. People constantly writing that the PS3 is a huge failure, and that Sony may leaving the gaming market and now this. A video streaming service that is under the "zune" label will end Blu-ray. Yeah, good luck with that. I'm gonna go listen to my Ipod and Watch The Dark Knight on my playstation...

[Knghtz]

But if you're listening to your IPod you will miss out on the Dark Knight's audio!

[vShinobi]

Oh really now? and this coming from microsoft or some stupid article? should have just left it alone but because of articles like these it makes it seem like microsoft is the one bragging about it, we all know what this is something cool and useful but in no way a Blu-ray killer just deal with it blu-ray is here to stay so if your avoiding it because your either a loyal 360 fanboy or simply in love with dvd's then be ready to move on.

[ShadowCK]

Zune Video looks great and Blu-ray is definitely in for a hard battle.

Oh and badbond, He didn't say Blu-Ray was going anywhere. Dumbass.

[evilmonkey501]

he just said zune was going to "finish" bluray.....how completely unlikely. When the united states get gigabit internet....that's when downloads will be viable. not before. This article would've been a lot better if he dropped bluray out of it all together....just makes himself look like the idiot fanboy he is. This whole I hate bluray because sony uses it is recackulous. Get over your fanboyism and welcome yourself to hd.

[Gue1]

WOW... Talking about stupidity at its best... 0_0

How in the world a service on a single console could finish blu-ray that it is being produced by Panasonic, Toshiba, Sony, Sharps, Samsung, etc. I mean is this guy like retarded?

------------
26 million Xbox360 vs, 22 million PS3's that are being used as video game machine and blu-ray player and I'm not even counting the stand alone blu-ray players that have been sold. That would equal a much greater number than the mere 26 million Xbox360's.

So how this new service will finish blu-ray again?

[Veneno]

I can't wait for the day when I can go into blockbuster and rent the stream of my favorite movies! Oh, wait........

[Knghtz]

LOL!

Do people still use Blockbuster? /boggle

[PirateThom]

Hurray for low quality downloads!

It actually still shocks me people spend lots of money on HDTV and, instead of spending a little more, will pay to watch lossy downloads and streams on it and think it's HD comparable to a disc.

[MriownBOTH]

yeah to you. i know so many people who confess HD video look way better than SD.......but to say they going to notice a difference between 1080p and your so called "TRUE 1080p" dude they not going to notice or care....but you do. good for you

[Guitardr85]

These people you talk to are probably the same people that watch a 1080p blu ray on a 720i tv. And yeah...it happens a lot...It's pretty hilarious, and sad! lol

[Guitardr85]

Even if they did want to do this, they would have to invent an entire new internet connection protocal to handle the mass amount of downloads people will get. When you factor in the GROWING rate of download caps that providers are using, it actually seems counter-intuitive that anyone would want to do this. I don't think this could honestly happen for another 10 years or so. I mean, yeah, technology changes at a faster and faster rate, but POLICY...that is what is always to slow thing to change. And with the wind blowing policy momentum towards internet caps and DRM...I think this whole digital download thing will be hard to get off the ground! (In terms of large downloads!)

[Andras84]

#1 Would be that not every single person on this planet have acces to high-speed internet. At some places even here in the USA the best that you can get is a low-speed DSL. Now on that...how will they stream a 1080p movie with 7.1 sound???

#2 People like to collect. Most people like to have a large collection of movies on their shelfs which they can pull any minute to watch a movie of their liking and don't have to depend on a service that might have taken off their old favorite to make space for a new movie.

I hope that in the future we won't end up with DLC only movies and games....or streamed only movies and games.

That is why hate On-Live so much.

I don't want a company controlling my games and movie libary.

[Sheikh Yerbouti]

Like most, I'm strictly mp3 nowadays, but I still buy CD's to have a permanent physical copy. Some Blu-Rays have a digital copy for download. They are not exclusive.

MP3 did not replace the CD, they replaced the blank cassette taped.

[Smokzdaizm]

Replace Microsoft and XBL for Sony and PS3/PSN and then everything will be alright. Look people said the same thing about cd's and MP3's. It's an option right now, because like it or not we will eventually move to digital distribution for movies just like we did for music, will it happen in the next year or so I doubt it, but it will happen and Microsoft is laying their groundwork so when it does happen the infastructure will be in place and perfected. Because we all know if this was a Sony article then Sony fanboys would be saying OMG this the greatest thing in the world Sony is soooo innovative. Sony fanboys need to understand just like they don't want to buy Microsoft products, some people don't want to buy Sony products (I know they must be crazy). I think digital distribution for movies is coming, hell 5 years ago you couldn't tell me that I wouldn't be buying CD's now-I haven't bought a CD in the past 3 years (and I have over 2500 CD's). It won't happen today but it will happen, and they will continue to make DVDs and Blu-Rays as they still make CD's now.

[Guitardr85]

While I agree with you the only problem with the cd/mp3 analogy is that by the time mp3s came along, the infrastructure was already able to handle their small download size. We aren't anywhere near having the ability for everyone to download bluray games and 1080p movies.

Another problem I have with that analogy is the fact that yea, of course people will download mp3s for songs instead of the actual album. Songs are only 2:30 to 5 minutes long on average. That is a small enough chunk of time that people don't care if they have the real thing or buy the mp3 and put it on an Ipod or something. To them, the small time is not worth worrying about a physical media. Games and movies on the other hand are less portable, and require a much larger resource investment to use (TIME)! Because of this, I think the cd/mp3 analogy kinda falls apart. Add to the fact that the only reason that mp3 was popularized was the advent of P2P programs like Napster in which PEOPLE DIDN"T HAVE TO PAY!

I just think that what we are seeing with digital distribution can't be compared to the advent of Mp3s. Two totally different things for many different reasons!

[MriownBOTH]

well 1 thing is true once this comes out.....bye bye psn.....then $30 a year is totally worth paying.

live > psn .....always has always will.

but blu-ray isn't going anywhere anytime soon.

[nycredude]

You know how retarded your comment is.

Are all these movies going to be free to stream? how much is it going to cost to rent these movies?

PSN is already streaming sd and hd movies to rent OR buy. This is old tech but once again everyone act like it the next best thing since sliced bread, yet Sony is already doing similar and has bee.

[free3sixty]

its a fact that digital downlaodw are the future. Also on torrent sites DIvX HD plus files get extremly popular.

You will see that in the next years, HD streaming will get very popular. ppl want to sit in their homes and see a video store in front of their TV.

[AngryTypingGuy]

I don't think it'll kill BluRay, but it may force it to lower its prices if Zune video catches on, which is a good thing.

I'm a fan of both digital download and physical media. Digital download is so convenient if you don't feel like going to the video store and you want to watch something you've never seen right that second. Or maybe it's a crappy night and you don't feel like going out into the rain or snow, it's great to have the DD. But then with BluRay, you can buy used copies, sell them, borrow and lend with friends, etc. They both have their place.

[NotSoSilentBob]

I swear to god these guys must've got HHG to write their headline for this article.

[Sheikh Yerbouti]

“The (catch is) the experience is movies and TV shows on Zune video will automatically scale to the best possible resolution based on the speed of your connection. For example, if you have a 6 Mbps connection, you’ll still get 1080p and a great audio experience, but may not get 5.1. And as a back-up, anyone can have a 1080p/5.1 experience, but they may be required to download the content instead of streaming it if they don’t have an 8 – 10 Mbps broadband connection.”

On average United States broadband connections average 3.9 Mbps, and due to the economy this average has declined as of this past Winter, even as access to “high speed” broadband connections have grown. The majority of households won’t be able to take advantage of this.

[sarshelyam]

...then I'd think there'd be something to this. Considering, however, it's a proprietary service on a proprietary piece of Hardware...sorry but the adoption rates of the Xbox 360 do not match that of the PS3 and every standalone BD player or PC equipped with a BD-drive.

It's a great service for Xbox users but there is a snowballs chance in hell this is going to even threaten Blu-Ray penetration.

[MriownBOTH]

hurt blu-ray no....

hurt psn yes....

WAS LIKE

live > psn

SOON

live >>>>>> psn...falling further and further away from what users want.

[Guitardr85]

I don't know..I'm completely happy with the PSN! I'm not saying its the greatest, just that it suits my needs just fine. My only problem is that I only have DSL, so either way, its still easier for me to just buy a movie and actually own it. Plus what happens when your hard drive fries or something, sure its backed up by the company's records...but then you have to spend all that time redownloading it...annoying! Buying it takes like 10 minutes!

[sak500]

Bluray rips are all over the torrent sites. no need to buy expensive useless format. Those rips are almost same level in quality and size is just 4gb to 8gb. bluray files are bloated unnecessarily and like what MP3 did to the audio cds with no loss in quality decernable by humans, mkv, mp4, wmv will do the same for the HD files. So same files can be easily streamed through cable connections and volia u hv your legit HD streams.

Thos droids who are crying now for DD not being able to replace BDs are either too stupid or have never used mp3 files.

[DJ]

That you publicly brag about pirating Blu-ray films? Smart move. Very smart.

[Obama]

I think Sak500 was a big supporter of HD-DVD. Well, look what happened.

[skip2mylou]

ummm ok......i really doubt that

[KingKionic]

Well by the headline alone have angered people. But this service will be a nice connivence for people who want to use it. Another added feature to Xbox live .

If the writer of this article just talked about Zune video and didn't mention Bluray wouldn't been a problem.

I blame writer .

[xcox]

I thought xb!tches didn't care about movies anyway, these babybloggers are making me dizzy, lol

anyone who's seen a bluray on a big screen for comparison is laughing with me at this new episode of:

"N4G jealous nonsense from butthurt M$ c0ck suckas"

[Guitardr85]

I still like to think that people like to get out of their house every one in a while...even if it is only to go buy a movie on disk...

Can we now please invent something to chew our food for us?

[Smokzdaizm]

To a certain exstint, yes Napster did help the adopt of MP3's, but it was also the beginning of the transtition. Look I don't hate sony and I have a PS3 and I also admit that I'm just not fond of PSN, but what is happening with XBLive is that they are setting up an infrastructure for a future where digital distribution for movies will become the norm-Hell it's already happening with people using PSP for sharing movies. Now we all know a lot of this hate and downplaying is being doone because it is microsoft, but to be honest I've bought 1 blu-ray form my PS3 and when I wanna watch movies I watch it from the movie service on PSN or Video marketplace on XBL, True the resolution may not be there yet, but it is coming and when it does my '50 1080pm Samsung will be waiting. It's a great for XBL, I use it everyday and I know my $4 a month is helping my favorite system grow beyond what it was when I joined five years ago.

[madpuppy]

Zune video, blah, only a dyed in the wool fool would think that this would kill Blu-ray. First off, digital downloads of movies/games is a colossal rip-off and is Consumer UNFRIENDLY!! physical copies have value, they can be sold and lent and stored. Digital copies don't allow for any of this. usually they only allow for a limited amount of redownloading. you cannot archive them, or bring them over to a friends house (unless you lug your 360 with you) and that would be just stupid. the same go's for any company that pushes DD over physical media. Sony is no better.

[madpuppy]

if anyone is going to disagree with me, please give me your reason for thinking DD is better than physical media for the consumer.

[Socomer 1979]

Oh man! Ha ha ha !

First we destroy your xbox.
Then we destroy hd-dvd
then we destroy your games reviews
Then we destroy your avatars
then we destroy your xbox360's multimedia features.
Then PSN destroys the xbla
then we buy games faster and stronger with a smaller install base

Now this.

[JeffGUNZ]

Lets take a look at your list, shall we?

1. How did you destroy the 360? I am pretty sure you are behind the 360 this gen.

2. The PS3 didn't destroy HD-DVD, I have a 360 and I got a blue ray player from my brother last christmas, so if people really want Blue ray, they can buy a blue-ray player.

3. Destroy our game reviews? What? Look at metacritic moron, the 360 has more AAA exclusives with higher scores than PS3.

4. Destroy our avatars? How? Please don't say with home, because that was the biggest PS3 flop this gen.

5. Please tell me how you destroyed the multimedia features when the 360 is streaming 1080 quality and streaming netflix?

6. PSN comes NOWHERE close to Live and if anyone one really thinks the opposite, they are not taken serious by any REAL gamers. PSN is and will always be playing catch up to live.

7. You buy games faster and stronger with a smaller install base? That makes no sense. Gears 2 made 3 million in its opening weekend and Halo 3 sold more in its FIRST DAY than KZ2 has sold so far. You make absolutely no sense. I really hope you're kidding. It's one thing to prefer a system, but it's another thing to just make up things and believe them. The PS3 isn't doing as well as all you nerds thought and you just can't handle it. When people feel threatened they get defensive and that's what a majority of these SDF nerds do on this site.

[KingKionic]

Jeff....

He`s constipated man .

Ate too much .

[JeffGUNZ]

haha yeah, you're telling me!

[JD_Shadow]

...you're telling me people still GIVE a sh!t about the Zune?

[Smokzdaizm]

Yeah they do care I have two zunes one for the 360 and one for the gym(32GB and 120GB)and they are great.

[KingKionic]

Well im getting the Zunehd and there`s nothing you can do about!

*curls mustache*

MUahahaahah.....im so evil.

[sagapo]

either streamed or on blueray. The difference can be the soundquality.
My point for this matter; when both deliver same quality in sound and picture, i wouldn't care much for choosing streamed or blueray, when we are talking about movies. For games however, i prefer something i can store in a closet :)

[GrandDragon]

And as a back-up, anyone can have a 1080p/5.1 experience, but they may be required to download the content instead of streaming it if they don’t have an 8 – 10 Mbps broadband connection.

That sucks

Most of America are living in the Stone Ages when it comes to Broadband speed. Europe, South Korea are probably the only places that will profit from this idea. Africa, Most of Middle East (UAE) and South Asia prefer Sony over Micro$oft.

[Ravenger]

I think the author only wrote that headline for hits, cause there is now way hes that stupid.

[GeoramA]

Christ. The media doesn't even hide it anymore that their rooting for Microsoft.

[Rageanitus]

lets just say theaters are using blu-ray discs when paying for those wwf pay per view viewings...... they are not really live.... but hey the industry is starting to really use them.

[lex-1020]

Learn about what your talking about before you talk. This imbecile doesn't even realize what blu-ray is. Blu-ray is a disk coding format. A duel-layered 50 gig (min) disk, is then coded with the Blu-ray coding format. An internet video streaming service, such as described, would eat up hundreds of thousands of bytes of bandwidth, so much so that accessing the internet would be next to impossible. Other than that, no one who thinks logically is going to want digital over having something tangible. Like the PSP go. This idea will inevitably fail. Who wants to always pay full price for something (we all know Microsoft will do this) and not be able to get a refund, return it if it stops working, or sell it if you get bored. It is yours forever. This is a good idea but one doomed to failure.

[Gamer_Politics]

this service will save me some money since it will stream full HD movies

[lex-1020]

How will it save you money, your still gonna have to pay for the video's.

[KingKionic]

I think he`s talking about how you can rent movies and tv shows.

I guess that would save money .

[darthv72]

Anyway, this service will be great for 360 users but not to the extent of "finishing" bluray. I am a 360 gamer as well as ps3 and wii gamer. While I do enjoy my netflix on the 360 I can honestly say this service will not effect bluray in any way. Here are a few reasons:

Availability: so far from what I know, this service is for the 360 (and PC?) so right there you are limiting the user base. When looking at bluray there are many more makers of players than just sony. Some even offer netflix streaming (like samsung bd-p1500).

Performance: considering that even netflix has to adjust itself now and then while I am watching a movie tells me that this service will undergo the same limitations that are put forth by the ISP's. Some days I have good hd quality streams and others I get pauses and pop up messages telling me netflix is adjusting the quality to compensate for internet performance.

Appeal: similar to the first one, this will really only appeal to those who frequently dl movies and shows via services like on-demand. This may bring in more customers but I am betting it wont convert the masses like they are expecting (and this is coming from someone who uses netflix on 360 ALLOT).

Price vs Convenience: it has been said many different ways but ultimately...convenience comes at a price. Not just monetary but also in quality. I like the convenience of being able to watch a recent release without having to go to the store but there are also advantages to getting a physical copy for less $$ in the long run. The quality never changes on a physical copy while it will for a dl one.

Given these few issues I can honestly say I am looking forward to the zune service but until MS can license their tech to regular player makers (like netflix has done), it will just be to restricted to the closed platform of the xbox brand.

Please feel free to refute any of my opinionated pieces. I welcome a good debate.

[KingKionic]

I really dont see Microsoft really competing with sony with this . Im they could start putting out ads like :

1080p streaming instantly on XBOX 360 .

Wouldn't that change what the xbox 360 was meant for in the beginning ?

Maybe perhaps it would spark sales , But it wouldn't be a direct threat to Bluray .

[Gamer_Politics]

alot of money will be saved with this Zune Video...

[KingKionic]

Yeah going be pretty awesome .

Movies tv shows and Movie trailers in 1080p .

[yorkie]

With todays broadband speeds and download limits is this service going to be viable for millions of people, and just how much is it going to cost to watch a movie over this service, what effects will heavy loads on servers cause to the streaming could it remain uniterrupted ? A good service it may offer but you just can't beat physical media and for all the talk of digital downloads replacing disc's I just dont see it ever happening. Digital downloads will continue to grow but wont ever replace physical media.

[lrn2hate]

Lol at this article. Thats all I'm gonna say, because I'm busy watching Dark Knight on blu-ray right now.

[mrv321]

My broadband speed is great for downloading stuff... like small videos (from loadingreadyrun), or demos from PSN or XBL but my connection along with the MAJORITY of users will not offer 1080p that means I'll have to download it... now for 1 minute of 1080p it will take up 2,670 MB of storage... one of my favorite movies is Apocalypse now which is 195 minutes 52,650mb. Now that's 50gb it'd take me and I did the math my connection is 1mb per 4 seconds... which is decent. It's take roughly 200,000 seconds which is roughly 2 days.... that's right it'd take me TWO days to download. If I was blu-ray I would worry since I could GO to a store do my weekly shop pick up the blu-ray watch the blu-ray and watch my top ten films in the time it takes for it to download. And that's without me playing online, surfing the web, it'd effectively have to do nothing for 2 days for this to download...

Oh and I have 10 movies I want in HD it will take weeks to download.

[Karum]

This video service might well look good but there is no way they can deliver the high video and audio bitrates you get on a BR over today's internet connections.

Will this streaming service deliver a good picture? Probably.

Will it be of BR quality? Absolutely not.

I know how I'll be getting my movies.

[IWentBrokeForGaming]

I haven't seen a single television broadcast in HD that even matches the quality of what Im getting out of my Blu-ray movies... this actually ticks me off. For forcing the digital age upon us, they sure aren't justifying it in my eyes!

Im a multiconsole owner who uses my 60 gig PS3 for games and blu-rays. This just kinda bothers me about how the digital age is going. I honestly wished we were getting the same HD expierence throughout all our products, it ticks me off to know that television is neglecting my 1080p 52inch Sony Bravia of the broadcasting it deserves!

[Kevzin]

A: The beauty of the experience is movies and TV shows on Zune video will automatically scale to the best possible resolution based on the speed of your connection. For example, if you have a 6 Mbps connection, you’ll still get 1080p and a great audio experience, but may not get 5.1. And as a back-up, anyone can have a 1080p/5.1 experience, but they may be required to download the content instead of streaming it if they don’t have an 8 – 10 Mbps broadband connection.

SO it's not true 1080P for every one HMMM!!!!!! it's not going to kill off Blu-ray

[Avenged Sevenfold]

LMAO. Does this guy even know what he's talking about.

[nycredude]

Look at all these fanb0ys and Bluray haters trying to play down the benefits of bluray yet most likely none of them even own an hdtv with a good audio setup. Of course bluray isn't worth it if you have a sdtv with 2 speakers.

However for the ones who spend money on a good setup it is well worth it. Also hdtvs, stereo equipment and blurays are already dropping in price tremendously so more people will be able to benefit from the tech.

Streaming is great for renting on whims but if you want the best and are looking to own your movies, then bluray is the way to go. Plus all movies comes with a digital version now.

[AriesFury]

so we should all throw away our HDTVs and go buy a Zune HD because propaganda machine known as MS said it will put it's competitor, Sony's Blu ray out of business? What crap. DL isn't even as 100% better than DVD let alone Blu ray.

[NateDPG]

Holycrap we must have 1st April after 1st April. Yesterday MS is the new Sony and now this LOL

[frailjackfave]

Streaming is great for renting or for a casual view, but if I seriously wanted to own a movie, Live and PSN are the last places I'd go

[Anilom]

there are a lot of things posted on n4g and one thing that i have found is there is a lot of bs from the posts by xbox fangirls. i know the majority of you guys are kids anyway, so i am just here to inform you about how this works. look at the video and learn whats inside the new zune. the chip that they are using is tegra by nvidia hd. it upscales everything and what i have found is that it pumps out 720p. when it comes to blu-ray, it is not full hd 1080p. all you xbox fangirls can stick to your 720p - which is not superior to 1080p blu-ray. dont get me wrong, i dont think that the technology isnt great, it is a great idea, but it is definitely not superior to blu-ray. nothing that i know of can stream full 1080p through the internet.

[snoopgg]

and am not going to use it to watch movies, if games burn these things out so easy, I can't afford to also watch movies on it. I will stick to watching bluerays on my ps3 and my bose hooked up. My 360 will only be used for 360 exclusives. It just isnt reliable enough to risk by watching movies on it also. Note to micosoft, build a better system if you want people to use it to watch movies also.

[Sherif_129]

Utter garbage. 'Nuff said.

[Campy da Camper]

On bluray. Damn. Heath's face paint looked WET. Unbelievable quality. And to comment on the 120hz, I think it looks great at 120. I have a Mitsubishi 60" DLP 1080p with 6.1 surround and my HDMI is M1000 Monster with optical sound. Each day I wake up, look at my alarm clock, look at my PS3 and fight the urge to call in sick.

[ASSASSYN 36o]

If blu-ray is so superior...then why is everyone so worried? If I was any of you sony kids I wouldn't give a flying F!

[SixAmpFuze]

the average person doesnt care how pretty bluray looks because the jump from dvd to bluray isnt that impressive, so streaming with dvd or above quality will be just fine for 75% of people

[Raoh]

LMFAO

there needs to be some type of internet regulation to stop these stupid kids from writing anything and passing it off as articles..

it's obvious itunes is a huge success and blu ray won the dvd war.

if itunes couldnt kill blu ray and blu ray cant kill itunes..

zune hd is going to? LMFAO

1080P streaming? LMFAO you actually believe microsoft? the same company that said the xbox 1 would bring toy story 2 graphics?

a standard def stream is about 2gb to 3 gb. On a great connection.

Ever stream locally from home? from a pc or mac to your console or another device? the quality is downgraded just on a local stream. but they offering 1080p streams? LMFAO

Another interesting fact for the microsoft sheep. it seems when you check the specs of all the 360's released.. only the the latest jasper models state 1080p. everyone else before that? 1080i with an hdmi or 720p or less with component connection.. but yeah, 1080p for everyone.. LMFAO

The ipod has been replaced.. by the iTouch and iPhone... which connectst to iTunes which has sold over a billion songs..

But ZUNE HD is going to kill ipod, itouch, iphone and blu ray? LMFAO

i dont know what's sillier these articles or the sheep that believe in them.

[Rhezin]

that's one for the books, good sir ken. Oh and JeffGunz, why the f!ck isn't that dogs head ripped in half or its brains bashed in? You fail, Sirson.

[maka]

First off , nothing can finish the Blu Ray, HD DVD had a chance but Blu ray won that battle and now the format into the future. And i also think its the deciding factor in this console war. Xbox will eventually die out, they are trying to save their ass with 1TB hard drives but i don't think it will work.