AT&T has announced today that their popular IPTV service U-Verse has been expanded to the Xbox 360 gaming console.
Starting on October 15th, gamers can access the service through their consoles, eliminating the need to purchase a new receiver for their home.
With the launch, AT&T is the first TV provider in the states to offer live TV via the console.
Additionally, the company has announced the launch of “U-Verse Mobile” for upcoming Windows Phone 7 devices.
Starting next month, the Mobile app will be preloaded on AT&T WP7 devices.
“Now you can get our award-winning U-verse services on your big screen TV, online, on your mobile phone, and integrated with your Xbox 360,” said David Christopher, chief marketing officer, AT&T Mobility and Consumer Markets. “Our IPTV strategy is putting AT&T at the forefront by delivering U-verse content where you want it. And now we’re extending the U-verse experience to more AT&T smartphone customers with the upcoming launch of U-verse Mobile on Windows Phone 7 devices.”
For the 360, subscribers will need to purchase a $99 Xbox Kit which is installed for free by a U-Verse technician. Having a 360, however, eliminates the need for an additional receiver taking up space in the house.
The company says “using your Xbox 360 as a U-verse receiver, you can receive chat and game invitations from friends through Xbox Live while watching live TV and switch seamlessly from game to TV mode without switching video inputs on your TV screen. You will enjoy virtually the same U-verse TV experience and features available today, including the ability to watch live TV, manage and play back DVR recordings and access interactive apps, your program guide, the On Demand library and more.”
Result for: xbox live
Microsoft and its chief rules enforcer for Xbox Live have issued an apology today after they blocked a Fort Gay, West Virginia resident from XBL, claiming “fort gay” was offensive and against the service’s code of conduct.
Josh Moore was suspended from XBL for a few days until he could prove to the enforcement team that “fort gay WV” (as posted in the ‘Location’ box of his profile) wasn’t a slur.
A quick Google search for the term “Fort Gay” brings up its coordinates, population and other facts about the legitimate town, which begs the question of how the enforcement team made such an error.
Fort Gay is right on the border of WV and Kentucky, and has a population under 1000.
Says Moore of the situation: “At first I thought, ‘Wow, somebody’s thinking I live in the gayest town in West Virginia or something.’ I was mad. … It makes me feel like they hate gay people. I’m not even gay, and it makes me feel like they were discriminating.
Continuing his story, Moore adds: “I figured, I’ll explain to them, ‘Look in my account. Fort Gay is a real place. I told him, Google it — 25514! (the zip code)…He said, ‘I can’t help you.’”
The mayor of the small town, David Thompson, tried to help Moore, but to no avail: “It was so inappropriate for them (the word ‘gay’), they wouldn’t even say the word. They said, ‘that word.’ It’s beyond me. That’s the name of our town! It’s appalling. It’s a slap in our face.”
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Result for: xbox live
SanDisk has announced that it has begun shipping ‘official’ Xbox 360 USB drives, giving gamers a place to backup their game saves, gamertags, map packs and Arcade game downloads.
The company says the USB drive is “pre-configured for seamless plug and play action,” eliminating the need for gamers to take the extra step of formatting their own drives and downloading the initial 360 software update.
Additionally, all drives come with a free one-month membership to Xbox Live Gold.
“Xbox LIVE contains a world of content for gamers to explore and download, including full-length games, movies and music,” says Shuki Nir, Senior Vice President and General Manager, Retail, SanDisk. “The Xbox 360 USB Flash Drive by SanDisk is specifically engineered to deliver a great user experience and maximum compatibility with the console, offering gamers greater freedom and flexibility in how they store, manage and enjoy their favorite files.”
The drive is available in either 8GB or 16GB varieties, with MSRPs of $35 and $70, respectively.
