Exclusive agreement creates game-changing home entertainment experience;
more than 10,000 movies and TV episodes will be available to watch
instantly at no additional cost to paying subscribers.
LOS ANGELES, July 14 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- An exciting new home
theater experience is coming to living rooms this holiday season. At the E3
Media and Business Summit, Microsoft Corp. (Nasdaq: MSFT) and Netflix, Inc.
(Nasdaq: NFLX), the world's largest online movie rental service, today
unveiled an exclusive partnership to offer consumers the ability to
instantly stream movies and TV episodes from Netflix to the television via
the Xbox 360 video game and entertainment system. Xbox 360 will be the only
game system that lets users instantly watch movies and TV episodes streamed
from Netflix. This movie watching innovation will be available to Xbox LIVE
Gold members who are also Netflix subscribers and will let those users
enjoy streaming movies from Netflix on Xbox LIVE at no additional cost.
(Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20000822/MSFTLOGO)
A growing library of more than 10,000 movies and TV episodes will be
available from Netflix when it launches on Xbox LIVE in late fall, with
more choices added over time. Through this agreement, along with the
existing Xbox LIVE Marketplace Video Store, Xbox 360 will be home to more
movies and TV shows on demand than any other device connected to the TV.
Xbox LIVE quickly and easily connects consumers and their friends to the
entertainment they want -- with no PC required for viewing.
Netflix on Xbox 360 is an important component of the new Xbox
experience, a new generation of games and entertainment experiences that
will be available on Xbox 360 consoles this fall. The new Xbox experience,
also announced today at the E3 Media and Business Summit, represents the
first time in history that a mass-market consumer electronics device has
been re-invented through free software, giving people more fun and
intuitive ways to interact, play and enjoy entertainment content.
"Watching movies at home will never be the same. Netflix on Xbox 360 is
an entertainment first, and we are bringing friends together with the best
in entertainment content like no other device in the living room," said
John Schappert, corporate vice president of Interactive Entertainment LIVE,
Software and Services Business at Microsoft. "We are creating a completely
new social entertainment experience, and Xbox 360 will be the only video
game system where you can access your library of instantly streamable
movies from Netflix and turn any room into a virtual movie theater."
From the Netflix Web site, members simply add movies and TV episodes to
their individual instant Queues. Those choices will be automatically
displayed on the TV screen via Xbox 360 and available to watch instantly.
Once selected, movies will begin playing in as little as 30 seconds. In
addition to instantly streaming movies to the TV, Xbox LIVE Gold members
can fast-forward, pause and rewind, all using either their Xbox 360
Controller or Media Remote. In all, the user interface creates a highly
personalized experience that puts viewers in control.
"Netflix and Xbox 360 are a perfect combination, the leading online
movie rental service and the leading games and entertainment system joining
forces to create an all-in-one entertainment experience with content for
everyone," said Reed Hastings, chairman and CEO of Netflix. "For Netflix,
it represents an important step forward in making instantly streaming
movies on the TV more broadly available to our members."
The library of movies and TV episodes that will be available for
instant streaming from Netflix via Xbox 360 includes scores of Academy
Award winners and nominees, episodes from a number of popular, currently
running and classic TV shows, and 24 of the movies rated by the American
Film Institute as the greatest ever.
Today, Xbox LIVE members can also download movies and purchase TV shows
from the industry-leading Xbox LIVE Marketplace Video Store, currently
packed with content from more than 45 networks and studios. The Xbox LIVE
Marketplace Video Store offers more than twice the high-definition content
than the nearest cable provider and more than 6,000 hours of TV shows and
movies.
About Xbox 360
Xbox 360 is a superior video game and entertainment system delivering
the best games, unique entertainment features and a unified online gaming
network that revolve around gamers. Xbox 360 has a portfolio of nearly 400
games in 37 countries. More information can be found online at
http://www.xbox.com/xbox360.
About Xbox LIVE
Xbox LIVE is the first and most comprehensive unified online
entertainment network seamlessly integrated throughout the entire console
experience, making it easy for people to find the friends, games and
entertainment they want from the moment they power on their Xbox 360
system. Xbox LIVE connects more than 12 million members across 26 countries
to enjoy hundreds of multiplayer games, downloadable games via Xbox LIVE
Arcade, free and premium playable game demos, music videos, TV shows, and
movies in the United States as well as new game levels, characters and
vehicles for all their favorite retail games. More information can be found
online at http://www.xbox.com/en-us/live.
About Netflix, Inc.
Netflix, Inc. (Nasdaq: NFLX) is the world's largest online movie rental
service, with more than eight million subscribers. For one low monthly
price, Netflix members can get DVDs delivered to their homes and can
instantly watch movies and TV episodes streamed to their TVs and PCs, all
in unlimited amounts. Members can choose from over 100,000 DVD titles and a
growing library of more than 10,000 choices that can be watched instantly.
There are never any due dates or late fees. DVDs are delivered free to
members by first class mail, with a postage-paid return envelope, from over
100 U.S. shipping points. More than 95 percent of Netflix members live in
areas that generally receive shipments in one business day. Netflix is also
partnering with leading consumer electronics companies to offer a range of
devices that can instantly stream movies and TV episodes to members' TVs
from Netflix. For more information, visit http://www.netflix.com/.
About Microsoft
Founded in 1975, Microsoft (Nasdaq: MSFT) is the worldwide leader in
software, services and solutions that help people and businesses realize
their full potential.
SOURCE Microsoft Corp.
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Related links:
http://www.microsoft.com
Photo Notes:
NewsCom: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20000822/MSFTLOGO
AP Archive: http://photoarchive.ap.org
PRN Photo Desk, photodesk@prnewswire.com
CONTACT:
pr.mspx./ /CONTACT: Evan Parker of Edelman,
+1-323-202-1052, evan.parker@edelman.com, for Microsoft; or Steve
Swasey of Netflix, +1-408-540-3947, sswasey@netflix.com
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