re: Will the new Zune Marketplace TV shows stream to the Xbox 360?

2 big questions ...

1) Will the new Zune Marketplace TV shows stream to the Xbox 360 ...
- from the Zune software?
- from a portable USB hard drive?

2) What is the resolution of the shows downloaded from the Zune Marketplace TV shows?
- is this the same as the Xbox Live videos resolution?

If so, I see no need to download TV shows through Xbox Live any more.

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www.AdultGamingEnthusiasts.com ... gaming, without the kids

Also,
3) If I have purchased the TV show on my 360 already, can I now transfer it to my computer (to stream to all 360s) and my Zune?

There is some clarification in this thread:
http://forums.zune.net/216823/ShowPost.aspx

1) Zune purchased TV shows on my PC will stream to 360s.  Great. :)
2) 360 purchased TV shows will not be available to download on my PC / Zune.   This is unfortunate and needs to be corrected to compete with iTunes and iPod / AppleTV directly.
3) Zune purchased TV shows will not be available to download to my 360.  Not so much an issue b/c of 1.

 SoundForSound wrote:

There is some clarification in this thread:
http://forums.zune.net/216823/ShowPost.aspx

1) Zune purchased TV shows on my PC will stream to 360s.  Great. :)
2) 360 purchased TV shows will not be available to download on my PC / Zune.   This is unfortunate and needs to be corrected to compete with iTunes and iPod / AppleTV directly.
3) Zune purchased TV shows will not be available to download to my 360.  Not so much an issue b/c of 1.

Hey microsoft look at this!!!!

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Mitch | Visit www.zuneboards.com

I purchaced two Battlestar Galactica episodes from the Zune Marketplace last night and did a few tests. Here is what I founds ...

- The purchace comes with two videos; one is formatted for for the PC/TV, the other is formatted for the Zune. This is nice since it skips the need for us users to convert the files.

- The files can only be played through the Xbox 360 when streaming with the Zune software. I tried copying the video file to my usb portable drive and playing it through the default Xbox 360 media player, but it did not work. This is kind of a pain since this is where I store all of my audio, video, and pictures. I hate having to synch my laptop/Zune software each time I want to play my Zune Marketplace purchaced videos. Hopefully this will be resolved witht he spring Xbox 360 update. These are bother Microsoft products, they should both be able to play Zune Marketplace files. Why the need for the Zune software? The default Xbox 360 media player should recognise the files as a legitamently purchaced file.

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www.AdultGamingEnthusiasts.com ... gaming, without the kids

Was the resolution of the PC formatted file better than that of the Zune file?

Really just interested in how the quality looks when streamed to your 360 on the TV.  If the quality of the PC download file is on  par with what you download from 360 (other than the HD titles), there would be no reason to use the 360 marketplace until the Zune and 360 marketplace are integrated.  i.e. if you buy via Zune you can use that on your PC, Zune, 360 via streaming, but if purchased on 360 you are stuck there for now.  Hope they integrate these soon.  Suprised they launched without this as it's what consumers want to see and MS has spoke of.

Thanks for sharing your findings!

 SoundForSound wrote:

Was the resolution of the PC formatted file better than that of the Zune file?

Really just interested in how the quality looks when streamed to your 360 on the TV.  If the quality of the PC download file is on  par with what you download from 360 (other than the HD titles), there would be no reason to use the 360 marketplace until the Zune and 360 marketplace are integrated.  i.e. if you buy via Zune you can use that on your PC, Zune, 360 via streaming, but if purchased on 360 you are stuck there for now.  Hope they integrate these soon.  Suprised they launched without this as it's what consumers want to see and MS has spoke of.

The PC/Xbox360 file is about twice the resolution of the Zune file. The PC/Xbox360 file is equivalent to a DVD quality movie, much like the Xbox Video Marketplace non-HD file.

so, yes, you are correct, there is no reason to purchace files through the Xbox 360 anymore. Though, it seems that there are much less selection of video files on the Zune Marketplace when compared to the Xbox Video Marketplace. Hopefully they will soon get these up to par, having the same videos on each service.

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www.AdultGamingEnthusiasts.com ... gaming, without the kids

to go a little further on the resolution: are the videos in widescreen format?

there is nothing that tells you this in the Zune software before you purchase like it does on the 360.

I would assume so, since the new Zunes support widescreen 480p output, but I haven't tested any.  Curious to know this as well -- I'm sure not going to DL any BSG if I'll wind up with pan & scan.

well when preview an episode of BSG it is in widescreen. The Office is the same way. i think i may take a chance and download the first ep of BSG tonight and find out.

off topic, but is BSG good? i keep hearing about the show but have never watched it.

BSG is, in my opinion, one of the best shows ever made (and I'm NOT a real science fiction fan whatsoever).  It's a strong character drama and survival story before it's a sci-fi series.  It's like a combination of the good elements of Blade Runner, The West Wing, and Hunt for the Red October with some interesting spiritual and philosophical elements sprinkled in, all wrapped up with cool, unique cinematography and set design and really top-notch acting.  The two lead actors, Mary McDonnel and Edward James Olmos are very talented, and help pull the whole cast to a level that's rare to see on TV.


My only caveat: the first few episodes were a miniseries produced before the series proper, and they're not as gripping as the actual show.  Not bad, but definitely slower and more expository.  The series really picks up after the first regular episode (":33").  But you gotta watch in order, as it's a serial drama.