Microsoft is busy announcing a slew of upgrades to Xbox Live, and the biggest news so far is relaunch of the video service, now Zune-branded with 1080p instant-on streaming content in 18 countries. XBL is also now integrated with Facebook -- your Facebook account can be linked to your Gamertag, and games will support Facebook Connect for sharing content online. That's pretty huge -- but if that wasn't enough, you're also getting Twitter and Last.fm in the deal. Want more? Netflix users will now be able to browse the entire catalog instead of simply loading their queue, and Microsoft has also gotten its Party Watch system in order, so you'll be able to heckle videos with your online friends. Last but not least, there's now live TV streaming for UK and Ireland gamers, who'll get Premier League soccer live from Sky. All in all, a solid set of updates for XBL -- but we'll wait and see how that "1080p" video looks before we pronounce Blu-ray dead. PR blurb after the break.

With Akihabara, mobile TV that works and games like this, does Japan really need another nicety to remind us of how awesome it is? Starting this week, Yahoo Japan has started to deliver free video services to loads of Sharp AQUOS HDTVs. The so-called Douga Channel currently offers some 3,000 videos gratis, and absolutely no member registration is required to tap in. At least initially, the service will target Sharp's AQUOS DS6 family of products, which are equipped with a revised Sharp GUI and an 'Ex System' for handling the video processing. Better still, the material coming through can be viewed in SD or HD, which has to make local cable companies cringe. At any rate, the company is still trying to hammer out a business model before delving into pay-TV, and it's hoping to service at least one million TV sets in the not-too-distant future. So... any news for North America?

Found the Verismo VuNow's previous iterations lacking? Take another look, because the company says it's gotten all more and better on us, with even more live TV channels, websites, and now Shoutcast Internet radio bringing additional content to the box. On the hardware side it can finally read NTFS formatted drives, not just FAT-32, plus 802.11n support with WPA2 and WPS security, Dolby AC-3 audio, PAL and other tweaks. Check out the full press release after the break and see how $149 for a VN1000HD Hi-Def POD strikes you now that its added even more services (though unfortunately not Hulu, from what we can tell.)

After being "bombarded by inquiries" about integration the first lucky dance partner for VUDU as a service is Entone, maker of IPTV set-top boxes. Entone's CEO is a little over the top in describing the VUDU + (whatever service provider is first to offer this combo) as the first time two competing visions come together in one unified service (Amazon VOD + TiVo, Xbox 360 + Netflix, we could go on) but it would be an original twist for customers to get the box directly from their TV operator. Expected to launch this summer, it could get VUDU's HD and HDX movies into customers homes without dropping $149 on a single use additional box, but until one of Entone's 50+ telco carriers actually opts for the service it's all just a (good) idea.

Just in case someone wants their own IPTV streaming entry, Move Networks has apparently moved beyond mere browser plugins, after powering the video for ABC, Fox ESPN and others, it is acquiring Inuk Networks, most notably the developer of an IPTV platform built to deliver a "TV experience" to PCs and anything else connected to the Internet. The idea is to give viewers all the features -- DVR, VOD, EPG & more -- that they expect on TV, on a PC or Mac. Of course, cable operators already seem to be building their own similar solutions, but we don't doubt we'll be seeing someone busting out this platform sooner rather than later.

AT&T's U-verse service just keeps on growing, with Q1 subscriber additions beating out those record Q4 numbers from last year, and up significantly from last year's 148,000 to 284,000. Now 1.3 million strong, it looks like offering dual tuner HD, 100 HD channels and Total Home DVR is having some effect. No word on plans for the future, although even with plans to more than double availability having slipped to 2011, we wouldn't be surprised to see the service rolling out in new areas soon. Now, about that Xbox 360 IPTV...

In one of the more unexpected developments from NAB 2009, Qtv is pushing its streaming media player platform for consoles. Not an altogether radical idea we know, but what's different here is a plan to launch first on the PlayStation 2 and move to newer hardware later. From the makers of the Qcast technology behind the GameShark Media Player, Qtv includes YouTube and access to streaming video from other sources, plus pictures, music and video (DivX, h.264, XviD & more) from USB devices or networked computers. The PS2 may not be the first HD set-top box we thought of, it does have the highest installed base. The Qtv player launches later this year and will be available on Mac and PC as well for "less than $50," although thanks to the free 30-day trial the hardest part may be remembering where we left our PS2s.

Don't know why the Motorola rumors are flying hot and heavy today, but right on top of that connected GPS whisper comes word that the struggling device manufacturer is being tapped to build a new version of KDDI's multifaceted Au Box set-top unit that runs Android instead of the previous custom Linux build. The Au Box, if you'll recall, is a trick little IPTV box with a DVD drive that can rip audio and video and transcode it for transfer or streaming to your cellphone -- kind of like a more flexible Slingbox that costs $3/month for KDDI subscribers. Definitely interesting, especially since Android could make browsing and email extremely easy to implement as well -- hey Moto, maybe you want to ditch your current garbage Stateside cable box lineup and start shipping these things at home?

Update: Turns out there's no Android here at all, according to Moto. Instead it's running on KreaTV platform. Is it just us or did this thing just lose about 50 megafonzies on the cool-o-meter?

[Via CNET]

It didn't make waves at the Cable Show, but the New York Times reports further off than the CableCARD and streaming solutions of the present, cable's future could be in delivering Internet video directly to your PC or other devices. Delivering IPTV would be far more efficient than current video delivery systems, and could offer higher quality than current Internet streaming services. Of course, the glacial speed of current technology rollouts doesn't engender confidence we'll see any of these advances very soon.

Microsoft's PlayReady DRM hasn't exactly set the world on fire since first popping up over two years ago on a bevy of wireless carriers, so we were surprised by today's news that it's being integrated into the MediaRoom IPTV platform, specifically AT&T's U-verse service. A Microsoft exec quoted saying "Through the power of software such as PlayReady and Mediaroom, AT&T will bring its customers an exciting new range of services and content" doesn't help, since that power has lead to very little over the last two years with one exception. This is the same Windows Media Player 10 compatible DRM used by Silverlight plugins, like the ones for Netflix and Sky Player TV, so while we'll make the leap of dreaming about Instant Watch coming to AT&T set-top boxes, reality is probably not only something entirely different, but also considerably more like the Xbox 360 IPTV fantasy & other Mediaroom features that have yet to see any release.

Earlier this year, Celeno and Cavium teamed up to pump out a WiFi-based wireless HDMI Solution, and now the former company has notched yet another partner in its quest to spread the joys of wireless video the world over. Announced at the IPTV World Forum, Comtrend has selected Celeno's HD WiFi chips for its wireless video adapters, which are available now for service providers worldwide. Their purpose? To distribute multiple HD IPTV content from any Ethernet-equipped home gateway or DVR to IP set-top-boxes. In other words, the solution ensures reliable IPTV home networking, providing whole home coverage without any new wires. There's no specific word on where we'll see this stuff roll out, but those over in London can check it out in person starting tomorrow. Full release is after the break.

AT&T joined up with DirecTV for TV services months ago, but the partnership is now retail-official, and AT&T reps should be fully versed in how bundling services can save you some dough. What's really interesting, however, is the "quad-play" that the new partnership is offering over cable by adding wireless service to the TV/phone/internet trio. In this arms race that threatens to catch up the blades-per-razor contest, expect to see connections between content on your TV, PC and cell phone in the future (assuming you're in a market that receives all four services). Sounds like echoes of Homezone all over again, doesn't it? Of course, cable has similar plans in the works, especially cable companies that picked up some space from last year's 700MHz auction; but still, a first is a first.

[Thanks, Vanbrothers]

Read - AT&T selling DirecTV
Read - AT&T/DirecTV quad-play

Right, so the online content generated and hosted by Pelicola.tv would theoretically serve the world, but it's hoping to produce localized content that would appeal specifically to Filipino internet users. The online TV portal has voiced its intentions to create "a series of local web shows in high-definition video quality," targeting a specific niche of online viewers who appreciate the higher quality. Reportedly, many in the Philippines tap into the web to get their programming fix, thus making the idea extra luscious in that part of the world. The site is expected to fully launch next month, and we can only hope that it not only thrives, but gives others in various countries 'round the globe similar ideas.

It's pretty much impossible to say where Daewoo's DIS-E100 HD IPTV set-top-box (not pictured) is headed in terms of operator adoption, but one's thing is for certain: SecureMedia's Encryptonite ONE will be making sure no pirates can plunder with content running through it. In all honesty, little is actually known about the aforesaid STB given that it's SecureMedia that's doing the outing, but we wouldn't be shocked to see this filter out to the handful of IPTV providers operating in the States. Now, if only this thing had an HDD in it, we'd really be in business. Full release is after the break.

While BT Vision is currently cooking up a way to bring major UK programming to one place via IPTV, Virgin Media is already taking things one step further by bringing thousands of hours of ITV on-demand content to subscribers. The agreement will, in essence, give ITV its largest ever potential on-demand audience -- you know, now that Virgin's 3.5 million customers can view hours upon hours of ITV1, ITV2, ITV3 and ITV4 material at their leisure. We're told that hit shows like Coronation Street and Emmerdale will be "made available for seven days after being broadcast as part of Virgin Media's free Catch up TV service," and there will even be a small subset of HD VOD programming to choose from. Not a raw deal at all for existing / to-be VM subs.