Xbox 360 IPTV details: can’t receive or record live TV

A few days ago, Microsoft announced that it will be going into a partnership with the British Telecom (BT Group) to provide Xbox 360 consoles with on-demand programming. While the service will not need the broadband TV service’s set-top box, it seems that the setback is that the console will not be able to watch or record live TV. Details in the full article.

At the 2008 CES, Microsoft announced a partnership with British Telecom (BT Group). The two will provide a new service to Xbox 360 owners, allowing their consoles to access streaming on-demand programming from the BT Group.

The service has a similar function to the PS3’s PlayTV service, which provides TV programs. Unlike the PlayTV service however, the Xbox 360 will not be able to play or record live TV feeds but will only be limited to the BT Group’s on-demand programming.

A BT Group spokesperson gave this reason for the absence of these features:

The reason for streaming only on the Xbox is because currently the console does not have the capability for live TV or enough hard drive for practical downloading of content.

The BT Group provides digital terrestrial TV channel broadcasts as well as IPTV broadcasts. Unfortunately, their live TV feeds are only provided via their digital terrestrial broadcasts, which the Xbox 360 can’t pick up.

Via BBC