No Current Plans To Bring RSS Support To The Xbox 360

Last week, Microsoft unveiled during their E3 2007 press briefing that Xbox Live’s video marketplace would be expanded globally thus allowing Canadian and European users the ability to download high-definition videos through the service (the service is expected to launch during the 2007 holiday season). No mentioned was made about the addition of RSS support for user generated content such as video podcasts.

In an interview following the events of E3 2007, Xbox Canada product manager Ryan Bidan noted the importance of user generated content in their web strategy, but added that there are currently no plans at this time to incorporate RSS support into the Xbox 360.

Viewing video podcasts on the Xbox 360 is possible, but users must have a web feed aggregator on their personal computer and use Windows Media Connect (or Connect360 for Mac users) to bridge their console to their PC. Also, the podcast must be compliant with the Xbox 360’s video codecs.

Devices such as Sony’s PlayStation Portable (PSP) have built-in RSS support (for firmware 2.6 and over). PSP owners simply need to subscribe to their desired media feed and either stream or download the content to their unit’s Memory Stick. Apple’s AppleTV device lets users view their iTunes podcast subscriptions directly through the unit.

Adding RSS support to the Xbox 360 would help podcasters bring their content to the average user, and the added video capabilities would make the Xbox 360 inch closer to being the home’s exclusive central media hub.

[tags]microsoft, xbox 360, apple, sony psp, podcasting, rss[/tags]