Are game consoles the next set-top box? Five years ago, no one would've ever believed that the Nintendo 64 or PlayStation 2 could ever become someone's primary source of in-home entertainment, but now, the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 definitely have that capability. Between the two, users can watch DVDs, Blu-ray Discs, Web programming, movies, TV shows and of course, play games. That's an awful lot of entertainment, but more could be on the way for Microsoft's console.

In a never-ending bid to one-up "the other guy," Microsoft is reportedly talking behind the scenes of boosting the Xbox LIVE offering with a dedicated Xbox TV channel that would provide some original content and some reruns. Details are scant right now, as Microsoft has yet to officially say these talks are legitimate. So at this point, there's no telling what kind of content would show up, but given just how diverse the Xbox consumer sector is, there's plenty of room to mix things up.


The new TV channel would be available exclusively to Xbox 360 owners and Xbox LIVE users, and according to reports, it would be jointly owned by Microsoft and former News Corp. president Peter Chernin. If the channel goes through, users may be faced with a $1 to $2 increase per month in order to finance the channel and the content creation. The deal makes a lot of sense when you look at how content delivery is trending. Fewer physical discs are being printer, and more content is being distributed over the Internet. Users already flip on their Xbox 360 in order to download movies from Xbox Video Store and watch Netflix, so why not give them the option to watch a dedicated Xbox channel? It may even make PS3 loyalists envious. Now wouldn't that be something?