Sony announced recently that PlayStation 3 will launch a video download service sometime in July. After the video service debuts PS3 owners will focus their anticipation on the launch of Sony Home, “the real-time 3D, networked community that serves as a meeting place for PS3â„¢users from around the world.” As these initiatives roll out, PS3 looks to pull even with features offered by competing game consoles and make a strong connected content play. To give you a sense of the appetite for downloadable video content within the gaming communities, Microsoft representatives have said in interviews that Xbox Live users download upwards of 1 millions pieces of content daily from a catalog of 17,000 assets.
Major Nelson’s weekly reporting for Xbox Live activity ranks top game titles and Xbox.com ranks popularity of Xbox Video Marketplace.
Netflix is also in this game recently bringing the “Watch it Now” function to the living room television by way of the Roku Netflix Player.
With the enhanced Apple TV offering earlier this year the “big three” living room players have made significant investments and progress in the infrastructure and content partnerships necessary to drive mainstream adoption of internet video delivery to the home television. Advertising can be leveraged in these platforms either by direct advertising into the Xbox Live or Sony Home environment, or indirectly through distribution of underwritten or branded content into the iTunes library.
