Now TV: Xbox 360 gets Sky Movies on demand, no dish needed
Own an Xbox 360? It’s now got another feather in its digital cap: Now TV, Sky’s new Netflix rival and pay per view movie rental service, is now available right from the dashboard.
Fire up your Xbox 360 and if you’ve got a Gold subscription, you’ll be able to download the Now TV movie service. It’s Sky’s new shop for those without a satellite dish, and it lets you watch all the movies you want with a Sky Movies Pass in 720i high definition for £15 per month. That gets you hundreds of movies on demand as well as all 11 Sky Movies channels: you can sign up for a 30 day free trial to try it out.
Sky player goes live on Xbox 360
Now TV sounds a lot like Netflix and Lovefilm, but it’s actually got another trick up its sleeve: instead of a monthly subscription, you can also rent films individually, starting at 99p a pop. Given Zune’s rather limited selection of a la carte films on the Xbox 360, this is very welcome news indeed. It’s also a lot less complicated than the current Sky Player offering on Xbox 360, which requires a dish and a multi-room subscription to make the most of.
Now TV’s also set to get lots more content in the near future, with TV shows from Sky Atlantic and even Sky Sports channels before the end of the year, which ought to put the likes of Netflix to shame. Got a PS3 and feeling left out? Not to worry: Sky’s confirmed that a Now TV PS3 app is on the way too.
Does this make the Xbox 360 the ultimate set top box? Or is it Apple TV all the way still? Let’s hear your thoughts in the comments.
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User comments (5)
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Joe Staley23 August 2012
Now TV is trash. Sorry to say it but it is. The subscription is pricey and double what Netflix and LoveFilm have to offer. Also Now TV only has a few titles in the monthly pass, all the rest you have to pay for! If you are a film and TV buff, best option is to buy Netflix AND LoveFilm combined for the same price as one Now TV subscription. The content is just as good with both combined and you won't have to "Pay to Play" any titles. Apple TV is still a cut above the rest, after all, it is designed for TV in mind. The Xbox 360 in it's core is a games console.
Report as inappropriateJoe Staley23 August 2012
Now TV is trash. Sorry to say it but it is. The subscription is pricey and double what Netflix and LoveFilm have to offer. Also Now TV only has a few titles in the monthly pass, all the rest you have to pay for! If you are a film and TV buff, best option is to buy Netflix AND LoveFilm combined for the same price as one Now TV subscription. The content is just as good with both combined and you won't have to "Pay to Play" any titles. Apple TV is still a cut above the rest, after all, it is designed for TV in mind. The Xbox 360 in it's core is a games console.
Report as inappropriateMatt23 August 2012
This is a good deal for me as I pay an extra £26.50 per month for Sky movies with HD on virgin media. I have xbox live gold anyway, so I can save myself £11.50 a month.
Report as inappropriateColin23 August 2012
If it has the audio/visual sync problems like SkyGo has on Xbox then I wouldn't waste your money as they will be unwatchable. It's been a problem for months now & Sky don't even bother answering your questions about it anymore & have toatlly ignored the problem.
Report as inappropriateMatt23 August 2012
I found the quality much better than sky go.
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