Microsoft appear to be trying the doors of the lucrative movie download business for the Xbox360 with the announcement of a video content deal with music label Epic Records.
The partnership will see Microsoft offering exclusive artist content and high-definition music video downloads free to Xbox360 gamers for a year, via the Xbox Live Marketplace service.
Free downloads from twelve up-and-coming artists will be offered through the Artist of the Month (AOM) program, with grandma-untroubling, British singer Natasha Bedingfield kicking off the service.
Videos and “exclusive artist content” will also be made available for download from the Xbox site.
“Our goal has always been to make Xbox Live a cutting-edge entertainment experience”, insisted Peter Moore, corporate vice president of the Interactive Entertainment Business at Microsoft.
“This agreement with Epic Records offers our members exclusive artistic content directly from the source. With Artist of the Month we will be providing exactly what music-loving gamers want: brand-new, exclusive music videos that can be downloaded quickly, easily and free of charge,” he added.
Epic has already dished out music videos for the Xbox 360 from the likes of Franz Ferdinand and Audioslave, and their catalogue also includes acts like Shakira, Matisyahu, Jennifer Lopez and Antipodean dandruff shakers, AC/DC.
Each month Microsoft and Epic will announce the new Artist of the Month, along with exclusive benefits for Xbox360 users.