Last month, Microsoft confirmed rumors that December's dashboard update would kick off a push to transform the gaming console into a robust Internet TV platform. Perhaps the biggest name on the list of thirty-odd announced partners was Verizon, who would be bringing their FiOS TV service to the 360.
Today, Verizon has revealed further details of the partnership, which essentially has the 360 standing in for a set-top box. Much like Netflix, you'll need to download an application from Xbox Live to get things up and running. In an interesting (if not expected) move, the service will support Kinect's voice and gesture recognition. Yep, that mean's you'll finally be able to shout at your TV and have it listen. Finding the remote is so passé.
At launch, only 26 channels will be available to watch live through your 360, a relatively small subset of the nearly four hundred channels Verizon's high end packages offer. There's no word on when or by what margin that number will be expanding, but it doesn't look like the service will give you a reason to ditch the standard set-top box anytime soon.
As a special introductory offer, you'll be able to sign up for a combined TV and Internet package for $89.99 per month, with a 12-month Xbox Live Gold subscription and a copy of Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary thrown in to sweeten the deal.
There's no timeframe for when the service will be available, but expect to hear more about all of the 360's television offerings after the dashboard update goes live next Tuesday.
