Summary: News: Microsoft's bid to rule your living room with the Xbox 360 begins tomorrow Microsoft laid out a grand plan to turn your Xbox 360 into an even stronger hub for everything from television shows and movies to music at E3 this year. That dashboard update launches tomorrow, bringing with it the ability to use your Kinect to search for content across every service you have connected to your system, as well as Microsoft's digital storefronts on Xbox Live and live television. Unfortunately, not all of Microsoft's content partners will be ready for the service's launch tomorrow. HBO Go won't be available until early 2012, nor will Comcast's Xfinity on-demand library. Here are the services that will be available tomorrow, along with which market they will be active: EPIX. United States ESPN on Xbox LIVE (ESPN). United States Hulu. Japan Hulu Plus. United States LOVEFiLM. United Kingdom Netflix. Canada, United States Premium Play by (MediaSet). Italy Sky Go (SkyDE). Austria, Germany Telefónica España - Movistar Imagenio. Spain TODAY (MSNBC). United States The search functionality that allows you to look for content across a variety of outlets and apps is fascinating, as is the ability to control the service by waving your arms if you own a Microsoft Kinect, but the real power of these deals is the emphasis they place on Microsoft's hardware. By bundling all our digital subscriptions and content through the Xbox 360, Microsoft wants to make sure your gaming console is at the heart of your entertainment center. Xbox Live subscribers and subscribers of these digital services won't have access to much in the way of new content, but it will all be centralized in one location. This is different than the Apple TV's strategy of offering content such as television shows and movies as discrete items and selling or renting them directly to consumers as well as streaming your existing content. Microsoft wants to be the box you turn on when you want to watch anything, whether it's live or streaming, no matter what content delivery service you're going to be enjoying. http://arstechnica.com/gaming/news/2011/12/microsofts-bid-to-rule-your-living-room-with-the-xbox-360-begins-tomorrow.ars Gowalla confirms move to Facebook, service to shut down in January Reports of an acquisition first surfaced on CNN Money late last week, and now Gowalla has confirmed that it has indeed been acquired by Facebook. According to the company, the Gowalla service itself will be winding down at the end of January, and the team will instead focus all of their attention on developing Facebook features (namely, Timeline). Gowalla's Josh Williams also assures users that their personal information isn't a part of the acquisition, although the company will be providing users with a way to export their Passport data and other information. You can find his full post announcing the deal at the source link below. http://www.engadget.com/2011/12/05/gowalla-confirms-move-to-facebook-service-to-shut-down-in-janua/ Grand Central Apple Store opening December 9th, giving New Yorkers eight billionth way to buy an iPad It's been a long time coming, but it looks like Apple's finally ready to take the wraps off its latest store. The company's latest New York City outpost is set to get its grand opening in landmark Grand Central Terminal on December 9th, leaving only a few weeks for some combative holiday shopping amidst tourists, fellow commuters and kids from the suburbs. According to an email sent to customers, the store will open its doors for the first time on Friday at 10AM, so you should probably start lining up in an hour or two -- after all, nothing beats claustrophobia, a little elbowing and that new Apple Store smell, right? http://www.engadget.com/2011/12/05/grand-central-apple-store-opening-december-9th-giving-new-yorke/ ************* Geek This Week: Aaron: Path for iOS,
