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To commemorate the first anniversary of the Xbox 360 (which is November 22nd if you're into giving your console birthdays), Microsoft has decided to step into Apple's arena and start offering video downloads via Xbox Live. They've made deals with CBS, MTV Networks, Paramount Pictures, Turner, and Warner Bros. to bring high-definition content to the Xbox 360, making it "the first gaming console in history to provide high-definition TV shows and movies directly to gamers in their living rooms." To check out a partial list of what you'll be able to get, hit the jump! Read The Full Story

Well, at least they're willing to admit that they screwed up. Microsoft's new update, which enables 1080p in video and games as well as a number of other things, also has managed to disable a number of consoles completely, turning them into "bricks". Microsoft has now acknowledged the problem, which originally was thought to only affect those users with modified consoles. This is now known not to be the case, and like any reasonable gamer, they're kinda mad about it. Microsoft claims that "less than 1%" of users are affected, stating:

"We're working with those affected to get them back up and running, whether that be by providing another console, or fixing their existing console. We're committed to resolving this issue. Over the next 24 hours, our product team will be working to ensure that those unaffected remain unaffected."

Would-be game programmers all over the world rejoice; Microsoft has released the second beta of its XNA Game Studio, allowing users to program code that can be shared (for a $99 a year fee) with other users for use on your Xbox 360. Beta 2 introduces a few new features for users to play with; the XNA Framework Content Pipeline allows third-party applications to be utilized to create XNA applications, while Microsoft has changed the interface around a bit to be less confusing. Finally, while users still can't run their creations on a real Xbox 360, Beta 2 allows users to pre-compile their code to be used when XNA Studio Final is released. Given the reception that the first beta received, it looks like there might just be a popular Xbox 360 homebrew community in the near-future. [via IGN]

Hot on the heels of their newly-released 1080p update, Microsoft is also apparently looking to make a statement to hackers all over the world. New security updates detect modified consoles and immediately disable them, effectively making your $300-$400 consoles the world's largest paperweight. So far, the only solution has been to remove the modded firmware, but I wouldn't be surprised to see the hacker community finding a fix sooner rather than later. So, until such time as either Microsoft decides to let the hackers be or the hackers decide to stop modifying their consoles (neither seems likely), the war will rage on. And if you have an Xbox 360 that's been, er, "improved," you might want to hold off on updating your console until a fix is found. [via 1UP]