Announced just moments ago during the Xbox 360 E3 press conference, Microsoft is set to bring live television to millions of Xbox 360 owners around the world.

While the details are scarce, and the overall price-point and actual series availability has yet to be announced, Microsoft has revealed that ABC’s Castle will be amongst the shows available when the service eventually launches.

Proving that they’re attempting to establish a broadcasting medium that has long been hoped for, Microsoft is foregoing any typical broadcast provider and instead is working directly with the content providers to make their shows available during live broadcast.

With the announcement that Xbox 360 around the world will have certain series available to them (according to regional availability), this is the first sign that the landscape is changing – and hopefully Internet television availability will be as widely available in America (and other parts of the world) as it currently is in the UK.

Considering this service will require a large amount of financial investment from Microsoft, one should expect that this new live television service will not be included in the familiar Xbox Live Gold package. Of course, until more information is released, this is pure speculation.

Even though watching live television on your Xbox 360 is nowhere near the same as being able to watch it on your computer, it does prove that certain content providers are open to the medium of online broadcasting. Hopefully this is something that will not only continue, but also evolve.

Until all of the final details are released, it’s hard to say whether or not Microsoft’s new television series on the Xbox 360 will be everything we hope it to be – but at least we can all agree that this a step in the right direction.

With the online presence of entertainment quickly growing into something content providers must now focus on, it’ll be interesting to see how this conceptual broadcast medium will impact not only the way that audiences view their favorite program, but also the way that content providers allow their shows to be viewed.

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As E3 is still underway, expect to hear more about Microsoft’s new service in the coming days - and be sure to get all of the latest and greatest E3 Coverage over at Game Rant.

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Follow Anthony on Twitter @anthonyocasio