For Microsoft and Xbox, Focus Shifts From Game to Video - NYTimes.com

See the full article for details on how Xbox content options are expanding

Microsoft said this month that it had sold 39 million Xbox 360 consoles around the world. About half sign into Xbox Live each month. At that size, “it starts to feel like a cable network,” said Mark Kroese, who oversees Xbox advertising sales for Microsoft. The company does not specify how many members pay for access to premium services like Netflix; basic functions of Xbox Live are free.

The company says it regularly counts more than a million concurrent users — and topped out at 2.2 million at one point during Christmas week last month. That compares favorably to some of the top channels on cable, like TBS and the Cartoon Network, which reach about one million viewers at any given time, according to the Nielsen Company.

For Microsoft and Xbox, Focus Shifts From Game to Video - NYTimes.com