An example of the effects of BASIC on a fragile young mind.

I have been waiting for Microsoft to release updates to Windows Media Center that would integrate Netflix and Hulu so that I could set my living room PC to boot straight into Media Center and view all of the media I want from there.  What a dream that would be for a nerd like me who loves TV and movies!  It would be great to be able to watch anything from the comfort of my couch using only a remote control.

But, of course, this is asking too much.

Last month, Microsoft incorporated Netflix into Media Center, but fell woefully short on bringing any sort of  TV-on-the-Internet to my TV.  Instead, Microsoft rolled out their “Internet TV” offering, which at first appeared to be dozens and dozens of popular shows along with a smattering of classic CBS-owned properties.  Upon further investigation, however, I found that all of the”Internet TV” offerings—with the classics being the only exception—were either promotional clips of those shows or interviews with the cast.

Grabbing whatever throw-away, nearly valueless properties that NBC and CBS had lying around isn’t the best way to roll out a new product feature, especially when Apple’s pay-per-download via iTunes and Hulu’s desktop client exist.  Microsoft new feature is 90% junk.

Despite all this, I was mildly enthused that every episode of the original Star Trek series was included in the roll-out.  This could have made up for my disappointment in the lack of Hulu support in Media Center if it weren’t for Microsoft’s method of delivering commercials.  Microsoft only shows three ads during the 42 minutes of program time an average episode takes up, however, those ads are over twice the volume of the programming.  So watching Kirk and Bones engage in gladiatorial combat is interrupted by booming ads for the Cadillac CTS, making the viewing experience incredibly annoying for me, and nearly totally intolerable for my poor girlfriend.

So, despite the fact that Windows runs on somewhere around 90% of U.S. computers and the XBOX 360—a potential media center— is attached to over 31 mllion televisions, Microsoft will almost certainly lose the battle for the living room.  Hulu, Apple, or some other dark horse competitor will capture this market push the cable operators off their perches as near-monopoly providers of television programming.  Why?  Because even thought Microsoft has such a strong advantage, they are incapable of offering their customers a quality experience in all but a few product categories.

Instead of offering full-length episodes and funny clips of shows like Hulu, Microsoft offers mostly promotional materials that bury the good content.  Instead of making commercial more tolerable by making them brief and infrequent, Microsoft has made them a booming distraction that makes their television offering close to unwatchable.  How anyone at Microsoft could have approved this deeply flawed product is beyond me.

While companies like Apple are redefining what it means to offer a quality customer experience, Microsoft continues churn out unpolished mediocrity.  I feel like a teacher who repeatedly gets essays from a student who simply refuses to read his own writing—typos and flagrant erros abound.  All the market share in the world (which Microsoft nearly has) can’t make up for that.

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