Microsoft launches MSN News Beta for Windows Vista Media Center

MSNBC TV
Microsoft has begun rolling out a new application for Windows Vista Media Center that lets users browse, search, and watch videos from MSNBC News on their media center PCs. The new MSNBC News Beta should be available under the TV + Movies section in Vista Media Center. If you don't see it, try forcing an update by navigating to the automatic downloads option in the settings tab and hitting the download updates button.

Microsoft has been making some MSNBC content available through the Internet TV menu for the past year. But the MSNBC News Beta application has a completely new interface. You can browser top stories, election related stories, or view weather forecasts for your area. There's also a search box which lets you find recent news videos related to a specific topic, like Sarah Palin.

The interface is also unusual in that you can easily browser for additional content while watching a video in full-screen mode. Just click the OK button on a Media Center remote control and a window will pop up allowing you to navigate through the various news categories.

It's nice to see Microsoft release a new application for Windows Media Center. It would be even nicer if Microsoft would make more of the content that's available on MSN Video available using the 10-foot Media Center interface. Hulu content, perhaps?

Tags: msnbc, msnbc-tv-beta, windows-vista, windows-vista-media-center