MICROSOFT: Voice control leads New Xbox Experience

Microsoft has announced a new Xbox 360 interface will introduce enhanced voice control, YouTube, Bing and live television.

The new features were introduced by Xbox Live’s corporate vice president Marc Whitten during Microsoft’s E3 press conference.

Voice control will be central to the experience, allowing Kinect users to access and browse through their games, TV, movies, music and more without using a controller.

Whitten went on to explain that Microsoft is working to increase the range of entertainment available through Xbox Live.

"We’re going to increase our number of partnerships by a factor of 10 and increase catalogue from hundreds of thousands to millions," he said.

To highlight this point, he announced that YouTube will be coming to Xbox Live. Users will now be able to explore all of the video network’s content, again via voice control.

Microsoft will also integrate its search engine Bing to provide a content search function. Instead of a full web browser, this will enable users to explore any content available through Xbox Live, grouping them by brand or franchise. So saying "Bing X-Men", for example, will give you a list of all X-Men related games and movies.

"The power of voice control, the intelligence of Bing," said Whitten. "You say it, Xbox finds it."

The then announced that Microsoft will introduce live TV with the new interface. The platform holder is partnering with leading TV providers in the US and around the world.

One such partner is UFC, a deal that will allow for unique interactivity while users are watching matches. Gamers will be able to vote on who they think will win each bout, and then compare their predictions with friends.

"This is the future of television," said Whitten. "Effortless, accessible. Television is better when you are the controller."

The New Xbox Experience, which includes all of these new features and services, will launch this Autumn.