With Windows 10, Microsoft has a number of new features in mind to entice both long-time users and newcomers, including a variety of popular first-party apps, as well as a forthcoming Minecraft beta, which was announced this past weekend at the Minecon event in London. However, it’s also rebranding its media channels, in an effort to focus more on a general experience.
As reported by the company on its official blog page, Microsoft has opted to rename both its Xbox Music and Xbox Video brands, in an effort to be more mainstream. From hereon in, Xbox Music will now be known as the Groove service, while Xbox Video will become simply Movies & TV.
Regarding the Groove service, the company said in its blog, “Our fans asked for faster ways to access the music they love – quickly, efficiently and on their favorite devices. And for that, we’re proud to introduce the evolution of our current Xbox Music experience, now titled Groove, with new features we think you’re going to love. Groove describes what people feel and do with music, and is more intuitive for our Windows 10 customers on what they’ll find with the app.”
The Groove app will provide an all-new look to Xbox’s music services, along with access to OneDrive integration, so that songs can be uploaded into the cloud and shared amongst a number of devices, including Xbox game consoles. The company has also begun offering a Groove Music Pass subscription, Microsoft’s own ad-free premium music service, for $9.99 a month or $99.99 a year – no doubt wanting to be a competitor to the recently launched Apple Music.
The Groove service already offers access to 40 million tracks, according to the company, and also allows users to build custom radio stations, along the same lines as Pandora and Spotify.
As for Videos & TV, a new exploration feature will be introduced, allowing users to import personal videos from their collection, as well as shop for new movies and television shows through the Windows Store. Additional file formats are set to be supported as well, including .MKV.
Whether these services will be a success has yet to be seen, as Windows 10 is still going through a few touch-ups. However, it appears that Microsoft is gearing up for a more casual audience – even though the Xbox name will still clearly stick with the company as it launches a number of hit games for the Xbox One console this fall, including Forza Motorsport 6 and Halo 5: Guardians.
