Widgets and gadgets are the latest trend to hit HDTVs. Vizio is upping the game by equipping its soon-to-be-released HDTVs with an impressive suite of Internet applications and video streaming sites. So much so, that this portfolio will place them on top of many people’s wish list as these TVs will be better equipped than a TiVo or even Windows Media Server.

Xbox 360 owners-

On June 16th, the Xbox team is shutting down Live and Xbox.com for maintenance. This will cause your Netflix streaming on your Xbox 360 to cease while Microsoft fiddles with your console.

There hasn’t been too much buzz lately about that Netflix programming contest. You remember the one: Netflix ponied up $10M US dollars to any team that could improve their movie recommendation system by 10%. When I was a Netflix user I was never really dissatisfied by the recommendation system, so it’s hard for me to imagine how they’d gauge that it was 10% better than it was before. Nonetheless, lots of very smart people took the challenge, and an awful lot of progress has been made.

Looks like Windows Media Center, that hub for video and audio which I’ve never used, is getting full Netflix streaming support. This is good news for those of you running HTPCs with Vista on them — no need for an extra layer or frontend, just open up WMC, enter your info and you’re on your way.

If you’re not a member, hit up some free trial action and you could be watching a movie in about two minutes without leaving your chair.

Again with the Plex. I know, I know. But! Today’s news is legitimately interesting: Netflix is now fully functional within Plex, the best damn Mac media player out there.

Today, Viacom and Netflix announced a new agreement that will bring hit shows from various Viacom networks, like, Comedy Central and Nickelodeon to your Xbox, laptop, etc. Yes, that means you can stream all 139 episodes from the first nine seasons of South Park right now. And for the kids – there’s a slew of Nickelodeon programming available so you don’t have to tend to your own flesh and blood.

To all 1 million or so Netflix subscribers who’ve opted for Blu-ray discs, you’re in for another price hike in the coming weeks. What started as a $1 surcharge last September will eventually amount to an increase that’s triple or quadruple what you’re paying now for your online DVD rental service. Before steam starts blowing out of your ears let’s see what that increase actually amounts to.

Oh. My. God. Neflix on the PS3. Can it be real? Please let it be real! I need yet another way to see a dodgy stream of a dodgy movie.

Movie recommendations have most often been through word of mouth, but Netflix wants you to work harder to talk about the movies you watched over the weekend. The Netflix Updates application for Facebook users allows you to share your movie ratings with friends and view friend’s ratings through your news feed.

I am expecting the common reactions: “But I don’t want everyone to see my ratings!”, “I hate Facebook!”, “I hate change!” As with any Facebook application, you can control what your friends see. You can have Facebook prompt you before publishing any stories from Netflix Updates, or you can have Facebook update automatically without prompting. There is also an option to have your stories posted in one-line, short, or full. I put mine to one-line because I don’t want to contribute to the clutter already on my friend’s news feeds.

Blockbusters Video’s mail rental program is about to get a shred of awesomeness in the form of game rentals. The program will slowly be rolled out starting with a pilot program with select subscribers. You know what this could mean though right? There will finally be a reason to subscribe to Blockbuster instead of Netflix. That is, of course, if the price is right and the game selection sufficient.

Netflix streaming launched just a few months ago and already the sevice has streamed 1.5 billion minutes of TV shows and movies. The company stated that over 1 million Xbox’s have connected up with the service to stream content so far. There isn’t an official number of how many Xbox owners subscribed to the service exclusively for the streaming service, but I know of at least one: me. Only time will tell if the service already peaked or if there is still more growing room.

Blockbuster made good on it’s word to launch a streaming media platform before the end of 2008 and now BB is launching a computer-based movie streaming service just like Netflix. Actually, I’m sure a PR tool will be quick to point out via a nasty email that this service isn’t ‘just like Neflix’, but come on, it is.

The Xbox1 came out in November of 2001. Four years later, November of 2005, Microsoft released the Xbox 360. So, should we expect a new Xbox eight months hence? In a word, no

After announcing viewers will be able to access Netflix movies directly from new LG HDTVs just two days ago, Netflix has done it again. This time, new owners of special Vizio TVs will be able to watch Netflix movies with no additional hardware necessary.

Not much else to add but the Roku Netflix box will soon be able to stream 40,000 Amazon titles on demand, “enabling Roku customers for the first time to watch new release movies titles instantly.” The movies cost as much as the do on Amazon and the box will simply connect to your online account and have no movie adding/browsing functionality. The system should be similar to the current Netflix system.

Watch new release movies the same day that they are released on DVD. Hit titles such as “The Dark Knight,” “Hancock,” “Pineapple Express”, “Tropic Thunder” and hundreds more that are not currently available on the Roku Player.

Oh, Blu-ray. Is this your year—wasn’t last year supposed to be your year?—or will you wallow in relative obscurity while the world falls apart all around you?

Just a few weeks ago we were all excited to see Netflix streaming makes its way to the Xbox 360 and Series 3 TiVos. Ha, that’s already obsolete, as LG plans to release a TV with the service built-in. And yes, this is the first deal of its kind.