Xbox LIVE Update Drops November 17, 2009

Microsoft will make available the next update to the service it has built around its Xbox console, come next week. Larry Hryb, the director of programming for the Microsoft gaming network Xbox Live, revealed that the Redmond company would offer all members of the Xbox LIVE community the latest refresh to the service starting with November 17, 2009. At the time of this article, the Xbox LIVE update has been already offered to a select pool of testers. However, it appears that Microsoft’s Preview Program for the upcoming Xbox LIVE Update will soon be shut down, as the company will start delivering the fully-fledged refresh.

“I know some of you are already enjoying many of these features through the Preview Program, but I am happy to announce that the next update that contains Facebook, Twitter, Last.fm and Zune video will be available to all Xbox LIVE members launch Nov. 17,” Hryb noted.

When it comes to the Windows LIVE update there are a few things that Xbox console users need to be aware of. First off, the refresh is designed to kill unauthorized memory units. The Redmond company made it clear in October, when it debuted the Preview Program, that it would tackle the usage of unauthorized memory units with Xbox 360 consoles.

In addition, not all users will be free to enjoy the new enhanced social networking capabilities of Xbox LIVE. Testers that have been running the public preview and that were younger than 18 were cut off from accessing Twitter, Facebook, or Last.fm. This situation will not change after Microsoft will release the fully-fledged update.

“We made this decision because as it stands now, parents aren’t able to use Family Settings to customize which of these applications their children can access. In order to offer an age-appropriate environment for everyone, we decided to turn off these applications for those Gold members under the age of 18. As expected, this has been a hot topic with the preview users. We want to make sure everyone was aware, however, that the development team is working on an update that gives parents the choice of which social applications their children can access. This means that Xbox LIVE members between the ages of 13 and 17 will be able to use Facebook, Twitter and Last.fm as long as their parents approve,” Hryb added.