It's hard being Canadian, thanks to cold winters, Stephen Harper speeches and a lone domestic team in the NHL playoffs.
It also means poorer digital entertainment compared to our American cousins, who are fat with online fun.
So when something happens in Canada on the digital entertainment front, it's either big news, or strangely ignored, because, frankly, we're not used to customer service. That might explain why two recent announcements from Google and Microsoft fell under the radar.
Play with Google
This month, Google introduced its cumbersomely named Google Play Music All Access service in Canada. Offering both a monthly subscription streaming service and direct purchase of individual songs and albums, it joins digital movies, books and magazines Google already offers here.
So why is a music service from Google important? Because we need the competition.
Microsoft has an excellent music service, with both streaming and purchases, and a reasonable video store. CinemaNow offers video and Slacker and Deezer offer streaming music.
Individually, some of these services are really good, but in Canada only iTunes offers the depth and breadth to be a one-stop shop for music, video and digital reading entertainment. With the entry of its music store, Google is moving closer to becoming a viable option to the Canadian iTunes juggernaut. Add its expanding online services to the increasing market share of Google-centric Android phones and tablets, especially among young people, and the arrival of Google's odd but ultra cheap Chromecast TV dongle to compete with the more expensive Apple TV, and you can have a digital ecosystem that doesn't require anything Apple. Increased competition and more choices for consumers are welcome in a country where everyone I know turns to iTunes by default as the online company store.
And it's Google. Big, rich, voracious. Expect it to offer more as time goes on.
Free the Xbox
Xbox One sales are going well, but not nearly as well as Sony's rival Playstation 4, which might explain a couple of recent moves by Microsoft. The most widely reported was the decision to offer a cheaper version of the Xbox One without automatically bundling in the Kinect motion sensing camera.
The other move is more far reaching, especially for those with the older but still viable Xbox 360. Microsoft removed the requirement to have an Xbox Live Gold subscription, for $60 a year, to use the console's entertainment apps like Netflix and YouTube. Xbox Live Gold made sense as a requirement for multiplayer online games on Xbox, but it gouged the many people who use their Xbox largely for entertainment. The Gold requirement was a big reason in addition to price why the Apple TV and Roku devices were better choices for non-gamers and cordcutters.
But without the Live Gold fee, suddenly the Xbox 360 looks interesting again. It's an excellent gaming machine, fully supported by Microsoft, with a pretty good (by Canadian standards) stable of entertainment apps, including Netflix, CinemaNow, YouTube, 8tracks, Crackle, Dailymotion, TMZ, Twitch, Hockey Night in
Canada, the NHL and MLB and Microsoft's own video and music services.
The cheapest version of the Xbox 360 goes for $199, which while a lot less than the Xbox One is pricier than the Apple TV at $109 or the various Roku versions. If you want to play a few nonmultiplayer games or want some of the apps, it might be a better value. Or look out for sales to make the purchase more palatable.
Tip: If you bought a Gold subscription solely to use the entertainment apps, Microsoft will offer you a pro-rated refund if you request a cancellation by Aug. 31.
Win a tablet
Did I say life in Canada involved sacrifice? Not for Practical Geek readers, who have a chance to win a tablet courtesy of Samsung Canada, who've graciously offered two 10-inch Galaxy Tab Pro devices as free giveaways.
To enter, send me an email at [email protected] with the subject line TABLET CONTEST and answer the following question: What do you use your tablet for? It's that simple, and keep your answers short. The two winners will be randomly drawn from all entries on Friday, June 6. I'll announce the results in my next column.
Barry Link is editor of the Vancouver Courier newspaper and a geek enthusiast.
[email protected] @trueblinkit
