Xbox One Wins An Emmy Award

Phil Spencer, Head of Microsoft's Xbox Division and Microsoft Studios, Speaks During the Xbox E3 Media Briefing at USC's Galen Center in Los Angeles — Phil Spencer, head of Microsoft's Xbox division and Microsoft Studios, speaks during the Xbox E3 Media Briefing at the University of Southern California's Galen Center in Los Angeles, California June 9, 2014. REUTERS

With the Emmy awards on the way, it's a bit head-scratching to realize one winner has already been determined. Rather than picking an actual actor or actress, maybe even a producer, writer or someone behind the scenes of an actual television show, an Emmy has instead been rewarded to Microsoft's Xbox One console. The Xbox One Wins an Emmy.This is serious, as Gamespot has also reported it in.

This isn't a categorized award either and is surprisingly nothing new as past awards have gone to Apple, Sony, TiVo and Roku. The award itself is called The Emmy Award for Television Enhancement Devices and the award show itself is the 66th Annual Technology & Engineering Emmy Awards, which is probably new to many people. Eurogamer was also quite shocked about the news when reporting about it.

The Xbox One was recognized for its industry leading television-on-demand and media centre capabilities. Aside from video games, the Xbox One is capable of playing DVDs, Blu-Rays and music CDs. The console can also support MKV and DLNA files for people who buy their movies online through iTunes or Amazon Prime.

Micorsoft was also praised for the Xbox's interactive television guide, which allows people to control the television via their voice. A person can literally say "off" and watch their television go off, along with switching channels and probably changing the volume.

It also has a huge supply of applications available. These include: Amazon Instant Video, CinemaNow, Comedy Central, Crackle, CW, ESPN, Fox Now, FX Now, GoPro Channel, Hulu Plus, Machinima, MLB.TV, Major League Gaming, MTV, NBA Game Time, Netflix, NHL Gamecenter Live, Starz Play, Syfy Now, TED, Univision Deportes, USA Now, Verizon FiOS, VH1, Vudu, the WWE Network, and YouTube. Meanwhile, UK-specific apps include 4OD, Blinkbox, Demand 5, Eurosport, Netflix, Now TV, TED, Twitch, Wuaki.tv.

In a way, it is kind of ironic for Microsoft to win this award after a mandate to have the console be more video game focused. The lack of focus on the Xbox One's multimedia entertainment value has actually led to many developers leaving Microsoft for other pastures. Still, congratulations to Microsoft. No news, though, if the PlayStation 4 was in the running or if it will try to rebound via the Oscars.