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It's the future, you know? There'll come a time where you don't have to make sure you're sat in front of the television at the right time, on the right day, to watch your favourite programs. And you won't have to remember to call in and rent that movie on your way home from the office.

You'll just sit down in front of the TV - and by that it point, it won't be the hulking, cathode-ray powered brute you're likely so comfortable with now; it'll be something far more svelte and slim line - pick which film or show you'd like to watch, and be basked in the crisp, high definition loveliness that follows.

At least, that's the future according to Microsoft. This week, they announced that they would be offering a new set of video downloads to their Xbox 360 console.

The Xbox 360, the world's first HD games console, (unless you listen to Sony) has offered video downloads since it's launch almost a year ago. Trailers for both games and movies, along with a variety of music videos have been accessible since launch using Microsoft's Xbox Live service in varying resolutions, offering gamers the chance to sample some true high definition video material.

That's to be expanded into a full-blown video download service, featuring movies and TV shows. Blockbusters like Superman Returns, The Matrix, and Batman Returns will be available as HD downloads. Episodes of Robot Chicken and Aqua Teen Hunger Force from The Cartoon Network will be available, amongst other, more varied TV shows like CSI, or Jericho.

It's an unsurprising move, but one that is likely to cause numerous headaches for Microsoft's competitors, the most obvious of which is Sony. The creators of the PS3 have an awful lot riding on their imminent yet troubled launch, and haven't — so far — announced any specifics for film and TV downloads on their system. Sony's machine contains Blu-ray technology, their ticket to HD multimedia content, and it's unlikely that they'd do anything to dilute the format's potential.

Sony have publicly criticized Microsoft's plans, reminding potential buyers — and presumably existing owners — that they'll be needing Microsoft's more expensive bundle if they're to enjoy the video download service. Both versions of Sony's PS3 console contain internal disk drives for content storage; the Core Xbox 360 system does not.

Sony's argument is that a future video download service for the PS3 will be available to all customers, not just those with more money to spend on their console. It's worth noting that the lowest price PS3 system retails for $500, while Microsoft's high-end premium bundle costs $400.

Aside from angering Microsoft's gaming nemesis, the move is certain to raise a few eyebrows at Apple's headquarters. Steve Jobs demonstrated their (codename) iTV system during a recent keynote speech, a set-top device that aims to allow video and audio streaming from other household computers, and the Internet. The iTV will likely be cheaper, quieter, and less power hungry than console equivalents, but — unless Steve has a few more tricks up his sleeve, a la the recent games for the iPod devices — it lacks the gaming capabilities that are the PS3 and 360's reason for being.

Apple have close ties with Google and, as a result, YouTube, which might mean their iTV device holds appeal for a different demographic to Microsoft and Sony's gaming heavyweights. Microsoft may leverage their MSN Soapbox service, a very similar beast to YouTube and Google Video, for the 360, but no plans have yet been announced to this end. Regardless, Soapbox hasn't captured the public's affections in the same way as YouTube.

Microsoft still has a few issues to overcome, aside from their competitors. The current, premium edition of the Xbox 360 has, theoretically, 20 gigabytes of available storage space. Theoretically, because a chunk of the drive is used for backwards compatibility with Xbox games, saves and downloadable content for Xbox 360 games, and can be used to improve performance during particularly intensive games; game data is copied to the drive, increasing the speed of a repeat use of a texture, or sound. Ultimately, this doesn't leave an enormous amount of space for downloads.

Films will be downloaded, watched, and deleted - at least, initially. Microsoft will allow the viewer 14 days to watch a "rental", after which it's removed from the drive. TV, however, is yours to keep. Given that most TV series stretch to 22 - 24 episodes, and each 60 minute show is claimed to take up 1 gigabyte of space, it's unlikely that a whole series could be stored on the existing drive. So, it stands to reason that a bigger hard disk drive would be released for the system.

The second, significant issue, is bandwidth. In my experience, Xbox Live isn't as fast during downloads as the "regular" Internet. It takes far longer to download 1 gigabyte of data on Xbox Live, than it does to download 1 gigabyte of data on my PC. Maybe my ISP/Xbox/Router/Wind turbines are configured incorrectly, but it's something I've read complaints about on Internet forums too.

Microsoft needs to ensure that the bandwidth is in place to support their new multimedia vision. They also need to ensure that it's as easy to achieve the required download speeds on your Xbox as it is on your PC.

Configuration issues aside, there's also the issue of time. Full length movies are likely to be around 5 gigabytes in size - a file that would take quite a while to download using today's internet connections. And while you don't have to sit and watch the download immediately, if the mood takes you and you have to watch a movie at this precise moment, a tedious wait in a download queue is the last thing you want.

In addition to this, Microsoft must launch the service outside of the US. It's not yet known whether the BBC or other broadcasters are interested in coming on board, and it's these deals that will be fundamental to Microsoft's success.

Regardless of the speculation, mud-slinging, and general grumpiness, the fact remains that Microsoft got there first. Again. The time for Sony to put their money where their mouth is fast approaches, a challenging launch period where all eyes will be upon the newcomer.

Microsoft can approach the holiday season with high stock levels, a raft of enticing multimedia content online, and some killer apps - built with the benefit of developer's increased familiarity with the system. Sony, on the other hand, has an eager fan base, arguably superior technology, and Blu-ray in their corner.

Sony's film and TV connections may well put them in a position to trump Microsoft's offering, given time, and Apple have proved in the past that they're not to be underestimated in this arena; iTunes has been a success where many have failed. Microsoft is unlikely to be the only source of on-demand HD content for very long.

The battle lines are drawn; intentions have been stated, and the fight is about to begin. It'll be an interesting one to watch.