News written by Jari Ketola (April, 2005)

Several pictures of the upcoming Xbox 360 console (or at least it's named Xbox 360 on the picture) have surfaced on the net. While pictures have surfaced in the past, the one seen now could be the one that will be shown at E3.

The device that will eventually hit the stores will most likely not be like the one shown here. Many remember the rather cool-looking X-shaped Xbox prototypes displayed by Microsoft after the first generation Xbox was announced.

The picture shows the disc tray, two memory ports, a power button and a possibly covered extension port. In addition there seems to be an IR port and maybe a button to trigger a wireless connection. Since no connectors are visible for the connectors, it's likely that the Xbox 360 will feature wireless controllers -- as has been suspected by many.

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A request for investigation has been filed against Viralg and BMG Finland by a Finnish musician. The musician, Pekka Sallinen has asked both the police department of Helsinki as well as the National Bureau of Investigation to investigate whether the use of technology developed by Viralg and used by BMG Finland is illegal.

Specifically Mr Sallinen asks the police to investigate whether or not the companies are in violation of the Finnish criminal law which strictly prohibits any kinds of interference with telecommunications. Viralg manufactures and markets a product which, according to them, breaks P2P downloads by injecting "bad data" to people downloading copyrighted material. According to Viralg, BMG Finland has been successfully using their technology since 2003.

Even though Viralg's technique of faking file hashes works only with some of the old peer-to-peer applications, such as Kazaa, it is nevertheless illegal to take matters into one's own hands when fighting against copyright infringements. Furthermore, downloading or copying music and video files for personal use via P2P networks (or any other means) is still perfectly legal in Finland. In his request for investigation Mr Sallinen reminds the investigators that action should be taken before companies take up a habit in defending their rights by illegal means.

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The next-generation Xbox console (Xbox 2, Xbox 360 or what ever it will be called) will be unveiled a week before E3 -- on May 12th. The unveiling will not be held behind closed doors to selected few, but on MTV in a half-hour special.

The special will be hosted by Elijah Wood and feature footage of next-generation Xbox games as well as online play. After the show viewers can visit the MTV site for more clips and content.

Both Sony's PlayStation 3 and Nintendo's Revolution game consoles will most likely be unveiled at E3. None of the manufacturers has announced a launch date as of yet, but the next-generation Xbox is expected to hit the stores by the end of the year. PlayStation 3 and Revolution are not expected before 2006.

Also according to Engadget Pepsi and Microsoft would team up before the Xbox 2 launch for a huge giveaway. In the promotion the companies would be giving away one console every ten minutes, 24 hours a day for nine weeks straight, which adds up to over 9,000 consoles in total. The giveaway would be realized in much the same way as the Apple iTunes promotion in 2003.

The MTV show will air in the US at 9:30PM EDT. Here's the schedule for the rest of the world:

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