Xbox 360 digital downloads a step towards international TV

As of now only the USA is going to be able to download episodes of Survivor and Aqua Teen Hungerforce. The rest of the world has to wait… sort of. Remember the region switching trick where you can register a profile in another region and gain access to the downloadable content? Mainly it has been used to pull demos like Tenchu Seran off of the Japanese servers, but when TV downloads become mainstream it can serve another purpose, pre-empting international distribution. In the USA we’re typically lucky to see episodes of CSI, 24 and South Park before the rest of the world. Europe has to wait for a period, which can range for a couple of weeks to a couple of months before seeing shows air locally. Now with legal digital downloads, the Xbox 360 can be an international distribution channel for other nations who want to see shows on a big screen TV without waiting. If Microsoft manages to strike a deal with an anime distributor, the BBC or the network in South Korea airing Starcraft matches we might be doing the same thing too.