Microsoft partners with Blockbuster for Live Mesh services

Blockbuster last week introduced a set-top box that brings movie rentals from the Internet to the television.

Today it announced a partnership with Microsoft that will let users watch Internet movies on a variety of mobile devices. The ultimate goal, Blockbuster said, was to give "instant access" to any movie to any device that had the broadband link and a screen.

The service is an extension of Live Mesh, which so far functions mostly as a synchronization tool for files and calendars between PCs, Macs and Windows Mobile. Live Mesh is currently in beta.

The first step of the Microsoft/Blockbuster partnership could be for situations such as airports ... where users can connect to the Internet and download a movie to their portable player device before they board the plane. Eventually, Blockbuster plans to build out more features and services, such as the ability to pause a movie in one room and resuming play on a different device or on another Internet-enabled TV in another room, reports the Dallas Morning news.

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