Telstra confirms support for Xbox Console Streaming in Australia

An internal Telstra email has confirmed that the telco will support Xbox Console Streaming in Australia.

The email was written by Michael Ackland, Group Executive Consumer & Small Business at Telstra, and sent to staff yesterday afternoon. It details the company’s partnership with Microsoft Australia and the newly announced Xbox All Access Australia rent-to-own program.

It continues on to confirm that the Telstra is “also supporting Xbox Console Streaming, offering customers the ability to stream these games from their Xbox console in and out of the home to compatible Android and iOS devices.”

A timeframe on the availability of Xbox Console Streaming in Australia was not given, though US- and UK-based Xbox Insiders in the Alpha and Alpha Skip-Ahead rings have access to the functionality from today.

Xbox Console Streaming is different from Project xCloud and allows a player to stream from their Xbox One and its home network to a handheld device of choice. Users will be able to stream any Xbox 360 or Xbox One games they currently own, including Xbox Game Pass titles if they’re a subscriber.

While Console Streaming offers a larger (potential) pool of games than Project xCloud to play on the go, it requires a fairly heavy upload speed to do so. Microsoft has advised that those wishing to use the functionality must first ensure their Xbox One console is on a network that meets the following minimum requirements:

• NAT type: Open or Moderate
• Upstream bandwidth: At least 4.75 Mbps required, 9 Mbps preferred
• Network latency: 125 ms or less required, 60 ms or less preferred
• Console settings: Power setting must be Instant-on

“Marrying our incredible technology with Microsoft’s for our customers’ benefit is also a no-brainer. As gaming moves to the cloud, companies like ours will have a competitive advantage thanks to fast new networks and a depth of cutting-edge tech,” Telstra’s memo continues.

“As our consumer 5G network also continues to evolve, it’s set to deliver faster download speeds and lower latency, and combined with servers around the country, will play a big role in untethering the gaming experience across any device, in and out of the home.

“As the gaming industry continues to grow and evolve from fixed hardware to gaming in the cloud, the importance of fast network speed and low latency is critical to customers getting the most out of their gaming experience. We are focused on continuous improvement of these measures across our mobile and fixed networks.”

We’ve asked Microsoft and Telstra for further comment on Australian Xbox Console Streaming availability, including availability and whether or not the companies have partnered for this functionality like Microsoft has with T Mobile in the USA, Vodafone in Europe and SK Telecom in South Korea in regards to Project xCloud.

Update: Microsoft and Telstra have told Stevivor that the email we’ve sighted was “an older draft version of the final blog post found on Telstra Exchange here” but didn’t explain why that particular version was emailed to staff. In the blog post, the portion referring to Xbox Console Streaming is absent from the customer-facing post “as it’s not confirmed”.

“At this time, the Xbox Console Streaming preview is available to Xbox Insiders in the United States and the United Kingdom,” a statement sent to Stevivor continued. “We look forward to expanding the preview to new markets in the months to come to continue testing the new technology and learning from Xbox Insiders.

“We have nothing more to share about additional preview markets at this time.”