Time was, you could plug a vast assortment of portable devices - including an iPod – into your Xbox 360, and it would not only recognise the hardware in question, but also stream media from it.

Strangely, however, connecting up a Windows Phone handset into an Xbox 360 is currently a fruitless exercise: Microsoft's console simply has no idea what the device is.

That – in a wireless sense, at least – is all set to change.

Close companion

Microsoft has announced both products are to be drawn closer together in the future, with the launch of an official Xbox Companion app turning handsets into remote controls.

Said feature, which features at around the 1 minute mark in the video below, is being pitched as part of Microsoft's update to TV services on the console, with users able to control films and TV shows with their phone.

It's also suggested the free app will grant Windows Phone users access to Xbox Live Marketplace, allowing them to browse the store's entire library of content.



"The app, which will be completely free for Windows Phone users, is an amazing little tool that will let you find, learn more about and control content from Xbox Live Marketplace on your Xbox 360," said Microsoft's Ben Rudolph.

"Rest assured that it's coming soon and that when it gets here, it’ll be a free download for Windows Phone customers."



[source: Microsoft]