When the Xbox One comes out at the end of 2013, buyers will be able to plug their cable boxes directly into the console for TV. But Xbox 360 owners are still getting some new TV options as well. This morning, Microsoft announced a deal with Time Warner Cable that will bring its live TV options to the Xbox 360. A Time Warner Cable app, set to launch later in the summer, will offer subscribers the option to stream TV directly through the Xbox. Like many of the 360's other features, you'll need an Xbox Live Gold membership in addition to Time Warner Cable credentials; if you have both, you'll be able to access any channel you've paid for through TWC.

Microsoft has already made several deals with other cable TV companies or channels. Verizon came to the platform early, bringing FiOS TV to the Xbox 360 in 2011. Many individual channels, including ESPN and HBO, are available across the board for cable subscribers already. But this adds a major US cable provider to the list. Of course, depending on how that streaming TV data is counted, we could also see a rehash of the controversy Comcast sparked with its Xfinity TV platform for the Xbox.