British film being released as an Xbox Live-exclusive, Microsoft says there will be more

Independent British comedy film, Pulp, is bypassing cinemas, DVDs and other distribution methods and heading straight to Xbox Live for its debut release, the BBC reports.

The Xbox Live release will be a first for Microsoft's entertainment and gaming console, and it won't be the last, with a Microsoft spokesperson telling the BBC that it plans to distribute more films this way in the future.

Pulp director Adam Hamdy told the BBC that middle and lower tier budget filmmakers are struggling to get their films released, and opportunities to release films straight to DVD have declined as retailers go out of business due to the threat of piracy and digital downloads.

"Theatrical distribution, nowadays, costs on average about £2 million per movie for marketing, prints and advertising," he said. "For a film like Pulp, that doesn't have bankable stars with a track record, it's a challenge for any distributor to take that gamble."

Pulp is available to Xbox Live subscribers from today. It will cost viewers $15 (1,180 Microsoft Points) to download the standard definition version and $18 (1,420 Microsoft Points) for the high definition version.