Skip to main content

Microsoft lifts Xbox Live Gold requirement for Netflix's 'House of Cards' premiere

Microsoft lifts Xbox Live Gold requirement for Netflix's 'House of Cards' premiere

Share this story

House of Cards title shot
House of Cards title shot

Tomorrow marks the debut of House of Cards, the latest original series from Netflix. All season one episodes will be available to watch instantly, so subscribers wil be theoretically be able to stream the entire thing in a single weekend. In fact, if you're a Silver member of Xbox Live, that's probably not a bad idea. For three days only, Microsoft has announced that it will be "unlocking" the Netflix app for non-paying gamers.

Typically the Xbox 360 Netflix app is available exclusively to Xbox Live Gold members, which means users need to pay two subscription fees to stream content on the console. Clearly Netflix wants as many eyes as possible on its prized new show this weekend — the company has reportedly sunk $100 million into its production. As a refresher, we've embedded the Kevin Spacey-narrated teaser trailer for House of Cards below. Early reviews have been positive, which bodes well for Netflix as it looks to produce original programming that stands toe-to-toe with HBO.