Both Google and Apple are working out how they might offer TV subscription services via Internet-based systems and set-top boxes. Not to be left out, Microsoft has been poking around the industry, looking at how they might offer something similar through their Xbox game console—a device that a lot of households already have attached to their family television set.

The story breaks over at paidContent.org with a little bit of extra detail on what Microsoft might be thinking,

Microsoft is considering a range of possibilities for becoming a “virtual cable operator.” The basic scenario would call for Microsoft charging Xbox users a monthly subscription as part of an internet streaming service, similar to other over-the-top providers like Boxee. It would also consider participating in the “TV Everywhere” concept by using Xbox to authenticate current cable subscribers and allowing them to watch shows through its interactive system.

In that case, Microsoft would establish “content silos” by selling individual channels such as HBO or Showtime directly to its users. The company is already doing that with only ESPN 3 on the XBox Live online service.

The fact that a great deal of households already own an Xbox, and would be connected to Xbox Live, means that Microsoft already has a foot in the door when it comes to offering Internet-TV services. As it’s likely that the Xbox hardware itself is already capable of streaming and supporting longer format media (it already streams extremely long episodic and DLC content.) It might be a firmware or software upgrade to switch up to the TV service.

It’s also interesting to see the thought-process inside the software giant about how they might start offering channels a la carte. A format which a lot of cable companies—who would further suffer from cable-cutting should families with Xboxes choose to switch from cable to Xbox-streaming—used to shy away from, but are starting to look at (or much cheaper packages) in this era of increased telecommunications and streaming capabilities.