A Microsoft job posting, noticed by Ars Technica, is looking for a "LIVE Community Director", who would be asked to...

...manage [Microsoft's] LIVE community strategy and execution across a range of properties, from Xbox LIVE to Windows Mobile. This senior position will play a vital role in the community space as the LIVE Engagement team builds and program's Microsoft's next-generation, LIVE-enabled casual and social gaming platform across the Web, the console, mobile and beyond.

Live Anywhere always sounded like a bit of a pipe dream back when it was first announced. But now, in 2009, the technology actually exists to get the thing up and running, especially Microsoft now have a HD Zune. Be interesting to see what they can come up with in the coming months.

Or, seeing as it's Live Anywhere we're talking about, the coming years.

Xbox gaming platform may soon span Web, console, mobile [Ars Technica]

Now we have a job listing on Microsoft's web site. It's for a "User Experience Designer". And in the brief, it mentions that the successful applicant will be working on, among other things, the "Zune Xbox".

Zune Xbox?

Before you start slobbering "OMG MS handheld confirmed", that's likely not what this is. It's mentioned among other applications, and is likely just that: an application. For the existing Zune.

Wonder what it could be for? Could we access our 360's Netflix setup remotely? Are we finally about to get the near-mythical Live Anywhere?

Maybe! We could go on, but since this story revolves around two words in a job posting, we won't. That would be jumping to conclusions, and you lot are good enough at that as it is. You don't need our help.

User Experience Designer [Microsoft, via Cnet]

It crashes a lot, I told Hyrb, but I still use it because it's the only option for tracking folks on live on my phone. What about Live Anywhere?

They haven't forgotten about it, Hryb assured me, they've just had higher priority projects they've been working on. Things like the new Xbox Live Experience set to roll out this Fall. So it's still coming.

And what about the iPhone. Would Microsoft be behind an office App for the Apple device? Sure, why not. Plenty of Xbox 360 gamers have iPhones, he said.

I wait, anxiously, for that long-promised portable Live experience.

The concept, captured in blurry pics later that year, would allow gamers to access Live via a cellphone so they could check friend status, Achievements, all the data of Live, on the go.

Bell said not to give up hope. "Live anywhere is not abandoned, it's just not easy to do."

And then he never mentioned it again.

All of the panelists were hanging out in the Green Room before the blogging panel at PAX, when we started comparing sexy phones.

Well, I was mostly bitching about how often my Treo 700W locks-up on me. At least I don't get the blue screen of death.

So Major Nelson whips out his phone and says, "I bet your phone doesn't have this." and proceeds to jog through a bunch of Live Anywhere windows on his svelte phone.

Nice. I tried to take two pictures of it, but, well, I suck at taking pictures. MN couldn't say when Msoft would be bringing the Live Anywhere to the people. Brian Crecente

Live Anywhere — Microsoft's sort of hazy initiative to expand Live features to PCs and Mobile Platforms — hasn't really gotten much press since E3... and barely even then. Ozymandias of Team Xbox thinks that's because "this is one of those things that's bigger than people can easily wrap their heads around." Right! Like the implications of time travel or what happens to you after you die.

Anyway, he's updated his personal blog, enthusiastically gushing about some of the stuff you'll be able to do in Live Anywhere. He describes being able to purchase Zuma on the 360, then downloading a cell phone version and trying to beat your score, or send challenges to other friends.

Obviously, Ozymandias is pretty excited about it, and it does sound cool. But we're remaining a bit skeptical until we can see it in action. Call us crazy, but it all sounds pretty complicated, and while we're sure that you'll be able to download Zuma wherever, our instinct is that if this is badly handled, the exceptions to the cool new features Ozymandias is talking about will outweigh the rule. Florian Eckhardt

Live Anywhere and Everywhere (But Even There?) [Ozymandias]

While I'd lovev to think the thing will play Live Arcade games, according to the same site it will only come with a 30GB harddrive, making it too small to hold the full-sized, unported titles, or at least most of them.

I suspect that it will instead use Live Anywhere to support mini-games, music and video. Ooooh, maybe chatting too. That could be pretty cool, though painful with most interfaces. Brian Crecente

The Microsoft Player, Part I: Guiding Strategy [Digital Music News]

There were some rumblings when Live Anywhere was announced that Halo 2 for the PC would not actually use any of the Live Anywhere features. It turns out that this was a lie: you just won't be able to use the one feature anyone cares about — the ability to deathmatch against XBox players.

However, you will, at least, be able to see what games your XBox friends are currently playing... games that you will be incapable of playing with them. You know, like Halo 2! You can also send them messages ("Wouldn't it be great if we could play Halo 2 together?")

In other words, Halo 2's Live Anywhere features are limited to the game being a three gig, cross-platform instant messaging client. That's nice and all, but cross-platform multiplayer is the Live Anywhere Holy Grail, Microsoft. No one cares about the other stuff except in relation to that. Florian Eckhardt

Halo 2 PC Online Functionality Detailed [1UP]

Although we suspect the rather ho-hum news that Halo 2 will not be playable through Live Anywhere will strike people as more interesting, we can't help but get a little fist-pumping psyched over the hint that Bungie's proto-Halo, Marathon, is seriously being considered for XBox Live Arcade. Many a day we played that game on the ancient Macs in high school computer lab. Doom was better, but hey... we'll take what we can get.

As for the lack of Live Arcade in Halo 2 for the PC: Microsoft, if you're going to forge gamers to upgrade to Vista to play your three year old game with a mouse and keyboard, why not go the whole hog and use this as an opportunity to seriously push Live Anywhere? FLORIAN ECKHARDT

Halo 2 PC Won't Use Live Anywhere [1UP]

Eurogamer TV has some footage up on their site that shows Live Anywhere in action on a cell phone. Seems mostly useless, but I still can't wait to load it up on my Treo 700w. —Brian Crecente

Live Anywhere Demo Video [Eurogamer TV]