Sony is expected to issue a new update for its popular PlayStation 3 (PS3) video games console this week, which has approximately 4 million connected owners in the UK, that will allow broadband ISP users access to ITV (ITV Player) and Channel 4's (4OD) commercial TV streaming content.

ITV's move isn't surprising because the broadcaster already announced its plans during August 2010, although it's the first time that we've heard of Channel 4 getting involved. The BBC's hugely popular iPlayer video streaming service has also been available to PS3 owners for some time now.

ITV Player on PS3 will be free and ad-funded with pre-, mid- and post- roll video ads being sold and served by ITV. PS3 users will be prompted to implement a software update the first time they turn their consoles on after launch at which point an icon will appear in the TV section of the main navigational menu.

It's unclear how Channel 4's solution will be implemented, although we expect it to follow a similar line. So far as we are aware, the video will come in traditional Standard Definition (SD) quality and demand a stable internet connection speed of at least 2Mbps (common amongst most internet TV and video streaming services).

As usual you should check your ISP's broadband package terms and details beforehand; just in case any additional usage restrictions or costs apply (BT users should be particularly careful). Some films can easily eat up 1GB (GigaByte) or more data without much effort.