MSN has announced this week that episodes of the Emmy award-winning comedy Arrested Development are already available to be streamed on demand on MSN^® Video and at no cost to viewers.

The first five episodes are available today at http://arresteddevelopment.msn.com and, starting Dec. 15, three new episodes will be added every three weeks. All 53 episodes from the three seasons of the show will be rolled out within the next year.

The Arrested Development episodes will be running with a new MSN Video player designed to create a better viewing experience of long-form video. The new playback experience will set the standard for future long-form content available on MSN Video, and will include added functionality. The player provides viewers with many options to return to an episode they were watching if there is an interruption by automatically finding the last position in the episode before the interruption, and also at any time allowing the user to jump back 15 seconds. In addition, viewers have the ability to send a link of their favorite moment within an episode to their friends. The player can also present the show in a larger sit-back view with great quality and will still allow viewers to see their task bar to keep an eye on e-mail and instant messages.

We’re thrilled to present this critically acclaimed show to the MSN audience along with exclusive online content for the ultimate ‘Arrested Development’ fans, said Rob Bennett, general manager of Entertainment and Video Services for MSN. We’ve created a number of innovative new features to enhance the video experience for ‘Arrested Development,’ and will lead the industry in improving the overall experience for watching long-form video content online.

Future additional content will include deleted scenes, blooper reels and related DVD content. Interactive features such as message boards, cast information, fan areas, blogging helpers, and subscription options for newsletters and RSS feeds will collectively provide a deeper community experience for fans of the show.

Produced by Twentieth Century Fox Television and Imagine Entertainment, the multiple-award-winning Arrested Development ran for three years on FOX and was one of the most celebrated comedies in the network’s history. It revolves around Michael Bluth (Jason Bateman), who is doing his best to pick up the pieces and keep his offbeat family from falling apart after his father, George Bluth (Jeffrey Tambor), is locked up for fraud.

Arrested Development content on MSN will be available at http://arresteddevelopment.msn.com. Currently this content is only available to U.S. viewers.