i'm going to attempt to address this in a technical manner, lets see how I do.
So first things first, Microsoft has indicated that the Xbox One will be able to run multiple services simultaneously, this does not include the operating system which is running the individual services. So, the operating systems that the Xbox One will be running are.... the Xbox OS, a stripped down basic version of Windows 8 and Hyper-V (this is a virtualization software which will allow the system to switch between these states(Xbox OS and Win8)) Now on a PC Windows 8 light in weight in comparison to Windows Vista and Windows XP, and some claim have an advantage over Win7, although I don't see it.
You're asking about the performance of the box. When it comes to watching television at the same time you game, this shouldn't cause your system much issues as it is not actually processing any video signal, it's just a pass through to the AVR or television, the console is not doing anything to the signal it receives from your cable box or other console you have plugged in.
So running other applications. What I can say there is even on a PC you can only run so much before your system slows down as the resources the operating system has access to are finite. For example I don't ever see Microsoft allowing you to run Photoshop or other photo editing software on the system, which wasn't specifically made for it. With there being a Windows 8 core in the system, it has been suggested the Xbox One store would be integrated with the other Microsoft Stores sometime in 2014, however, I think if this is the case that the Xbox One store experience would be extremely curated, and the system would not be given as wide access. Once again going back to other applications. Netflix and other streaming services all the processing is done on the server side and doesn't require hefty resources of your system which is why an Ipad can run Netflix, the only issue you may see there is game lag if you're playing online.
In closing, as an entertainment consumption device there isn't a heck of a lot you could consume simultaneously which would overload the system, and if you reach that limit Microsoft may task Hyper-V to manage the processes it deems need to be closed for smooth system operation. You should be fine multi-tasking.
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