Steve Ballmer Says Microsoft Will Support Blu-ray

[Albion Knight]

Steve Ballmer Says Microsoft Will Support Blu-ray

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If there was any strand of doubt still lingering as to whether or not Microsoft plans on supporting Blu-ray now that HD DVD is dead and buried, the company’s chief executive, Steve Ballmer, went ahead and laid things out very clearly at the Mix08 conference.

“We’ve already been working on, for example, in Windows, device driver support for Blu-ray drives and the like, and I think the world moves on. Toshiba has moved on. We’ve moved on, and we’ll support Blu-ray in ways that make sense,” he said.

He didn’t go into any specific plans and there was no mention of how the Xbox 360 would be involved – if at all – but this confirms that Sony and Microsoft are talking about Blu-ray, as Sony’s Stan Glasgow stated last week.

My prediction is that we’ll have a Blu-ray add-on for the 360 by this fall, with a new high-end SKU (replacing the Elite, perhaps?) with a built-in Blu-ray drive by the end of the year

We've know the war was over for a while so this was an inevitable result.

How do you think Blu-Ray winning the war will affect game sales. Personally I think it makes the PS3 look very attractive to new console buyers. Microsoft is going to have to really step up in the coming year. I don't think a $299 add on Blu-Ray player will cut it either. Even a $199 add on would make the xbox way more expensive than the PS3.

I'd still get the Xbox due to Fable 2 if I didn't already have one. That leads me to why Blu-Ray won the war, content. More major movie theaters choose Blu-Ray. So far there is more in terms of gaming content for the xbox than the PS3 but time may change that. I'm going to be saving up for a PS3 personally.

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[Zingo]

Re: Steve Ballmer Says Microsoft Will Support Blu-ray

The fun thing is, that Microsoft is pouring dollars over a small korean company that works with Decreasing the space between the small notches (0's and 1's on the discs...) so that a bluray disc can take 80 Gb (40Gb/side).

Im sorry that I cant give any sources to this, but add in that the new xbox is in development and that Ballmer said they would support bluray

 

[Albion Knight]

Re: Steve Ballmer Says Microsoft Will Support Blu-ray

I agree that the New :xbox: will likely be Blu-Ray Some are predicting 2010 for its release :O. If they release one every five years and going forward keep it around for 10 then there will always be 2 xbox consoles on the market hmmm. I hope the next one isn't called Xbox 720.

 

[Zingo]

Re: Steve Ballmer Says Microsoft Will Support Blu-ray

I agree that the New :xbox: will likely be Blu-Ray Some are predicting 2010 for its release :O. If they release one every five years and going forward keep it around for 10 then there will always be 2 xbox consoles on the market hmmm. I hope the next one isn't called Xbox 720.

Yes... what will they call it? Im sure they wont go with "720" though... they had 360 because "Xbox 2" sounds crappier than PS3... right?

 

[Dark Drakan]

Re: Steve Ballmer Says Microsoft Will Support Blu-ray

It all depends on what people want the console for. If people want it just for a cheap way to play Blu Ray movies then the PS3 would be the good choice. However if Microsoft come out with a Blu Ray add-on drive (which i think they will) the price of the 360 will be higher when you add the costs. However with the MUCH wider range of games and better online service it would appeal to gamers more still.

 

[Solus]

Re: Steve Ballmer Says Microsoft Will Support Blu-ray

Microsofts beloved HD DVD just died, and they are already flirting around.
The guys at Microsoft are whores :lol:

 

[Orpheus Lupus]

Re: Steve Ballmer Says Microsoft Will Support Blu-ray

Not entirely sure what else they're suppose to do.

At any rate, I can afford neither a blu-ray add-on nor a PS3, nor do I have the desire to right now XP