Need further proof Microsoft will never adopt Blu-ray, as you clutch your HD DVD drive to your chest and sob for Microsoft’s halcyon HD format days? Xbox 360′s UK director Stephen McGill has reiterated the future is digital downloads.
McGill told Xbox Achievements that “people have moved through from DVDs to digital downloads and digital streaming, so we offer full HD 1080p Blu-ray quality streaming instantly, no download, no delay”, referring to the Zune service.
Instead of launching an Xbox 360 with integrated Blu-ray drive, “people now recognise what a smart decision it was to keep the [Xbox 360]pricing low.”
Fair enough that Microsoft will never put its name to a Blu-ray drive-equipped product, but what about those add-ons Ballmer promised were coming last year? [Xbox Achievements via Thinq]
Image Credit: Niubie
GiantDave
Friday, September 24, 2010 at 6:56 AMAnd it might be the case that people would stream more content, if only Microsoft would establish more Unmetered content providers in Australia.
Death Duck
Friday, September 24, 2010 at 9:29 AMThis is a stupid thing for him to say. In the US more and more ISP’s are starting to actually meter data usage. Over here, we’ve already got metered data usage. People don’t want to spend that much of their data allowance to watch a movie once. Once we all go on unmetered plans, then maybe that’ll be feasible, but not until then.
James
Friday, September 24, 2010 at 9:48 AMWith 1TB plans hitting our shores recently we might as well be on “unmetered” plans. I would really struggle to find 1TB worth of items to download.
The issue isn’t quota, the issue is quality of delivery – bandwidth.
Daniel Weaver-Koenigs
Friday, September 24, 2010 at 9:02 PM1) I’d still rather have physical content without horrible compression in this day and age.
2) Microsoft wont see a cent of my money in online purchases until they launch the FULL Zune service in Australia and drop streamed HD rental prices to comparable with hired bluray prices.
Why on earth would I pay $8 to stream a movie in compressed HD using my download limit when I could pay $2 to hire the bluray at my local video store down the road?