Microsoft Ceasing Xbox HD DVD Drive Production

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It will come as no surprise to anyone to learn that following Toshiba's announcement, Microsoft has now also announced its plans to stop production of its own HD DVD drive accessory for the Xbox 360.

"As a result of recent decisions made by Toshiba, Hollywood studios, and retailers, Microsoft plans to withdraw from HD DVD. Xbox will no longer manufacture new HD DVD players for the Xbox 360, but we will continue to provide standard product and warranty support for all Xbox 360 HD DVD Players in the market. As we stated earlier, we do not believe this decision will have any material impact on the Xbox 360 platform or our position in the marketplace. HD DVD is one of the several ways we offer a high definition experience to consumers and we will continue to give consumers the choice to enjoy digital distribution of high definition movies and TV shows directly to their living room, along with playback of the DVD movies they already own."

Nothing exciting there then and alas no commentary on the rumours as to the release of an Xbox Blu-ray drive some time in the near future. Not that any official word was expected.

In related news, PC manufacturer Rock has decided to continue offering an HD DVD drive as standard across its range of systems. Cynically that is likely to be looked at simply as a temporary move until Rock runs out of stock, but if you still want to find somewhere that will sell you a notebook with an HD DVD player then you know where to look.

Link:
GamerScore.

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