With the HD DVD high-definition video format dead, Microsoft's Steve Ballmer said it's time "to move on" and has confirmed that they will indeed support the victorious Blu-ray disc format. In fact, the company is already working on "device driver support for Blu-ray drives and the like," with more to come.
No word yet on whether Microsoft will offer a version of its Xbox 360 console equipped with an internal Blu-ray drive or offer an external drive at an additional cost the way it did with its plug-in HD-DVD player - if any. Ballmer believes that, while it might be important for Xbox 360 to have a high-def player today, more HD content could eventually be pushed over the Internet rather than delivered in a physical format. In any case, what's certain is that as the PlayStation 3 continues to pick up steam, Microsoft will need to come up with a Blu-ray answer to continue competing.