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Several tech sites today are reporting that a secret Microsoft document dated in 2010 has been leaked and it says the next XBox console will include a Blu-ray player.
The reports, which have been published by sites such as Verge and Gizmodo, seem solid, but there have been rumors for years that Microsoft would add a Blu-ray player to the XBox without ever doing it. In fact, Jose Pinero, a spokesman for Microsoft's interactive entertainment division, denied a Blu-ray player was in the works earlier this month at the annual E3 gaming conference.
"Today we are focused on the streaming aspects of XBox and that's what we're building on. That's our strategy," Pinero said.
Since Blu-ray defeated the Microsoft-backed HD DVD several years ago in the high-def disc format war, Microsoft has maintained that streaming is the future of home video. If the company was to reverse course and support Blu-ray in the popular XBox console, it would boost Blu-ray's chances of continuing as a viable format in the coming years. Some analysts believe streaming will overtake the hard disc in the next 3-5 years.
For what it's worth, the leaked Microsoft document purportedly says the new XBox, which will be called XBox 720, will be launched during the 2013 holiday season. In addition to the Blu-ray player, the document says it will include the Kinect 2 motion controller and 'virtual reality' glasses.
The document does not reveal a price tag on the new console, the web sites report.
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