Xbox 360 News Connection

Microsoft now claims it has "no plans" to launch a external Blu-Ray player for the Xbox 360, contrary to the report on Wednesday.

As we've said before, Microsoft has no plans to introduce an Xbox 360 Blu-ray add-on," a Microsoft representative told reporters on Thursday, killing the persistent rumors suggesting otherwise. "Games are what drive consumers to purchase consoles, and we remain focused on providing the largest library of blockbuster games available."

Yesterday, a story by the unknown source X-bit Labs reported that Toshiba and Samsung had been "contracted to manufacture external Blu-ray disc drives for Microsoft Xbox 360 game console," although a release date was reported as "under consideration."

This isn't the first time Microsoft has denied rumors of supporting Sony's high-definition disc format. In March, Xbox vice president Arron Greenburg said, "Xbox is not currently in talks with Sony or the Blu-ray Association to integrate Blu-ray into the Xbox experience."

Toshiba terminated support of HD DVD in February, consequently making the external Xbox 360 HD DVD drive obsolete.