By GamePro staff, IDG News Service

Director Michael Bay criticized Microsoft's "dirty secret" in backing HD DVD saying the real agenda is to eventually move towards digital downloads.

"Microsoft wants both formats to fail so they can be heroes and make the world move to digital downloads," Bay said on his official forums, when addressing user complaints about the unavailability of Transformers on Blu-ray.

"That is the dirty secret no one is talking about. That is why Microsoft is handing out $100 million dollar checks to studios just embrace the HD DVD and not the leading, and superior Blu Ray. They want confusion in the market until they perfect the digital downloads."

PlayStation 3 (Blu-ray) and Xbox 360 (HD DVD with add-on) owners are both seen as key players in the high-definition disc wars given their buying power.