“The gesture-technology plot has thickened in the goopiest of ways with Apple apparently buying Israel’s PrimeSense for about $350 million,” Ashlee Vance reports for Businessweek.
“PrimeSense rose to prominence alongside the release of Microsoft’s initial Kinect gaming sensor used with the Xbox console. The startup built the hardware, including a clever chip that could look out into a living room and see peoples’ body movements. Microsoft added the software and algorithms that made the Kinect really smart,” Vance reports. “But here’s the thing: Microsoft does not rely on PrimeSense anymore. The Xbox One that hit store shelves last week has a Kinect sensor based on technology that Microsoft acquired in 2010 when it bought Canesta, a rival to PrimeSense. Over the years, Canesta had earned a reputation for having some of the most sophisticated gesture-recognition technology, while PrimeSense was seen more as a savvy assembler of off-the-shelf technology. Microsoft has also acquired other gesture players such as 3DV Systems and has a mountain of intellectual property in the arena.”
Vance reports, “So to say that Apple is late to the gesture game would be something of an understatement.”
Read more in the full article here.
Related articles:
Analyst: Apple’s PrimeSense acquisition sets stage for future Apple television products – November 25, 2013
For what will Apple use PrimeSense’s 3-D motion sensing tech? – November 25, 2013
Apple confirms acquisition of Israel’s PrimeSense, company behind Microsoft’s Xbox Kinect, for $350 million – November 25, 2013
Why is Apple buying the company that invented Microsoft’s Kinect? – November 18, 2013
Apple in talks to acquire PrimeSense – November 18, 2013
Apple in talks to buy Israel-based PrimeSense, company behind Microsoft’s Xbox Kinect, for $200 million – July 16, 2013
Apple’s latest patent is a game-changer for iPad – August 20, 2013
Apple partners with TV industry on ‘grand vision’ – July 18, 2013
Report: Apple could have obtained Kinect technology before Microsoft – November 5, 2010