Posts Tagged: "xbox"

Microsoft’s Xbox, and the generations of consoles which followed, may not have conquered the market for the software giant based in Redmond, WA, but they have eked out a significant place for the company in the video game industry. In today’s brief history of the Xbox, we take a look at how and why this technology developed in the first place and what helped it to achieve success in a high tech field that was already dominated by other major technology firms… The Xbox and the innovations it incorporates are revolutionary and it’s impact on gaming and entertainment in the home is undeniable. The potential future uses for Kinect outside of the video game industry are exciting and extraordinarily promising, perhaps particularly the various robot implementations that could lead to things like remote surgeries.

Microsoft already has a massive patent portfolio, but it has continued to increase in recent weeks. We’ve pulled up a trio of patents related to online gaming through Microsoft’s Xbox LIVE network, including methods of using gamer profiles on multiple consoles as well as validating untrusted games for inclusion on the LIVE network. Another Microsoft patent also shows the technology developer’s interest in improving means of advertising within multiplayer games online. Patent applications that caught our attention include a couple related to virtual reality applications, especially one that involves virtual manipulation of a physical environment in response to a story being read. We also look at an application regarding a dynamic system of using workout videos to create an individualized exercise experience for Xbox console users.

One patent application we explore in-depth is for a recommendation service that improves the ability of users to browse through application stores quickly. This system takes recommendations from other expert application users within a user’s social circles and implements that information when a user searches for mobile programs. Other interesting applications include a few electronic device improvements, including a rotatable kickstand, and some innovations regarding user interfaces, including the ability for a touchscreen to discriminate between touch inputs from multiple users. A number of issued patents also stick out as interesting developments from Microsoft. A couple of patents protect improvements to entertainment systems created by Microsoft, including a better system for matching XBox players by ranking and a messaging system for notifying television viewers of programs that they might want to watch. Another patent makes it easier for advertisers to create ads for multiple platforms from a single template.