Microsoft is facing a lawsuit from a company that claims Microsoft violated its patent when it launched the Kinect gesture capture technology. The company in question is Virginia-based Intelligent Verification Systems, which filed its lawsuit in federal court earlier this month.
Courthouse News reports that Intelligent Verification Systems was issued a patent, titled "Animated Toy Utilizing Artificial Intelligence and Facial Image Recognition", in 2006. The company believes Microsoft is infringing on its patent with the Kinect hardware and software. Intelligent Verification Systems claims they sent a letter to Microsoft in June 2011 to inform them of the patent infringement but it seems the two groups were unable to come to an agreement.
Launched at first as an add-on for the Xbox 360 console in 2010, Microsoft has been promoting the use of the Kinect technology not just in games, but in other business applications. Microsoft launched the PC version of Kinect earlier this year.
This new lawsuit also includes game publisher Majesco Entertainment, which released a Kinect-specific game, Zumba Fitness Rush. Intelligent Verification Systems is asking that both Microsoft and Majesco to stop their infringement of the patent within 30 days, along with a request for a jury trial. So far, Microsoft has yet to respond to this lawsuit.
Source: Courthouse News | Image via Microsoft
27 Comments - Add comment