Posts Tagged: "Microsoft"

Today we focus on recently published patent applications with an emphasis on technologies and innovations relating to the Internet, social media and cloud computing. Microsoft’s recently published patent applications include a number of Internet-based products and services, such as a method for identifying elements of a web page that can support voice input commands. Another patent application discusses improved methods for accessing applications on a single computing storage while using multiple displays. We also shared a patent application disclosing an improved routing service which is optimized for bicyclists.

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 has one of the most powerful patent portfolios in the world and the past few weeks have not shown any signs of slow activity here. One patent protects a system enabling mobile device users to quickly share video and audio content across short-range networks, like Bluetooth. A couple of software solutions for business issues are included, such as one patent protecting a method of syncing data from a recovery machine more quickly in response to a network failure. The prevention of phishing scams and methods of tailoring web services to the preferences of a group are also explored below.

All of this can really be traced all the way back to the flash of creative genius test by the Supreme Court, which Congress specifically outlawed in the 1952 Patent Act. It is no doubt making a resurgence under slightly different terminology, but make no mistake — Judges are making subjective decisions about innovations in a way that is remarkable similar to how the flash of creative genius test was applied. But today the problem is not only all of the aforementioned, misguided beliefs, but rather we have a general problem with ignorance. It is self evident to anyone who cares to be honest and objective that it takes time and money to innovate; innovation does not simply fall out of the sky or invent itself.

We have thoroughly destroyed the manufacturing capabilities of the United States and in the process decimated middle class America. The Supreme Court is forcing an anti-patent agenda on the courts, which makes it increasingly difficult climate for those in the biotechnology and software industries, two industries that employ large number of Americans and provide extremely high paying jobs. Companies are also simultaneously fleeing the U.S. for corporate tax purposes and/or refusing to repatriate trillions of dollars earned over seas else it would be taxed once again by the IRS. In short, we are shooting ourselves in the foot over and over again, then taking the time to thoughtfully reload and recommence shooting in said foot. There is no real reason for optimism given the political climate in DC and the reality that innovative advances that are now stalled in the patent system have historically carried us out of recessions and onward to prosperity; something that just won’t happen given the current manufacturing, patent and tax policies and laws.

The featured patent application discusses a social networking method which tries to enhance the shared viewing of video content among a group of people in geographically diverse locations. The movie theater interface gives group members the opportunity to communicate thoughts and emotions with others watching the same content. More intelligent computing systems for task management and advertising video games for download are also described within recently filed patent applications. Microsoft is in the upper echelon of American companies where current patenting operations are concerned, and dozens have been issued to the company in just the past two weeks. Of these, we noticed an intriguing system of providing serious games to business employees which helps them find novel solutions to complex business problems. We also take a closer look at a system designed to protect a user’s private information when accessing online services as well as an intelligent brightness control system for digital screen displays worn near the eye.

We start today with a long look at the featured patent application, which describes a hardware device capable of determining a person’s mood from various sensors and inputs. In what you might consider a modern day evolution of the mood-ring, this device is capable of representing a person’s mood and stress levels. The system works by using biometric data signals indicative of mood from a variety of sources, including a heart rate monitor, galvanic skin monitor, camera or microphone. Better systems for displaying application icon text and application window inputs, as well as a method for accessing advanced keyboard functions on a simple keyboard, are also described in other patent applications we profile to assignee Microsoft. Additionally, Microsoft’s recently issued patents from the USPTO increase the corporation’s intellectual property holdings for document collaboration systems, as we feature with a pair of issued patents in this field. Another patent protects a method for creating a bidding system that creates a more accurate pricing system for advertising keywords. Finally, Microsoft also patented a system capable of identifying the location of individuals and suggesting real-world activities and social situations nearby.

Pitney Bowes and IBM to Collaborate on Hybrid Cloud Location Services ***** Patent Lawsuits Filed Over 3D Cinema Projection Technology ***** Microsoft and Dell Sign Patent Licensing Agreement ***** Tessera Technologies Ends Litigation Against Qualcomm ***** More Patents Tossed from Remote Control Patent Dispute

This is likely a signal of more patent infringement lawsuits yet to come in the growing patent battle by proxy between Google (NASDAQ: GOOG), Samsung, HTC (TPE: 2498) and the companies behind Rockstar, which is a group created by Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL), Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ: MSFT), BlackBerry Ltd.(NASDAQ: BBRY), Ericsson AB and Sony Corp. (NYSE: SNE) to acquire patents from Nortel Networks Corp. in 2011.

Even as more of us are becoming acquainted with the idea of the cloud, many of us are still woefully ignorant of what the term actually means. For example, a survey by cloud software developer Citrix Systems showed that 54 percent of respondents did not believe that they used cloud-based computing, even though 95 percent of them actually did. Almost as many respondents confused the cloud metaphor, believing that stormy weather could actually interfere with cloud systems. Cloud computing is set to take a much more prominent role in our technologically savvy society. Providing advanced computing applications through networking channels severely reduces the IT needs of homes and businesses who want to use more powerful software programs without installing them on a client computer. With more than $131 billion in economic activity for the cloud computing sector in 2013, more business infrastructure and software services should be taking to the cloud than ever before.

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.

Tech sector giants have been crying and moaning about how the patent system has run amok and needs to be scaled back, and continually beg for patent reform that would gut the patent system and weaken patent rights… Even mighty Microsoft couldn’t maintain their monopoly, and only the foolish would anticipate Google, Facebook and other tech giants to be on top indefinitely. That isn’t how the tech sector works, or is intended to work. But if a vibrant, robust and strong patent system is not there for start-ups today they will never become the giant, innovation shifting, growth companies of the future. That would be terrible for the economy, lead to stagnant innovation and guarantee that slothful, giant companies that have lost the ability to innovate would remain dominant rather than going the way of the dinosaur.

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.