Comments on: Microsoft patents spying on you with your TV's camera and fining you if there are too many people watching

By: CalvinballPro

CalvinballPro — Mon, 12 Nov 2012 15:30:00 +0000

This is exactly why I keep my Kinect covered in 4 layers of a folded towel when I’m not using it.

By: Craig A Falconer

Craig A Falconer — Mon, 12 Nov 2012 14:26:00 +0000

None of the big manufacturers are innocent when it comes to this stuff. There are cameras in Sony Bravias, you think they’re not watching? http://yearofthefalcon.wordpress.com/2012/11/12/the-future-of-tv-whos-watching-who-2/

By: McGreens

McGreens — Mon, 12 Nov 2012 14:23:00 +0000

It’s not quite the same but it can tell when you’re looking at the screen (or not) and keep it on (or turn it off) as required:

http://www.androidcentral.com/how-use-smart-stay-galaxy-s3

By: Sparg

Sparg — Sun, 11 Nov 2012 16:35:00 +0000

Cool. I’ll memorize Fahrenheit 451.

By: Steve Smith

Steve Smith — Sun, 11 Nov 2012 10:23:00 +0000

This is just one of the many reasons why I have a PS3, and not an XBOX 360. I prefer to spend more on controllers and renting through Sony, than worrying about spying, and isn’t it that illegal in so many ways.

By: Christian

Christian — Sun, 11 Nov 2012 06:25:00 +0000

You got me!
Though, in your scenario, I suppose you can’t go to the kitchen to fill your glass, go outside to have a smoke or go to the bathroom either…
Silly. No one would buy a television that spies on you.

By: austinhamman

austinhamman — Sun, 11 Nov 2012 05:25:00 +0000

for people saying “just turn off the camera” they will likely require the camera be on for playback or integrate the camera into the payer, for those who would reply “just cover the lens” they will likely also require a certain number of people be in the room for the device to play (possibly passing it off as a helpful feature that pauses the video when you leave the room)

By: austinhamman

austinhamman — Sun, 11 Nov 2012 05:18:00 +0000

actually your remote is more than capable of turning on a turned off TV, the sensor on the box detects the light that comes from the remote, this creates electricity that flips the switch which allows the electricity from the wall to flow into the TV. this is how tv remotes have worked for decades now. now this could have changed with newer tv’s but a tv remote is more than capable of turning on a TV which is switched off.

By: austinhamman

austinhamman — Sun, 11 Nov 2012 05:09:00 +0000

and when the video says “no people detected” and refuses to play?

By: Eric Hunting

Eric Hunting — Sun, 11 Nov 2012 04:03:00 +0000

Perhaps it’s time to establish a World Institute for Anticipatory Douchbaggery; basically an international think tank that gathers together experts in the fields of technology, marketing, psychology, economics, and management theory who come together to continually think about all the possible ways corporations and bureaucracies might exploit, hassle, or scam the public and then patent those concepts internationally before they occur to corporate executives, marketing people, bureaucrats, and con-artists so they can be sued for patent infringement whenever they try to implement such ideas. After all, we are clearly in an arms race here and the people on the receiving end of this kind of abuse of technology or ‘the system’ are always having to play catch-up. Let’s use our diabolical imaginations for good and get ahead of this curve.

By: Tim Terrell

Tim Terrell — Sat, 10 Nov 2012 19:51:00 +0000

They’ll charge you for the family dog or cat.

By: Tim Terrell

Tim Terrell — Sat, 10 Nov 2012 19:51:00 +0000

They’ll charge you for the family dog or cat.

By: euansmith

euansmith — Sat, 10 Nov 2012 12:02:00 +0000

Hate O’Clock

By: euansmith

euansmith — Sat, 10 Nov 2012 12:01:00 +0000

I was thinking you could use Lego to make an exact miniature copy of your lounge with a couple of bickering minifigs sat on the couch.

By: Monkey Boy

Monkey Boy — Sat, 10 Nov 2012 01:29:00 +0000

Just turn the camera around, problem solved!

By: Nathan Hornby

Nathan Hornby — Fri, 09 Nov 2012 22:38:00 +0000

Ah of course, completely forgot about the App Store, I see where you’re coming from.

By: Rob

Rob — Fri, 09 Nov 2012 22:20:00 +0000

It needs an Apple ID for the marketplace. In order to bind an Apple ID to the Mac App Store you have to provide a credit card.
Even though the ID was created when the computer was ordered, it doesn’t appear to want to accept that one, not without tying to a card. I don’t want to put a card in, because I don’t want my Dad ordering anything from the Mac App Store by accident.

By: Christian

Christian — Fri, 09 Nov 2012 22:20:00 +0000

Nope! You could take the tape off whenever you wanted to use the camera for chat and put it back on when you’re watching movies or doing anything else you don’t want hackers/Microsoft to see. Simple and cheap and it defeats millions of dollars of research by Microsoft.
I use black electrical tape on my mac because I’m a paranoid tin foil hat wearing fool!!! :)

By: Brian Goulet

Brian Goulet — Fri, 09 Nov 2012 22:10:00 +0000

or you could, you know, just unplug the camera. and if they TRY to spy on you, a simple class action lawsuit for invasion of privacy :-)

By: EvilSpirit

EvilSpirit — Fri, 09 Nov 2012 20:38:00 +0000

Whether it’s “difficult” has jack all to do with it, back on the planet where I come from.

By: artbyjcm

artbyjcm — Fri, 09 Nov 2012 20:22:00 +0000

This is why I’m glad there’s a PS3 in my home.

Sony’s no angel, but they never think of stuff THIS level of creepy…

However, why not just disconnect the kinect? If they build it in to TVs not every TV will have it. Furthermore, computer monitors are only getting bigger, it seems. They have HDMI ports and whatever standard connectors are next…

Either way, if this goes into effect, holy COW it would just cost too much to watch stuff. Piracy would triple.
I swear, there’s so many efforts to kill the movie industry it’s insane.

I’ll never enjoy a movie, no matter HOW good it is, if I have to start thinking about so many factors before firing one up.

By: Nathan Hornby

Nathan Hornby — Fri, 09 Nov 2012 19:56:00 +0000

Weird – never seen that before – not even a reference to product registration that I’ve been exposed to.

By: Rob

Rob — Fri, 09 Nov 2012 19:47:00 +0000

They’re crap. They want a credit card for me to be able to patch iPhoto on my Dad’s computer, won’t patch the included apps without it.

By: Chris

Chris — Fri, 09 Nov 2012 19:14:00 +0000

Yeah, they are going to get more videos of people having sex during movies than they would extra money from more people showing up.

This seems a little dicey in terms of invasion of privacy.

By: Henry Pootel

Henry Pootel — Fri, 09 Nov 2012 17:36:00 +0000

So why don’t we get upset when sci fi authors post ideas that could be abused? They are basically like open sourced patents (oxymoron I know).

By: Warren_Terra

Warren_Terra — Fri, 09 Nov 2012 17:33:00 +0000

I wouldn’t say I’ve followed it closely, but I’m not unfamiliar with the concept that crazily basic and obvious things get patented, especially in the software world. A lack of novelty doesn’t mean I can’t complain when an instance is pointed out.

By: EH

EH — Fri, 09 Nov 2012 17:30:00 +0000

Not so you’d notice. The ones I’ve seen don’t have extra language for patent “bonuses” or anything like that. If anything, you might get compensated for travel in order to participate in the patent prosecution or similarly associated bureacratic aspects of patent registration.

By: hugh crawford

hugh crawford — Fri, 09 Nov 2012 17:22:00 +0000

You do know that getting a patent isn’t about doing something, but is to prevent someone else from doing something. For instance that patent for keeping severed heads alive http://www.freepatentsonline.com/4666425.html .
Also just because you have a patent for something does not mean you can actually do it (see above)

By: Ranting Nerd

Ranting Nerd — Fri, 09 Nov 2012 16:23:00 +0000

Can blipverts be far behind? I for one, welcome our Channel 23 overlords. (Where’s Max Headroom when you need him?)

By: jandrese

jandrese — Fri, 09 Nov 2012 16:11:00 +0000

Silverlight has a fully protected video streaming mode that studios just love. It’s the reason you can’t get Netflix on Linux without firing up Wine or a VM or something.