Filed under: Fun, Video, News, Windows, Web services, Microsoft
Microsoft patents watching TV while chatting
The scoop is on ArsTechnica. The patent is for a
"multimode interactive television chat." Like Jeremy, I also worked for a company during the dotcom boom time
that had the brilliant idea of embedding clickable links in QuickTime video content. Anyone seeing this today? I didn't
think so. The holy grail of TV and interactivity may come to pass, however, if MS can figure out how to make it useful
or at least fun. Personally I think it's boring enough to see "live" comments during a broadcast. Kinda like
listening to the callers on QVC. I can't imagine it gets better interacting with the inane comments you're
likely to see in the middle of a Cribs marathon. But I'm sure MS has plans to make TV chat a lot less
annoying... right?
So, just how good at time waster games are you? Think you've got the stuff? Well, The World's Hardest Game 2.0 doesn't think you do.
Yes, amazingly, it's possible to have a sequel to a game called "The World's Hardest Game". It doesn't seem logically possible, since if the first one was actually the world's hardest, how could another one come along and share the moniker? It made me doubt the name in the first place. That is, until I tried the game.
The mechanics of the game are very simple. You are a small red square, ...

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Robert said 4:20PM on 4-28-2006
In other news, Wrigley's just patented walking and chewing gum at the same time.
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Mark Sisley said 4:56PM on 4-28-2006
I had a similar idea a few years back. I thought it would be neat to start a video rental type service whereby friends could chat about the movie as they watched it. It would all be streaming video, though. Nothing on TV or anything of the sort. Alas, my brilliant idea has become worthless.
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dean collins said 9:39AM on 5-03-2006
I haven't bothered to check into the filing date for Microsoft yet but do a google search on CableCard3
It's a document I published involving the overlay of text from independent servers(including chat) over video streams
Microsoft - I await your licensing call :)
Regards,
Dean Collins
Cognation Pty Ltd
+1-212-203-4357
+61-2-9016-5642 (Sydney in-dial).
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