Ever since the next Kinect hardware product was announced for the Xbox One console, there have been concerns that Microsoft will use the add-on to spy on its users in their living rooms. This week, a Microsoft executive tried to calm concerns from others that Kinect 2.0 would be used to gather data for interactive ads.
The concerns began after an older interview was posted with some unnamed Microsoft personnel on a site called Stick Twiddlers, which claims that the Kinect "could" be used in advertising. In a post on the NeoGAF message board this week, Microsoft's Xbox planning and marketing director Albert Penello dismissed those concerns, saying:
First - nobody is working on that. We have a lot more interesting and pressing things to dedicate time towards. It was an interview done speculatively, and I'm not aware of any active work in this space. Second - if something like that ever happened, you can be sure it wouldn't happen without the user having control over it. Period.
Penello adds that Microsoft could make use of the new Kinect for some interesting features if it were connected to a cloud server, such as having a face be recognized automatically by Kinect when a gamer is at a friend's house. However, he added, " ... or privacy reasons, your facial data doesn't leave the console."
Source: NeoGAF | Image via Microsoft
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