Microsoft was today dealt a massive blow in its patent suit against Motorola as a U.S. judge recommended that the company’s popular Xbox 360 console be banned from the United States. The suggestion comes following the discovery that Microsoft’s Xbox controllers infringe upon several Motorola-owned patents relating to wireless technology.

The news follows on the heels of an April ruling that found Microsoft guilty of infringing upon a total of four Motorola patents. However, Courthouse News Service reports that an International Trade Commission judge just recently ruled that Microsoft’s Xbox should face a U.S. import ban as a result of the patent infringement. According to the court document, which was released on Monday, Microsoft argued that such a ban would not be in the public interest as customers would be left with only the PlayStation 3 and Wii as alternatives. However, Judge David Shaw disagreed. Shaw claimed there was no indication that Sony and Nintendo would be unable to meet consumer demand and highlighted the importance of enforcing intellectual property rights.

“[...] it has not been alleged or shown that Sony or Nintendo would fail to meet the demand for consumer video gaming consoles in the event that an exclusion order issue,” Judge Shaw said. “Moreover, there is a strong public interest in enforcing intellectual property rights; not enforcing those rights in light of a potential economic impact occurs only in exceptional circumstances.”

In addition to the limited exclusion order covering the 4GB and 250GB versions of the Xbox 360, Shaw is also recommending a cease and desist order for unsold inventory as well as a bond payable to Motorola to the tune of seven percent of the wholesale price of the Xboxes Microsoft still has in inventory. Motorola had been pushing for that bond to be set at 100 percent of the price, while Microsoft claimed that it should be set at zero, because there’s no evidence to show customers purchased an Xbox in lieu of a Motorola Droid or set-top box. Alternatively, Redmond says it should be capped on reasonable and non-discriminatory (RAND) terms. Shaw settled on seven percent in his recommendation.

So, what happens now? Will the Xbox be banned? Right now, we don’t know. Wired reports that Shaw’s ruling is now going to be sent to the ITC’s six-member board of commissioners for review. The deadline for changes to the ruling (or throwing it out completely) is set at August 23. If the board agrees with Shaw, the decision will then be passed on to the Obama Administration, which will have its own 60-day review period. During this period, it will be up to President Obama to either sign-off or overturn the commission’s decision.

A developer claiming to be employed by Ubisoft Milan has dumped a new load of Nintendo Wii U details including possible pricing and a release date. With E3 2012 taking place in mere weeks, it’s no surprise that details surrounding some of the upcoming announcements are starting to find their way onto the Internet. But what’s surprising is that this specific report was spilled by a supposed developer at Ubisoft Milan who undoubtedly is under NDA, but chose to dump system specs, pricing and availability of the Nintendo Wii U anyway.

For starters, take all of these as mere rumors until the official news arrives in two weeks. According to the developer, the Nintendo console will launch on November 23, 2012 (worldwide?) and cost somewhere between $350 and $450 USD — the price still isn’t set in stone. The GPU of choice will be AMD’s Radeon HD 6770 which will support not only DirectX 11, but Epic’s Unreal Engine 4.

As for other specs, the rumor dump claims the console will sport 2 GB of RAM, 560 MB of which will be dedicated to the console’s operating system. The Wii U’s user interface will be customizable whereas the console itself will come packed with pre-installed software. It will also support touch-screen controllers.

On the Ubisoft front, slated games include Rayman Legends, The Avengers, Assassin’s Creed 3 (which will run at 60fps at 1080p, compared to 720p on PS3 and Xbox 360) and Just Dance 4. Killer Freaks from Outer Space is set to arrive weeks after launch.

The Ubisoft developer also states that Crytek and Electronic Arts are working on Wii U products — this factor is old news. Valve, on the other hand, is also reportedly bringing its Steam service to the new console in addition to ports of both Portal games. Achievements will be supported by the console as well.

Now here’s an interesting tidbit: multiple versions of the Wii U are currently in the hands of developers. Does this mean Nintendo will offer tiered models? This seems unlikely given the company’s past releases. The note seems to indicate that Nintendo may have provided multiple configurations to see what developers liked best while keeping the final cost to consumers reasonable.

Again, take all of this with a grain of salt. The Unreal Engine 4 report seems a little far-fetched given that it’s finally able to run on a single Nvidia Kepler GPU — unless Epic is offering a modified version of UE4 capable of running on Nintendo’s hardware, that is. Rumor has it that Nintendo “tweaked” the console so that it could run Epic’s latest engine. The company seemingly doesn’t want to disappoint with this console, so UE4 could be a possibility.

Remember that line-up of colorful consoles we eyed back at TGS? One of eight of those mock-ups is about to become a reality, at least in Japan. On June 28th, color conscious gamers will be able to pick up a WiFi or 3G Crystal White PlayStation Vita for ¥24,980 and ¥29,980, respectively (that’s about $312 and $375 if you’re counting in greenbacks). If the absence of color is a bit too bland for you, a limited edition Hatsune Miku handheld will hit shelves two months later, commanding a ¥10,000 ($125) premium for the privilege of plastering Sega’s digital diva on your Vita’s rear touch panel. On the plus side, Vocoloid’s poster girl packs a 4GB memory card and a copy of Next Hatsune Miku: Project Diva to offset the limited edition’s larger sticker price. No word yet when or if these Vita variants will hit the western world, but we’ll let you now if we hear anything. Read more…

Biometrics and laptop security go together like business meetings and boardrooms, but this Microsoft patent hints that gaming could be the next frontier for fingerprint recognition. The claims for “personalization using a hand-pressure signature” detail a product that may look like your standard 360 controller, but it features sensors to detect a user’s identity. It seems that, based on each gamer’s unique hand pressure patterns, the controller can determine who is holding the device at any given moment and deliver personalized content based on that user’s gaming profile. Whatever Microsoft’s mystery controller may be, E3 is just a few weeks away, so perhaps we’ll learn more then.

SOURCE via USPTO

Whoa, Nelly! As rumored, Microsoft is indeed shattering the home console pricing paradigm by trying something that US wireless carriers have been doing for years. As of now, the official Microsoft Store is hosting up a coupon that’ll enable prospective Xbox buyers to snag a 4GB console bundle for just $99 (a $200 savings versus the outright unit)… so long as you agree to pay $14.99 per month for two solid years. That monthly fee — which amounts to some $360 over the 24 month term — gets you on the Xbox Live network with a Gold subscription, but remember, Microsoft’s maintaining the ability to “terminate this offer at any time.”

In case you’re curious, yes, early termination fees will apply if you cut out of your two-year deal early. It’s a prorated affair, with users asked to pay less the longer they maintain the contract. Those who part ways after only a month will have to pay $250, while those who cancel with just a month remaining will owe $12. All told, someone buying this and keeping true to the contract terms will pay $459 for the bundle and Live access, whereas those buying outright could snag it for $420 (or less, if scouring the web for cheaper Live subscriptions).

Looking to score one yourself? Hit the source link and visit that “Find a store” icon; hopefully there’s a B&M Microsoft Store near your neck of the woods.

SOURCE via Microsoft

Nintendo is already guiding you through the Louvre with a 3DS, but a newly published US patent application takes that kind of tourism to a very literal new level. Legend of Zelda creator Shigeru Miyamoto’s concept describes a way to direct lost tourists by beaming position information through an overhead grid of infrared transmitters to a mobile device (portrayed as a DS Lite) held by the confused visitor below. The handheld then talks wirelessly to a server that lights up floor displays with maps and directions, and a helpful app on the device lets visitors pick their route while they read up on sightseeing tips. Like with any patent, there’s no certainty that Nintendo will act on the idea and start wiring up museums with IR blasters, but the January 2012 patent may still be fresh in a frequently inventive mind like Miyamoto’s.

SOURCE via USPTO

If the Queen’s Jubilee and 2012 Olympics pride have overcome your sense of subtlety, Microsoft has a special game console for you. The Celebration Pack Xbox 360 is a plain-jane 4GB Kinect bundle underneath, but it slathers the console, the wireless gamepad and the Kinect sensor in a tattered Union Jack to remind everyone you’re not from Canada. Gamers also get copies of Kinect Adventures and Kinect Sports to help them train for the 500-meter relay. Showing your patriotism with an Xbox will cost you £250 ($406) when the console is ready on May 25, while Microsoft will gladly sell you a just-as-British Wireless Mobile Mouse 3500 for £30 ($49).

SOURCE via Amazon UK

As promised last month, Sony has launched its PlayStation Suite SDK on open beta. Machinations have continued since November behind closed beta doors, but the free SDK is now available for anyone to download. Developers will be able to make content accessible for all PlayStation-certified devices, from the PS Vita to Sony’s batch of Android phones and tablets. The official version is still pegged for launch later in 2012 and will demand an annual subscription for access. During the open beta, users can create games that use both physical buttons and touchscreen input with a PC-based simulator, test and debug those creations on willing Sony devices and debate away in the dedicated developer forum. Those with lofty game-making dreams for the PlayStation Suite can download the open beta at the source link below, but expect to sign a new contract when the full SDK goes official.

SOURCE via PlayStation

Any geek worth his / her salt knows that techdom’s territory-spanning intellectual property spats are far from over, so we don’t begrudge heavyweights like Nintendo for endeavoring to bulk up their litigious arsenal. Filed back in October of 2003 and just recently granted by the USPTO, is patent number 8,157,654 that gives the Big N ownership of a method to emulate video game consoles bearing built-in displays (think: handhelds) and accompanying software on external computing devices. What does that mean in plain ‘ol English, dear gaming fanatic? Well, it could presage a device agnostic service that would break the company’s vast backlog of handheld titles out of its walled garden and into the vast consumer wild. Or it could just be another legal armament poised for deployment should the sue-happy titans of the electronics industry come a-calling. Either way, the house that Mario built’s got another IP bullet locked and loaded.

SOURCE via USPTO

When Michael Abrash started working for Valve, he expected the higher-ups to hand him a pile of work and tell him to hop to it. They didn’t. Instead, he was told to figure out the most valuable thing he could do for the company, and then do it. So, Abrash wound up kicking off an in-house R&D project for wearable computers, and according to a recent blog post, is looking to expand his research team. More than me-too mice and gamepads, indeed. Abrash is quick to put a lid on rumors of “Steam glasses,” however, and warns readers not to expect any big reveals at E3 — this is just an “initial investigation into a very interesting and promising space,” he says, and is more “research than development.” Rearing to give Google’s Project Glass a run for its money? Or maybe you’re just itching for a detailed narrative of employee and employer? Either way, you’ll find what you’re looking at the source link below.

SOURCE via The Verge