1st Things first. Whatever you buy or sell is on you.
I know this is read by other people, but it started as a place for me to keep my notes and not lose them -- and that's largely what it still is, and I haven't been keeping as up on things as I used to.
Posts are rare now, largely because there are a lot more eyes on Microvision than there used to be and you can see a lot of discussion, references and new information on the r/mvis reddit board...
The most valuable part of MicroVision is the Near Eye display.
As much as the focus of the investing public is on LiDAR, don't forget this.
it's big enough that I think that LiDAR could serve its primary function as a distraction.
Apple / Barrons -- AR device 4th Quarter 2022. (Ming-Chi Kuo rarely gets things wrong.)
"Apple will launch an augmented-reality headset in the fourth quarter of 2022, and could sell more than a billion of the new devices over the next 10 years, one analyst asserted in a research note Friday."
The number of subscriptions that can be sold with AR devices is ENORMOUS. If we have the value proposition for near eye display changing to emulate the way the value proposition has just been modified for LiDAR as illustrated in the recent Microvision LiDAR presentation.... then.... we will do really well.
Microsoft has gotten HUGE increases in productivity with Hololens, and AR Games... will be gigantic.
Microvision stock is heavily manipulated.
(Trading experts tell me it's about 60% manipulated down)
The video is from Fox news.... I've had trouble getting it to play.
****
****
Most of the biggest names in Big Tech are racing to create smart
glasses that we wear everywhere and that may replace our phones.
Microsoft,
Amazon, Google, Snap, Facebook Apple, Magic Leap and others are all
working on some form of smart glasses or headset that will change how we
view the world around us. Instead of pulling a phone out of our pockets
to talk to people or interact with apps, we may do these things simply
by speaking to, and looking through, a set of glasses.
There’s
a race to be the first to make a set of glasses that everyone will
wear, which means they have to be fashionable and sleek enough to wear
all day and everywhere you go. Advocates of the technology hope that
you’ll one day be able to replace every screen in your life with just
one pair of smart glasses.
I drove by again the facility that is Oculus in Redmond. (Traveling and had a little time to kill.) The facility is about 4 miles from Microvision's HQ A couple of years ago when I drove by and took a picture my phone asked if I wanted to tag the picture I took at Oculus. The outside of the building is absolutely unmarked. Nothing that says Facebook anywhere. This is a picture of the directory -- 9845 is Facebook.
New outside is the "intercampus shuttle" -- which tells me that they either already have an additional facility, or they are going to some other company's campus. (The Microsoft HQ they call a "campus") This sign is in front of Facebook's building, not Microsoft's.
And I'm not an HVAC expert, (maybe someone here is, but this looks like a cooling system that is behind Facebook's building. Interesting the amount of security around it, and it sure sounded like things were running.
If anyone can add any color to what might be going on here, I'd be interested. (needing really cold temperatures for something?)
I'm pretty sure all of the AR systems (careful word choice --'system') created will be display agnostic. Different companies will build various systems of software, sensors, content, and input. They will then use the best of whatever accessories will be available in the market. The leaders now are each going to try to become the standard, to become at the start the most accepted version will be huge. Some other player may well appear and work to compete with Microsoft on price -- or on content. As we have seen many times in the past, those players who have chosen the right content concentration may beat a superior technology. There will be room for multiple players in the field -- some may produce entertainment over education, or consumer over enterprise.... eventually I suspect it will be like Apple vs Android or Mac vs PC. A couple of strong contenders -- but there are a lot of them now. The payoff for whichever company dominates in this field is going to be HUGE. It will be bigger than dominating the personal computing surge in the 1980's. Selling the best near eye display (and having the best sensors) will be like selling shovels to gold miners. Facebook is in the race for "enterprise AR" and they have a significant presence in Redmond. Their existence in Redmond Washington is an "open secret." They don't advertise their presence at all. A couple of years ago I was given a heads-up about their facility there and I stopped at it. Not only were the buildings unmarked -- just normal looking office buildings.... but there was no indication on any person or any vehicle what was there. (No Facebook Stickers, Logos, Shirts, no labeled visitor spot.. nothing of the kind.) I took a couple of pictures. A couple of hours later, my phone asked me if I wanted to label the pictures I took at Oculus. Facebook is growing at a rapidly in Redmond.
Facebook wants to sell more virtual reality headsets to businesses.
The company is working on an "enterprise edition" of its Oculus Go and Oculus Quest headsets, according to a new job posting that was first discovered by Variety.
The job listing is for a software engineer position on Oculus' AR/VR Enterprise team. Though light on specifics, it says enterprise editions of its headsets will launch in 2019.
"Starting with VR, we are building an Oculus Go and Oculus Quest Enterprise edition expected to launch in 2019," the description says.
Facebook has previously dabbled in this space. The company has offered Oculus Business, Rift bundles meant to appeal to businesses, since 2017. But a dedicated enterprise version of its hardware would be a significant expansion for Oculus. The job description suggests Facebook is working on partnerships with "enterprise-developer ecosystems" and other software platforms in order to create business-specific features.
Virtual reality is cool, but it isolates you. Augmented reality improves your world.
NYMag.com (Thanks Joe D!) Put another way, VR increasingly seems like the original Nintendo — an amazing combination of hardware and software that fundamentally changed how many people spent their freetime. But AR, with its ability to be both ubiquitous and useful, seems more and more like the smartphone, a combination of hardware and software that changed how we lived.
By itself maybe not so interesting, but it is interesting what features the public are demanding for these devices. Chat alone (awesome video chat even) isn't enough. Need to be able to browse, get information and play music and games.
Facebook has also added a new feature of AR Story Time tales, seasonal AR masks, in-call musicsharing through iHeartRadio beyond Spotify and Pandora.
This vital update by Facebook can play a key role in repositioning Portal as not only a video chat device but more in the line with Amazon Echo Show and Google Home Hub.
When Facebook Portal was first launched in October, the device didn’t have much of a reason to exist beyond giving Facebook a way to try its hand at hardware.
But a lot of people who are feeling okay with bringing a Facebook camera and microphone into their homes seemed slim, especially after a lot of people complained about its lack of features.
I've received several requests for my thoughts about the CC....
The big picture answer is that I have little doubt about how big Microvision is going to be.
As I've made clear before, it's a bleeding-edge company transitioning to a leading edge company, and in those situations timing is always an issue... delays are always possible.
One of the key things in the conference call -- that some will interpret as a negative -- is that the NRE is not necessary. That means the company has done a good job anticipating the needs of OEMS... that's huge to the positive in my view -- and says that one significant situation that COULD cause a delay won't. (They have a destination for engines... if they needed to be adjusted, then they're re-engineer, test again... and possibly find the new thing comes up short... this hurdle has been bypassed.)
They also made clear that products will appear next year.
They announced a 24 million "black box" contract. That will be revealed sometime between now and mid next year. (it's still a secret)
They announced a display only contract.
They have not yet announced whatever is going to happen with the interactive display contract(s?)
So, I expect an interactive display contract announcement very soon
We were also told that once the "black box" project development is complete, that Microvision can sell the results to whomever they want. (As this is the case, it is almost certainly NOT a hardware company: Software, search, social media) prime suspects are Microsoft, Google, Amazon or Facebook.
And... once the tech is in the hands of more than one player, the desire for secrecy will be turned on it's head. When you're the only one, you want to be quiet. When you're in a field of similar players, you want to be as loud as possible..... so I expect a lot of noise about MVIS very soon.
Whether or not dilution is required or a contract or other income shows up before long remains to be seen... but I think the next announcements will come fairly rapidly.
Time table on this is interesting. I had expected it to be announced in the spring. Apparently they added some features. The original reporting apparently comes from Cheddar... still watching.
This was on my black box short list. The time frame seemed right, and the kind of device seemed to match what Mulligan was talking about in the spring.
Code dug out by a tipster confirms that Facebook is developing a speech recognition tool named Aloha. The code further confirms the name for Facebook's smart speaker in development.
Facebook is reportedly working on its own speech recognition technology called 'Aloha'. More information about Facebook’s ongoing efforts to develop a smart speaker with a display and a dedicated speech recognition tool has been outed by TechCrunch via frequent tipster and mobile researcher Jane Manchun Wong.
Digging into the code of the Facebook and Messenger Android apps, Manchun found references to ‘Aloha’, a speech recognition tool which will help users dictate messages in Messenger as well as operate other Facebook services. Facebook is aiming this tool for its apps as well as external hardware, most likely, the rumoured Portal smart speaker that the company is said to be developing.
Dubbed ‘Aloha Voice Testing’ the feature is said to facilitate speech-to-text-to-speech conversion, allowing Messenger users more ways to interact with each other on the platform. The code found by Manchun shows a prototype of Aloha’s user interface in use on Messenger. A blue volume indicator can be seen in the form of a bar as words are dictated to Aloha and typed out in Messenger. This transcription tool can ease Messenger usage for older people and those with disabilities.
"Our licensee has been actively meeting with Tier 1 customers about the sales opportunities
using MicroVision’s display-only technologies. We understand that they are getting good
response from these customers. We remain optimistic that they will be successful landing
customers, resulting in sales of MicroVision components to them in 2019."
Be a smart investor and sell a double, like our friend Ron.....
What Microsoft has not talked about much however has been the optics of the device, but now a new patent suggests Microsoft may have achieved the breakthrough they have been after."
Patent
..... display engine 140 which emits image light in a step 300 that is modulated on a pixel-by-pixel basis by the controller 124.In embodiments, the display engine 140 may be a commercially available assembly, such as for example the PicoP™ display engine from Microvision, Inc. of Redmond, Wash.
I appreciate the enthusiasm and being alerted to things, but this doesn't change my outlook at all. (because of course we're eventually going to be in there.) I've appreciated all the tips from a lot of people over a period of years. Microvision produces the best near eye displays out there, so of course they're going to use it -- and so are Apple, Facebook and Google... and Meta and Vuzix, and ODG and Magic Leap.... This is is another bit of evidence being added to an already large amount of evidence that supports the idea that Microvision will be included in Hololens and other AR/MR devices.
(There are already many patents from Microsoft that cite Microvision's PicoP display... and many from other places)
Microvision's near eye displays are going to dominate, because they're the best. At CES I made an effort to try every near eye display out there. Some are pretty good -- but I've also tried Microvision's (Microvision's OLD display --- and it blows away everything else out there. They aren't even close.)
I've tried Hololens in its current form. I've tried Meta, Vuzix, Epson, ODG, at least two forms of Oculus, and the Skully Helmet. (The only one I wanted to try that I haven't been able to is Magic Leap)
As far as the display is concerned what they're showing SUCKS next to MicroVision's near eye display. Laser is the solution. Ghosting is a serious problem and Microvision solves that. Those companies that are building Augmented Reality and Mixed reality. -- They're working on interface, content, etc. Microvision is going to be the display everywhere because it's the best. It's that simple. Apple, Facebook, Google, Microsoft.... Vuzix, Skully, ODG, Meta.. they're all going to use Microvision's displays. They're ALL working on products that need near eye displays. The technology and software they have developed is amazing. None of these devices is just a display, they're all surrounding technology. They need a better display though. The breadcrumbs clearly lead in this direction. The evidence has been building for a long time. Apple Augmented Reality Inclusions Apple AR Glasses Injuries at Apple? 1000 Apple Engineers working on AR We can thank our previous CEO for having the vision and the determination to cook all this up and make it happen. AR CAN'T FAIL. There's all this hesitation about whether or not people will actually adopt it. Just three days ago I posted about why it CAN'T fail. It makes people WAY more productive. The games will be stunning.
That's all we need. BTW Sharp/Foxconn (my best guess and I'm fairly confident in it) is going to make tons of phones and other devices with projection. (TV that fits in your pocket?) The first generation that they have the exclusive contract for, is going to make entertainment and education available to billions of people.
No details until I digest a little.... Familiar products, and how we could be incorporated into them. 10 Million contract more restricted than I originally thought.... meaning much more opening for growth and expansion.... Some emphasis from Mulligan on Machine Learning at the sensor... which I think is huge for at least a couple of reasons. Based on conversations and our detective work. Joe and I are pretty confident that the 10 million contract is with Sharp/Foxconn. (Sharp is making tons of green lasers.... among other reasons.)
MicroVision is Naming Names. MVIS Presentation This is nearly as good in my mind as an out and out announcement.(IMHO)
Amazon
Google
Facebook
Did NOT mention who is the BB partner (or what it is.... or did they?)
Did NOT mention who is the display only partner (or did they?) Love this slide:
Links to two specific videos... Check out the listing at WPG Holdings.... (BELOW)
Facebook F8 Announcement "Facebook Announces
Spaces, VR Hangout App,
For Oculus Rift F8
Conference" I think very interesting the missing "Portal Speaker." *********** WPG Holdings Projection Smart Speaker Solution. (WPG Holdings is a distributor if you haven't already been following along. MicroVision is in very good company there.) This engine, (the PSE-0403st) is a version of the INTERACTIVE engine -- not the Display only version. (See MicroVision Displayground for write up.)
This is just an educated guess. I readily admit that I could be very wrong about this. This is just dot connecting from publicly available information. This is what I suspect and why. In the fall we were told about the "Black Box" project that once the development was complete, we would be able to sell the results to anyone. If someone is paying for development, it's exceptionally odd that they would allow anyone else to use what they paid to develop -- unless of course they would benefit if anyone else used it. So who would benefit from anyone's use of it? Companies that do things on a variety of devices -- There are various common computer operating systems, stationary and mobile: Windows, Linux, iOS and Android (google) What services are likely to be used on all operating systems? and are "Tier 1" Google Facebook Amazon
So, that's my short list. It doesn't matter what operating system you're using... people will still use all three of these. You would connect to Google if you used an Amazon device or to Amazon if you used a Google device. Same for Facebook. No matter who produces the device, you would still use the other service -- and in my mind, that's the only way you'd pay to develop some hardware, and then allow (and encourage) your development partner to sell it to anyone and everyone they want to. If you add other system software to it you add Microsoft; Apple is also doing some interesting things with AR and sharing it, they're opening up. So Microsoft and Apple are also contenders, but less, in my mind than the other three. So, go back to look at the 4th Quarter Conference call. (delivered during Q1) What are all of those companies working on? (all five). Smart homes -- The description delivered during the conference call sounds like that. Review the Question and Answer portion of that CC:
Microvision Q1 2018 Perry Mulligan / Q1 Conference Call
It is. So the capabilities I'm describing in this perceptive element exist within the context of the 1-meter, 1.5-meter interactive display, the 10-meter display and the 30-meter display and perhaps the -- sorry, not display, LiDAR. Perhaps the best way to think of these, Henry, is to think of them as having sort of different levels of vocabulary. The things that the 1 meter display -- or the 1 meter LiDAR will have to recognize will be a relatively small number of things, gestures, point, touch, compression, squeezing the picture, flipping the page. And the 10-meter LiDAR, you can see how that number of things that would have to be recognized will increase for the device to be able to send a message that says it's your child walking towards an open door versus your dog running through a dog port would be an example of how those differences Maybe it's you walking down the hall past the bookcase, so don't turn the lights on for the bookshelf, or your wife walking towards the bookcase to get a book, go turn the lights on there and illustrate it. So those -- you can see that the language or the vocabulary perhaps of the device would increase and then within the automotive space would increase again. ....think of our display engine embedded in your voice-only device. So that as you shave in the morning not only do you listen to the news, you see it displayed on the washroom wall, and that becomes a little bit more meaningful experience. As you walk down the hall towards the kitchen, our sensing device knows it's you that's walking down the hall. It adjusts the coffee and turns the lights on appropriately. And then an interactive display that's invisible, but when you call it up, it comes out as an Alexa-type device or something of that nature that allows you to interact with it because of the sensing capabilities, gesture recognition and then disappears when it's not required. So we really see this as sort of a suite of solution that helps AI platforms with their user interface. So, look at what is happening with these companies: Google Integrating Smart Home Devices --- Clearly designed so that people can integrate google Smart Home into OTHER manufacturers devices. This is thorough explanation of how to do it. GOOGLE SMART HOME Amazon Connect your devices to Alexa At CES I had a very interesting conversation with one of the people doing Amazon Alexa certification. She reported that anyone can make a device that uses Alexa, but they must submit it to be an "approved" Alexa using device and sell it on Amazon. Facebook Portal Remember they had a privacy snafu, and delayed the announcement. Visit an Amazon Smart Home (It's on my near-term agenda)
Cortana Smart Home Apple Home Kit Amazon Smart Home Devices (clearly willing to work with anyone) USA TODAY C|Net Hints about "machine learning"
there are solutions out there today
that do 3D scanning, perhaps as an example, for facial recognition. They require high compute energy and use approximately 30,000 points to do
that calculation. Our range of solutions will provide between 5 million and 20 million points per second of resolution in the 10-meter space. So the
density of the information we have at the sensor allows us to make simple messaging analytics or messaging content that enables users to do so
much more with the device than simply trying to plug them with this plethora of data. It is almost diametrically opposed to the way most entities
are solving sensing applications today. Almost everybody is trying diligently to get more information from the sensor, pass it down the pipe to a
centralized processor that allows it to do a calculation and figure out what's going on. We have so much information at the sensor. We have the
luxury of sending messaging, which just makes it much easier for the entire system to be responsive. And it will be a shame not to capture that.
I've been busy, and contemplating the CC, past CC's, the license agreement, and other recent news.
The recent license agreement seems to indicate that enough cash will be available for everything. There is a key phrase in the press release about the purchase of MEMS and ASICS. I would like to know what the margins on those components will be. Either way it looks like in the next year a minimum of 25-35 million in revenue to the company.
This does NOT include any exclusive right to other parts of their technology portfolio. (Not LiDAR / 3D sensing, not interactive Display, not Near Eye Display.) Which means this is in addition to other things we think are probably going to be bigger money makers.
"The agreement does not include a license to MicroVision technology related to interactive displays, LiDAR and 3D sensing, or near-eye applications, such as augmented or virtual reality, which remain key vertical markets for MicroVision."
There have been some assumptions about display only PicoP -- that it wasn't going to earn much for the company, the company didn't care, etc. I was never a believer in that theory. That display technology answers two huge problems for the most popular consumer electronics product. (said so the other day here) Consumers universally want their smartphones to be physically smaller with a larger display. Product Adoption -- can happen at a stunning rate. Cellphones went from nothing to huge very quickly, and cameras in smartphones even faster. One of the things about cameras, is that people like to share the pictures they take -- MORE than they like to take the pictures. Now, the idea that the company would be forced to raise money is mostly off the table. (This licensing agreement isn't going to be the only revenue source)
One mention of MicroVision on financial media in the same breath as any specific "Tier 1" technology company, and things will change completely.
When that happens new potential investors will start learning about it the way it is today.. (They won't care how much pain investors in the company from the past 20 years have felt, not even a little bit.) Things are looking really good.
EXCLUSIVE: Facebook Dives into Home Device Market with Video Chat Product Named "Portal"
January 9, 2018
Facebook is about to jump into the consumer hardware business in a big way with a video chat device named "Portal," which will put it in direct competition with Amazon’s hugely popular line of Echo voice-controlled devices, Cheddar has learned.
The device is designed to work in the home and represents Facebook’s first serious foray into selling consumer hardware, people familiar with the matter said. Rather than position the device as a smart assistant akin to Amazon’s Echo speakers, Facebook intends to pitch Portal as a way for families and friends to stay connected through video chatting and other social features.
Facebook plans a formal product introduction in early May at its annual developer conference and hopes to ship the device in the second half of 2018.
Like Amazon’s screen-equipped Echo Show, Facebook’s Portal is designed to work indoors and be controlled through voice commands. According to people familiar with Facebook’s plans, Portal will be equipped with a wide-angle lens that is capable of recognizing individual faces and associating them with their Facebook accounts.
The world’s largest social network has been using facial recognition for years and recently started notifying users if their faces appear in photos they aren’t tagged in.
Facebook also intends to let Portal access outside streaming services like Spotify and Netflix. The company recently signed sweeping music licensing deals with Sony/ATV and Universal Music Group.
Facebook stock rose nearly 4 percent in premarket trading Thursday after CEO Mark Zuckerberg told reporters he had not seen a noticeable change in user behavior in the wake of the Cambridge Analytica data scandal.
"I don't think there has been any meaningful impact we've observed," Zuckerberg said, when asked if the tech giant has seen a change in the behavior of users or buying pattern of advertisers.
“You want to play a board game? You snap your fingers, and here’s the board game,” he said, motioning to the coffee table. “You want to watch TV?” he gestured to the flat screen up on the wall. “You don’t need a physical hardware TV, you buy a one-dollar app ‘TV’ and put it on the wall.”
Zuckerberg hasn’t figured out a way to conjure physical objects out of thin air. Instead he has plans to produce digital objects using software-powered glasses, the kind of futuristic lenses that can overlay digital text and images onto the physical world around you.
Somewhere down the line, Zuckerberg said, augmented reality will be a big part of Facebook, too. That vision was laid out today at the company’s annual developer conference, F8, in San Jose, Calif., just 20 miles down the road from Facebook’s corporate headquarters.
FB is one of my suspects for the BB project. There are others, but they're a very interesting one.
Of course, the recent attention their use of data has attracted is probably not a positive, I don't think it's much of a negative either. In the end, I think it will have little effect.
Just now, in my e-mail I received a notification from Microsoft. They are updating their agreements. (New Microsoft Services Agreement.) In there they say what you can do from them, what you bought, what they owe you, what you agree not to do, that you can't reverse-engineer their software, etc. Lots of stuff to cover various backsides. This E-mail Arrived
As part of this service agreement -- at the top, is a Privacy Statement. Here's the FIRST section of that statement.
Microsoft collects data to operate effectively and provide you the best experiences with our products. You provide some of this data directly, such as when you create a Microsoft account, administer your organization’s licensing account, submit a search query to Bing, register for a Microsoft event, speak a voice command to Cortana, upload a document to OneDrive, purchase an MSDN subscription, sign up for Office 365, or contact us for support. We get some of it by recording how you interact with our products by, for example, using technologies like cookies, and receiving error reports or usage data from software running on your device.
We also obtain data from third parties. We protect data obtained from third parties according to the practices described in this statement, plus any additional restrictions imposed by the source of the data. These third-party sources vary over time, but have included:
Data brokers from which we purchase demographic data to supplement the data we collect.
Social networks when you grant permission to a Microsoft product to access your data on one or more networks.
Service providers that help us determine a location based on your IP address in order to customize certain products to your location.
Partners with which we offer co-branded services or engage in joint marketing activities, and
Publicly-available sources such as open government databases or other data in the public domain.
You have choices about the data we collect. When you are asked to provide personal data, you may decline. But if you choose not to provide data that is necessary to provide a product or feature, you may not be able to use that product or feature.
The data we collect depends on the context of your interactions with Microsoft, the choices you make, including your privacy settings, and the products and features you use. The data we collect can include the following:
Name and contact data. We collect your first and last name, email address, postal address, phone number, and other similar contact data.
Credentials. We collect passwords, password hints, and similar security information used for authentication and account access.
Demographic data. We collect data about you such as your age, gender, country, and preferred language.
Payment data. We collect data necessary to process your payment if you make purchases, such as your payment instrument number (such as a credit card number), and the security code associated with your payment instrument.
Device and Usage data. We collect data about your device and how you and your device interact with Microsoft and our products. For example, we collect:
Product use data. We collect data about the features you use, the items you purchase, and the web pages you visit. This data includes your voice and text search queries or commands to Bing, Cortana, and our chat bots. This also includes the settings you select and the software configurations you use most.
Device, connectivity and configuration data. We collect data about your device and the network you use to connect to our products. It includes data about the operating systems and other software installed on your device, including product keys. It also includes IP address, device identifiers (such as the IMEI number for phones), regional and language settings.
Error reports and performance data. We collect data about the performance of the products and any problems you experience with them. This data helps us to diagnose problems in the products you use, and to improve our products and provide solutions. Depending on your product and settings, error reports (sometimes called “crash dumps”) can include data such as the type or severity of the problem, details of the software or hardware related to an error, contents of files you were using when an error occurred, and data about other software on your device.
Troubleshooting and Help Data. When you engage Microsoft for troubleshooting and help, we collect data about you and your hardware, software, and other details related to the incident. Such data includes contact or authentication data, the content of your chats and other communications with Microsoft, data about the condition of the machine and the application when the fault occurred and during diagnostics, and system and registry data about software installations and hardware configurations.
Interests and favorites. We collect data about your interests and favorites, such as the teams you follow in a sports app, the programming languages you prefer, the stocks you track in a finance app, or the favorite cities you add to a weather app. In addition to those you explicitly provide, your interests and favorites may also be inferred or derived from other data we collect.
Contacts and relationships. We collect data about your contacts and relationships if you use a Microsoft product to manage contacts, for example Outlook.com, or to communicate or interact with other people or organizations, for example Visual Studio Team Services.
Location data. For products with location-enhanced features, we collect data about your location, which can be either precise or imprecise. Precise location data can be Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) data (e.g., GPS), as well as data identifying nearby cell towers and Wi-Fi hotspots, we collect when you enable location-based products or features. Imprecise location data includes, for example, a location derived from your IP address or data that indicates where you are located with less precision, such as at a city or postal code level.
Content. We collect content of your files and communications when necessary to provide you with the products you use. For example, if you transmit a file using Skype to another Skype user, we need to collect the content of that file to display it to you and the other user as you direct. If you receive an email using Outlook.com, we need to collect the content of that email to deliver it to your inbox, display it to you, enable you to reply to it, and store it for you until you choose to delete it. Other data we collect to provide communication services to you include the:
subject line and body of an email,
text or other content of an instant message,
audio and video recording of a video message, and
audio recording and transcript of a voice message you receive or a text message you dictate.
Video. If you enter Microsoft Store locations or other facilities, or attend a Microsoft event, your image may be captured by our security cameras.
If you use Spend, at your direction, we may also collect payment card information, receipt data, or financial transaction data, to provide the service.
We also collect information you provide to us and the content of messages you send to us, such as feedback and product reviews you write, or questions and information you provide for customer support. When you contact us, such as for customer support, phone conversations or chat sessions with our representatives may be monitored and recorded.
Product-specific sections below describe data collection practices applicable to use of those products.
**********************************
Most of the data collection they use is for Advertising, a very broad category..... This was released by Microsoft without a prompt, so they are trying to get ahead of the issue. We will likely see something similar from Facebook.
*********************************
Advertising. Microsoft does not use what you say in email, chat, video calls or voice mail, or your documents, photos or other personal files to target ads to you.
We use data we collect through our interactions with you, through some of our products and on third-party web properties, to show advertising. For example:
Microsoft may use your data to select and deliver some of the ads you see on Microsoft web properties, such as Microsoft.com, MSN and Bing.
When the advertising ID is enabled in Windows 10 as part of your privacy settings, Microsoft apps can access and use the advertising ID (much the same way that websites can access and use a unique identifier stored in a cookie) to select and deliver ads in such apps.
We may share data we collect with third parties, such as Oath, AppNexus, or Facebook (see below), so that they can select and deliver some of the ads you see in our products, their products, or other sites and apps serviced by these partners.
Advertisers may choose to place our web beacons on their sites in order to allow Microsoft to collect information on their sites such as activities, purchases and visits; we use this data on behalf of our advertising customers to help target their ads. We also share data directly with service providers, such as Oath, AppNexus, or Facebook, to permit them to provide services on our behalf or to partner with us in selecting and serving ads for our advertising partners.
The ads that you see may be selected based on data we process about you, such as your interests and favorites, your location, your transactions, how you use our products, your search queries, or the content you view. For example, if you view content on MSN about automobiles, we may show advertisements about cars; if you search “pizza places in Seattle” on Bing, you may see advertisements in your search results for restaurants in Seattle.
The ads that you see may also be selected based on other information learned about you over time using demographic data, location data, search queries, interests and favorites, usage data from our products and sites, as well as the sites and apps of our advertisers and partners. We refer to these ads as "interest-based advertising" in this statement. For example, if you view gaming content on xbox.com, you may see offers for games on MSN. To provide interest-based advertising, we combine cookies placed on your device using information that we collect (such as IP address) when your browser interacts with our websites. If you opt out of receiving interest-based advertising, data associated with these cookies will not be used.
