Apple 'in talks' to buy motion control specialist (and Kinect maker) PrimeSense (update)
Israeli news source Calcalist has a decent track record when it comes to acquisition gossip, even if the gossip itself sometimes comes to nothing. Bearing that in mind, the latest rumor is that Apple is "in talks" to buy PrimeSense, the company that worked with Microsoft to create the first-generation Kinect (but not Kinect 2.0) and which could potentially help Cupertino with new projects that require natural interfaces. The value of the acquisition is said to "probably" be around $280 million, although the source makes it clear these talks are at a very early stage. Whichever way things go, the immediate effect of a report like this is to add to the impression that PrimeSense has a future beyond the Xbox 360 -- but, frankly, we already believed it did.
[Thanks, Ron]
Update: We just received a statement from PrimeSense, indicating that they don't comment on rumors:
"PrimeSense is growing the company and currently has by far the leading 3D technology in the market, tier one prospects, strong revenues and a healthy cash position.
We are focused on building a prosperous company while bringing 3D sensing and Natural Interaction to the mass market in a variety of industries. We can't comment on what any of our partners, customers or potential customers are doing and we are not commenting on rumors."
