Mobile Gaming

Aili McConnon, Businessweek
June 4, 2007

Hey, Dude, What's Shakin'?

Instead of Jamming their thumbs on tiny buttons, some mobile-phone gamers are swinging and tilting their handsets to throw darts or roll a marble through amaze. That's because these games include a motion-recognition component from Sunnywale (Calif.) software maker GestureTek. Once downloaded onto aVerizon camera phone, at $9.95 a pop, the games work by having users shake or wave their handsets the way they would a Nintendo Wii, the blockbuster video game system that ffacls players' body movements. In Japan, where many tech trends are born, DoCoMo, one of the world's largest mobile providers, is set to release Sharp and Panasonic handsets preloaded with GestureTelCs gesture recognition software. Later this year in the U.S., Verizon's camera-equipped phones will be able to get GestureTek downloads that allow for flipping through photos or surfing Web sites with a wrist flick. And by 2oo8, GestureTek plans to release software that enables users to justwag their fingers in front ofthe phone's screen to point and select-or to wave a sword if they are slaying dragons between calls.

About GestureTek Mobile
GestureTek Mobile is a world leader in gesture-based user interface for mobile devices and the inventor of the patented, award-winning EyeMobile Engine.  EyeMobile Engine is the world’s first software-only solution that uses the existing camera on a cell phone or mobile Internet device to provide people with the ability to interact with their device using gestures. By shaking, rocking or rolling the phone (or making hand motions in front of the phone) users can answer a call, play mobile games, scroll menus, navigate maps, view images and documents, browse the web, enter text messages and do anything else they would normally do on their mobile device, without pressing buttons.  Licensees of GestureTek’s patents or technologies include Sony for the EyeToy, Microsoft for the XBOX 360 and Hasbro for the ION Educational Gaming System.  GestureTek Mobile’s award wins include the 2008 Mobile Innovation Global Award, the LAPTOP Magazine ‘Best of CTIA’ Award and the NATPE++ Award for the Hottest Mobile Application.  Games powered by the EyeMobile Engine have been recognized by the BREW Game Developer Awards, the International Mobile Gaming Awards and the IGN Editors Choice Awards.  GestureTek Mobile developed the first gesture-recognition software to be embedded in NTT DoCoMo phones in Japan and provided the software for the first gesture-controlled mapping application on a cellphone.  EyeMobile supports many handsets on the JAVA, BREW, SYMBIAN, WINDOWS MOBILE and DOJA platforms. Applications are available for over the air download on the Verizon network.  Full developer tools are available on the Qualcomm website.   A catalogue of turnkey games and applications for multiple platforms are available from the GestureTek mobile site. GestureTek Mobile is a business unit of GestureTek Inc., pioneer, patent-holder and world-leader in computer vision control for presentation and entertainment systems.