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Microsoft sets sights on augmented reality glasses

 

Microsoft Augmented RealityMicrosoft patents documents augmented reality glasses project

Microsoft has been showing a great deal of interest in augmented reality lately. The technology company appears to be ready to take its interest to the next level, according to a patent filed with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. The patent filing from Microsoft documents plans for the development of a pair of augmented reality glasses, very similar to those being developed by Google. Microsoft believes that its glasses will be more than capable of competing with Google’s Project Glass.

AR system could be used for entertainment

The patent covers “a system and method to present a user wearing a head-mounted display with supplemental information when viewing a live event.” Essentially, the augmented reality glasses will be able to provide digital information concerning whatever is being viewed, allowing users to browse this content through a variety of contextual displays. The system has immediate implications for entertainment, as Microsoft is expected to leverage augmented reality technology in gaming and video. Augmented reality glasses could be used for much more than that, however.

Augmented reality shows potential in mobile commerce

Augmented reality has gained significant traction in marketing because of its interactive capabilities. Consumers have responded well to campaigns that make use of the technology in the past, leading to growing demand for the technology today. This interest is beginning to bleed into the realm of mobile commerce, where augmented reality technology could be used to make shopping more engaging and interactive.

Microsoft aims to compete with Google and others

Google has managed to generate a large amount of hype around the prospects of augmented reality glasses with Project Glass. Microsoft aims to overcome the challenge presented by Project Glass with it own augmented reality glasses. Whether the company will succeed in its endeavor has yet to be seen, but Microsoft is not alone in its interest of augmented reality. Sony is also planning to develop a pair of augmented reality glasses that could have a wide range of uses from entertainment to mobile commerce.

 

Mcommerce helps to increase personalization for consumers

Mcommerce DemandAs the number of smartphone using consumers increases, so is the demand for mobile experiences.

Businesses ranging from retail stores to hotels are discovering that they need to keep up with the pace of technology, which means that mcommerce is already a vital part of ensuring future survival.

It is no longer an option for companies to avoid these changes.

Over half of consumers in the United States now have smartphones, and a growing number of them have come to expect that their favorite places to shop will cater to their desire to use these devices to make purchases and reservations. Many business owners are under the impression that this will require a great deal of time and expense, but it is possible to take part in mcommerce without tying up a large amount of a marketing budget or resources.

The mcommerce experience allows companies to become closer with consumers.

A survey performed by IMB this year that spoke with CEOs of companies of various size showed that 88 percent felt that their highest priority between now and 2017 was to bring themselves closer to their customers. Mobile commerce is an exceptionally important way to reach this goal.

Although the standard web remains important, as the majority of consumers still use desktops and laptops for shopping and searching online, recent data from Google has shown that 15 percent of online activity comes from mobile sources. This is a market segment that is simply too large to ignore, and it grows bigger every month.

By using social and mcommerce, companies get develop a better understanding of who their customers are and what they want from their experience. It becomes possible to identify many more variables than is possible from in-store or standard online shoppers. Once that information has been obtained, the customer experience can be continually personalized and polished in order to make sure that each customer type can shop in the way that they enjoy the most.

Mcommerce profiles allow businesses to personalize each individual shopper or guest, so that marketing, information, and purchasing can all be geared toward their interests, expectations, and needs.