Microsoft: Kinect doesn't capture data for ads

Following comments from Xbox COO Dennis Durkin that suggested Kinect could be used as a data collection tool for marketing purposes, Microsoft has sought to assuage fears of being watched by the peripheral.

“Xbox 360 and Xbox LIVE do not use any information captured by Kinect for advertising targeting purposes," the company said in a statement given to the Wall Street Journal.

"Microsoft has a strong track record of implementing some of the best privacy protection measures in the industry. We place great importance on the privacy of our customers’ information and the safety of their experiences.”

Durkin said last week that, "Your wife in the future might get a different set of content choices than you, because we have a smart device that knows her preferences are different than yours. Those are the kinds of things that, when you add this new sensor into the equation, there’s a bunch of business opportunities that also come with that.”

Looks like someone might not be asked to that "special" Kinect launch dinner this Christmas.

Kinect launched on November 4 in the US and November 10 in Europe.

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