Apparently Microsoft did not invent the famous kinect technology but they offered to buy the technology from some one else who i think had a patent pending or a patent already but in his own country. They have of course gone on to develop the technology themselves. But as they are microsoft they also had the means to make it available to the population at a good price.
http://hackaday.com/2011/07/14/did-microsoft-steal-the-kinect/
Now I don’t necessarily see a problem with this idea but what does bother me is that Microsoft has their own patents for kinect and would most probably try and prevent other people from using the technology. Based on their past track record, well based on Microsoft lawyers past track record we can expect at least a few cases.
Especially considering the recent advancements with the technology, take a look at this recent lecture by a MS engineer at the annual Chaos Communication Conference. Where he claims, after a question about open source, that they are going to “try” and make it available.
We also have new variations of the technology at CES that claim to be “very different”