The Californian branch of Internet company Yandex has developed a prototype of a software application that allows users to read news from social networks on their TVs and respond to them using gestures, the company announced Wednesday.
Tatyana Komarova, a Yandex spokeswoman, said the experiment was a joint effort by Yandex Labs and Carnegie Mellon University, located in the Silicon Valley, Vedomosti reported.
Yandex Lab employees and university faculty and students aimed to develop a new type of personalized and interactive communication system to be used with conventional television.
Komarova said Yandex might use the new application in its products without going into specific plans.
The application is based on the Mac OS X platform, while Microsoft Kinect is used for gesture recognition.
It displays news from several social networks on the screen, and users can operate their accounts by gesturing.
In the screensaver mode, the application can show pictures and videos, play music or display messages and news from other users.
According to Yandex, Carnegie Mellon University students have collected and recorded 1,500 different gestures, which were used for tuning up the automated learning system.
Yandex Lab was responsible for developing conceptual solutions, including the application's main interface as well as command gestures, Yandex said.
Komarova said that the application is only an experimental product that exists only as a prototype and is not available to consumers.
In January, Yandex Labs released the Wonder mobile search application for social networks.
However, Facebook blocked Wonder from being used with its system, citing the company's regulations concerning the protection of users' personal information.
Related articles:
A Message from The Moscow Times:
Dear readers,
We are facing unprecedented challenges. Russia's Prosecutor General's Office has designated The Moscow Times as an "undesirable" organization, criminalizing our work and putting our staff at risk of prosecution. This follows our earlier unjust labeling as a "foreign agent."
These actions are direct attempts to silence independent journalism in Russia. The authorities claim our work "discredits the decisions of the Russian leadership." We see things differently: we strive to provide accurate, unbiased reporting on Russia.
We, the journalists of The Moscow Times, refuse to be silenced. But to continue our work, we need your help.
Your support, no matter how small, makes a world of difference. If you can, please support us monthly starting from just $2. It's quick to set up, and every contribution makes a significant impact.
By supporting The Moscow Times, you're defending open, independent journalism in the face of repression. Thank you for standing with us.
Remind me later.