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Kinect has no qualms about guessing a woman's age

Sharif Sakr — Mon, 03 Oct 2011 07:56:00 -0400

Did you know that Microsoft's Kinect can measure your bodily proportions in 3D and hence ontogenetically estimate your age? Well grandma, it can. Aside from being incredibly impolite, a recent patent application from Redmond also highlights a more beneficial function: to prevent kids from watching or playing age-restricted media. The proposed system could even shut down inappropriate material automatically when an offending minor steps in the room and then resume it when they leave. On the other hand, we give it five minutes before some scheming rugrat with a distorting lens tweets a workaround.

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Apple pulls adult-content app from App Store, anyone surprised? Updated

Nilay Patel — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 13:27:00 -0400

And just like that, the iPhone App Store is once again safe for children, people at work, and those who enjoy the iron fist of an anonymous application reviewer gently controlling their hardware / software ecosystem. Yep, the "Hottest Girls" application has been yanked after just a few hours of availability, and it's no secret why: although the app was clearly labeled and approved under iPhone OS 3.0's app rating and parental control guidelines, naked-ladies-on-the-iPhone was quickly becoming too much news for Apple's squeaky-clean image to bear. Of course, that once again prompts us to remind everyone that this exact same content is easily accessible through any number of applications on the iPhone, like, say, Safari, and that the App Store's arbitrary and capricious review procedures are an incredible liability to an otherwise dominant platform, but honestly, no one's listening because they'd rather talk about boobs. Good work.

Update: Interesting -- the dev's site now says that Hottest Girls has been "pulled" because their servers were "reaching their limits" and that the app will be back up soon, naughty pictures intact. We're guessing that means their image servers are cracking under the strain, but we'll see if this app or others like it make a reappearance anytime soon.

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]

Filed under: Handsets, Apple, iPhone OS, Mobile

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Apple pulls adult-content app from App Store, anyone surprised? Updated

Nilay Patel — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 13:27:00 -0400

Filed under: Cellphones

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European carriers to control adult content

Michael Caputo — Thu, 08 Feb 2007 21:32:00 -0500

If you're a adolescent living in the EU, consider your access to adult content coming to a rather abrupt end shortly. Thanks to some of the major carriers in Europe -- including Orange, Vodafone, and Deutsche Telekom -- efforts to control objective material on children's phones are underway. With an amazing 70 percent penetration rate among 12 - 13 year olds and almost 25 percent among 8 - 9 year olds, there are strong efforts to remove access to such services. Unless you're an 8, 9, 12, or 13 year old, that is, in which case this is all hogwash to you.

Filed under: Orange, Vodafone, Misc, Mobile

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Adult high-def content hits Japan via VOD

Matt Burns — Mon, 05 Jun 2006 09:39:00 -0400

High definition is a big hit over in Japan. We all know that. But soon all those digital boxes over there will be able to receive, via video-on-demand, porn. Oh and it is going to be high-def adult content that will be delivered right to their HDTVs. This service is set to go live in July and will offer its customers 1080i picture with 5.1 audio all for the low, low price of 400 yen. ($3.5)

So um, would anyone like this service over in the States? Come on, be honest.

Filed under: Programming, Industry, Polls, OTA, HD

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