MediaFile

Microsoft has acquired Canesta, which designs microchips that it says enable computers to see images in three dimensions, according to the privately-held Sunnyvale, California-based company.

The purchase comes as Microsoft prepares to launch its Kinect motion-controller next month, hoping to spark sales of its xBox video game consoles. Buying Canesta, whose technology focuses mainly on consumer applications, suggests Microsoft is already eyeing more and better movement-recognition products down the line for its video game system as well as other applications.

Kinect’s camera-based system, built into cameras, lets players control games with body and hand gestures, letting gamers ditch the hand-held controllers they have been tied to for decades.

Canesta says its CMOS 3-D chips gives everyday devices 3-D perception better than competing technology.

“Products based on this capability can then react on sight to the actions or motions of individuals and objects in their field of view,” Canesta says.

One small acquisition a month, Google chief Eric Schmidt projected last fall when announcing the internet giant was back on the hunt for privately owned firms after a short recession-induced break from buying.

"There may be larger acquisitions, but they really are unpredictable," he told Reuters at the time.

Google has mostly stuck to its plan and even made of few of those riskier big buys. Since Schmidt's revelations, the Web search giant has scooped up everything from small start-ups to much-larger industry rivals such as mobile advertising firm AdMob, a $750 million acquisition that many thought would land Google in an antitrust court battle. Indeed, the company has outpaced itself, buying more than just one firm a month in a few instances.

In retrospect, it's easy to say we could have guessed it:

Why didn't some investors put 2+2 together and figure out that Perot Systems might be a target for Dell -- before that is, Dell announced its $3.9 billion cash deal to buy Perot.

Looking back at Perot's share performance, the stock has been building up momentum since July, despite warning of weak earnings in its August 4 quarterly report. The stock, which traded under $15 throughout the first half of the year, had built to $18 by last week. Perhaps this was early optimism about 2010 prospects. But the other explanation is some timely speculation that Perot was a logical target for fellow Texan company Dell.

Dell had made little secret of its plans to acquire computer services and software companies for months. Executives had dribbled out hints about what kind of targets it was after in the weeks and months leading up to the September 21 news.