ESP Licensing Update

It is my pleasure to update you on Microsoft’s licensing direction for the Microsoft ESP visual simulation software development platform.  As announced in January, 2009 with the closure of ACES Studio, Microsoft has been exploring alternative means for licensing the ESP intellectual property (IP) to outside companies and the ESP team has worked closely with my group at Microsoft to find a successful solution.  My team runs Microsoft’s IP Licensing program which licenses some of our IP to third-parties, including competitors, according to industry standard terms and royalty rates.  This encourages continued innovation in our industry and has led to some remarkable business opportunities and technology breakthroughs for some of Microsoft’s IP licensees.

This fall we entered into source code and object code licensing agreements for ESP with third-party partners. Through the Microsoft ESP licensing program, partners can now build on ESP technology and create immersive experiences customized to their products and customers’ needs. As these agreements become public, you can read about them under “Partner News” on the ESP website. Because we have made this strategic shift, ESP volume licensing and single-license SKUs have been discontinued.  However, product support for Microsoft ESP branded product will continue through December, 2012 and the Microsoft ESP™ Developer Center will remain active indefinitely.

We hope this collaborative program spurs new innovation and economic opportunities for our partners across the industry, which is especially important in the current global economic climate. We’re grateful for your interest in the ESP platform and if you would like to learn more about an ESP IP license, please email me at joymu@microsoft.com.