LAS VEGAS, January 11, 2012 /PRNewswire/ --

Microsoft Xbox 360 was named TV Innovator of the Year at the prestigious 2012 TV Innovation Awards ceremony on 9 January,presided over by IMS Research. Microsoft won the On Demand Category for upgrades to its Xbox 360 console including partnerships with over 40 new TV and entertainment providers, as well as delivering entertainment voice search functionality with Bing on Xbox.

Microsoft beat 13 other category winners to take the ultimate 'winner of winners' accolade in the third annual ceremony, at the Monte Carlo Resort and Casino in Las Vegas.The award was presented to Jose Pinero, Xbox LIVE senior director of PR for Microsoft IEBby IMS Research president Ian Weightman.

The 2012 TV Innovation Awards are one of the premier endorsements of innovation in television and recognize the most forward- thinking companies creating products and services that are changing the way people watch television.

This year, thereare 14 TV Innovation Awards presented, and each award category was judged by a completely independent expert panel, and the winners of each category are then judged against each other to decide the overall TV Innovator of the Year.

Category winners are:

• 3DTV. Samsung Electronics America -Plasma D8000 Series Smart TV
• Advanced User Interface.NDS -Snowflake
• Audio Experience.THAT Corporation/dbx-tv - Total Sonics + Total Cal
• Content Protection.Verimatrix - Verimatrix MultiRights
• Home Networking.Quantenna Communications, Inc. - Quantenna QHS710 802.11n 4x4 Four-Stream MIMO Chipset
• Immersive TV.LG Electronics -LG Electronics BH9420PW CINEMA 3D Sound Blu-ray Home Theater
• Interactive TV.Hillcrest Labs - Scoop Pointer
• Mobile TV.MobiTV - Television at your fingertips: TV on-the-go
• On Demand.Microsoft - Xbox 360 Teams Up With Entertainment Leaders to Transform TV
• Semiconductors.Quantenna, Inc. - Quantenna QHS710 802.11n 4x4 Four-Stream MIMO Chipset
• Set Top Box.Ocean Blue Software - Talk@TV
• TV Design.Samsung Electronics America - LED D8000 Series Smart TV
• TV Performance.Samsung Electronics America - Plasma D8000 Series Smart TV
• Content Storage. thePlatform - mpx

"This year's Award entrants really showed us that the pace of innovation and change in the TV industry has never been greater," says Ian Weightman, president IMS Research. "The quality and depth of submissions was extremely evident, with a lot of truly game-changing solutions being presented. Congratulations to Microsoft in winning the TV Innovator of the Year against some very strong competition".

About IMS Research

IMS Research is a leading independent supplier of market research and consultancy to the global electronics industry, offering syndicated market studies, custom research and consultancy services. Clients include most of the household names in the industry. IMS Research has offices in Europe, the US, China, Taiwan, South Korea, and Japan.

http://imsresearch.com

SOURCE IMS Research