Will Kinect replace your TV’s remote control?

As Microsoft gets people used to the idea of controlling their Xbox 360 with Kinect, its hot selling motion sensor peripheral, the company behind that technology is aiming at a bigger market.

PrimeSense Ltd, which built the technology behind Kinect, says it expects at least one U.S. cable company to release a product this year allowing subscribers to change channels, access video on demand and more through hand gestures.

The report, from Light Reading Cable, adds that tests are already underway with cable companies – and operators are testing cameras that could be attached to existing set-top boxes via USB.

"2011 will be a year where multiple operators around the globe, including the U.S., will launch programs and start to bring to market solutions, and in 2012 we will go to mass quantity," PrimeSense EVP of Business Development Uzi Breier told the publication.

The expansion, should it happen, would be a big sign of support for motion sensing tech, but it still feels a bit early for this to go widespread. Kinect has been a massive hit, selling 8 million units in the last two months of 2010, but the technology is far from perfect. Rewinding and fast forwarding films with the tech is already possible, but it’s substantially easier to use a standard remote control.

TV audiences, who often want the channel changed in a second or less, might not be happy with the lag and delay associated with the technology in its current state.