Back when OnLive was launched in 2010, cloud gaming was seen as a leviathan rising from the deep. On paper, the concept was not only pretty watertight, but it was a strong contender to traditional gaming models (especially the console market).

Cloud gaming was going to happen. It was just a question of logistics.

California state regulators want video games and other devices to be more energy efficient and are making some moves towards creating regulations, according to an LA Times report. The state has in the past put strict regulations in place for household appliances, furnaces, air conditioners and big-screen televisions to use less energy.

Nvidia's Senior vice president of content and technology, Tony Tamasi says that the next wave of mobile devices (we assume using Nvidia technology) will outperform current generation consoles. He goes so far as to say that current generation systems like the Xbox 360 and PS3 can barely hold an edge over today's Tegra 4 powered devices.

"The PS3 and Xbox 360 are barely more powerful than mobile devices," he told Bit-tech. "The next click of mobile phones will outperform [them]."

Popular crowd-funded Android-based micro gaming console GameStick will have full support for the XBMC platform. This means that you can watch various types of entertainment via the game device. This new feature is the result of a partnership with PlayJam and Pivos Technology Group. XBMC is a free and open source (GPL) software media player and entertainment hub for digital media. XBMC is available for Linux, OSX, Windows, and many other platforms.

Oculus VR announced today that those who purchase the Oculus Rift development kit will get a free Oculus-ready version of Epic Games' Unreal Development Kit (UDK) as well. The makers of the "virtual reality headset that allows users to step into the game" worked closely with Epic Games to make sure that the UDK works very well with the headset so that those developers that want to create games for it will have an easier time doing so.

A Kickstarter campaign is underway for a Kinect add-on device that supposedly enables consumers to control their computers using eye tracking. The add-on technology is called the NUIA eyeCharm and it is the creation of Munich, Germany-based firm 4tiitoo. The creators of this technology claim that it will allow users to select items on your computer screen "just by looking at them," control games and even "automatically scroll" windows to adjust while reading.

The top executives of over 100 U.S.-based tech companies have sent a letter to President Barack Obama and U.S. lawmakers imploring them to reform immigration and address skill shortages by issuing more special visas so that talented individuals outside the U.S. can come here to work.

If you own a smart phone, an Android or iOS-based device or even a hand-held gaming system or a laptop, you no longer have to worry about having the device searched by a border patrol officer when entering the United States without some sort of reasonable cause. The United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit has ruled that allowing border agents to search such devices violates Fourth Amendment protections.

The first Raspberry Pi game jam was recently held in Manchester, according to Develop. Using the affordable computing devices, the event offered 336 teachers and educators who attended the basic skills needed to apply their knowledge and teach coding in the classroom.

As part of an interview with NowGamer, TT Fusion’s lead dev on Lego City Undercover, Loz Doyle, says that the company has no interest in creating a Skylanders-style Lego game that uses toys and the Wii U GamePad’s NFC chip. The Wii U controller has a built-in NFC chip which allows toys and cards to be scanned into a game. Skylanders uses the same technology with its mini figures and its portal peripheral.

If you need a laugh to end your Friday on then this story over at The Verge will probably do the trick. In it a Time Warner Cable executive responded to a question about Google's impressive broadband speeds on its new Kansas City broadband fiber network by saying that its customers don't want the blazingly fast speeds that a gigabit internet could provide. Wait, what?

Ouya announced that its $99 Android based console of the same name will begin shipping to backers of its Kickstarter crowd funding campaign on March 28. Consumers who were not involved in early funding will have to wait until June when the system hits retailers like Best Buy, GameStop, and Amazon, among others.

Nintendo is the target of a patent infringement case that claims its use of 3D technology in the 3DS violates the patents held by 58-year-old inventor Seijiro Tomita. Opening arguments in the case began today, according to Destructoid. Tomita claims that he presented his glasses-free 3D technology to seven Nintendo officials at their Kyoto headquarters in 2003. At the time, claims Tomita, he was looking for licensing partners as he awaited his patent application to be approved.

Speaking to MCV India, Eidos life president Ian Livingstone threw some gasoline on an old rumor: that the Xbox 720 might block used games. Livingstone also said the next-gen consoles weren't prepared to go fully digital quite yet as its only method for selling and delivering content.

If you are one of the many thousands that backed the Ouya Kickstarter or plan on getting one of the tiny Android based home console systems when it hits retail in June then you should be happy to hear that Double Fine and the Word With Friends co-creator are working on games for it.

An update to the OUYA Kickstarter page reveals that the tiny little Android-based console that raised millions in crowd-funding will be available in select retail stores, with some even offering pre-orders.

"We have some good news today," the update reads. "Because of the support for OUYA you showed, some of our favorite stores are going to carry OUYA when it officially launches to the public in June."

Yesterday USA Today published an editorial by CEA president and CEO Gary Shapiro, who sharply criticized CBS's interference in the editorial independence of CNET, noting that the technology web site has lost its credibility as a result. The editorial is in response to CBS not allowing CNET to award the Dish Hopper with Sling DVR the "Best of Show" award at CES 2013 because of an ongoing legal battle between the parent company and Dish.

According to GamesIndustry International, computer and console peripheral and accessories giant Logitech will stop manufacturing and selling video game console accessories. The exit out of the market is the result of a 14 percent drop in sales to $615 million for Q3 FY 2013.

As a result the company will sharpen its focus on PC and mobile accessories.

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) announced a proposal to make it illegal for pilots and flight attendants to use wireless electronics during flight operations including mobile and hand-held devices and laptops. The proposal is meant to conform to guidelines established last year in the Modernization and Reform Act. The proposed rule change does not apply to electronic devices directly related to flight operations, communications devices used for safety, or devices used during an emergency.

Ars Technica is reporting that AMD has filed a lawsuit alleging that four former employees who went to work for NVIDIA engaged in industrial espionage and violated no-solicitation of employees agreement.

It was long rumored to be Valve's home console and now it's a reality. The home console system called "Steam Box" when it was just a rumor is real. Valve today announced during the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas a new home console called the Xi3 Piston. Valve has teamed up with hardware startup company Xi3 to create a mini-PC.

While there has been some speculation that the Android-based mini-console GameStick will have a hard time competing with the likes of Ouya, that hasn't hampered the enthusiasm of the community. The Kickstarter for the tiny little stick-based Android device designed to simply plug into the HDMI port of most modern high definition television sets has easily destroyed its funding goal of $100,000 in a little over a day and a half.

A new patent secured by Intel hopes to make using motion controller-based peripherals a bit safer to use. The patent, United States Patent 8333661 - a "Gaming System with Safety Features," won approval with the United States Patent and Trademark Office earlier this month. What's interesting about the patent is that Intel isn't developing its own gaming system (at least not to anyone's knowledge), which means that this patent is meant to augment existing systems likely owned by Microsoft, Nintendo and Sony.

It looks like the Android-based Ouya will have some competition. A Kickstarter funding campaign for PlayJam's "GameStick" has launched asking the community to help it raise $100,000 to bring its mini gaming console devices into full production. The GameStick is being billed as a home console that plugs directly into the HDMI slot of most major modern high definition televisions.

If you are longing for the day when virtual reality - you know, that fictitious virtual realm we have seen in movies like The Matrix, Tron, Lawnmower Man and more - become reality, then you'll have to wait for improvements in Internet latency. At least that is what Valve Software programmer Michael Abrash says in a new blog post.

The Android-based console that took Kickstarter by storm and captured the attention of the online gaming community has started to show up on developers' doorsteps. The $99 Ouya raised $8.6 million on Kickstarter. Today the creators of the system started shipping 1,200 consoles to developers (or those who pledged money at the developer level reward tier). Developers who want to play games on the system can get started with the system's SDK.

Developers who didn't get the special Ouya console can also access the Ouya SDK (ODK) online under a free Apache license.

On December 29 The Pixel Academy will set up shop in the ArtsCetera on 212 Smith Street in Brooklyn to create a 21st century digital media lab for kids. Open house ALL DAY (10am-8pm) - Instructors will be teaching classes on a range of creative technologies and answering questions about Pixel Academy and their educational programs.

The rumors about Steam Box - a console-like system powered by Valve's popular digital distribution platform Steam may turn out to be true after all. Speaking to Kotaku recently Valve co-founder and top executive Gabe Newell said that custom PC packages featuring Steam that can go head-to-head with Sony and Microsoft will start shipping in the early part of 2013.

If you're tired of the captain on your flight telling you to shut off all your electronic devices during take-offs and landings, you may be happy to hear that the FAA is continuing to examine whether such steps are necessary because there's little proof to support the notion that such devices actually interfere with an aircraft's vital electronic equipment. You might be even more delighted to hear that the FCC thinks those restrictions should be lifted as well.

The United States Congress may be a mess and the most unruly and uncompromising bunch in the land but they all apparently think that the UN should not be setting policy on the Internet. To that end, members of the House of Representatives - Democrats and Republicans - voted unanimously (397-0) against the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) and the United Nations' efforts to push "increased government control over the Internet."