Lockheed Martin-Microsoft Agreement to Bring Better Training to Warfighters
(November 2009)
Lockheed Martin (NYSE: LMT) and Microsoft Corp. entered into an intellectual property (IP) licensing agreement that allows Lockheed Martin to further develop the Microsoft ESP PC-based visual simulation software platform to better train warfighters for battle.

Amazing Technologies Produce Extraordinary Simulation Capabilities
(December 2, 2008)
At the 2008 Interservice/Industry Training, Simulation and Education Conference (I/ITSEC) last month, Aero-TV stood up and PAID ATTENTION when we saw something done right there on the convention floor that was intensely difficult to do... the complex modeling of a Bell 206, following a moving ship on a waterway, and the landing of the Bell on that ship. Think of all that this action implies -- the modeling of the helo, the boat, and the conditions around and caused by the interaction of the helo with the in-motion ship.

Simulation for the Masses: Microsoft ESP a Valuable Tool for Public Sector
(October 29, 2008)
As with many industries today, governments are increasingly affected by the rising cost of goods, unprecedented environmental issues and increasing demand for services amid economic turbulence. That puts pressure on tight budgets and increases scrutiny of how that money is spent.

Meet Microsoft ESP: the engine behind Flight Simulator X
(October 7, 2008) SimPilot Magazine
After Microsoft released Flight Simulator X two years ago, they announced another product called Microsoft ESP. ESP is an exciting milestone in the Flight Simulator series - for the first time it introduces the Flight Simulator technology as a commercial platform.

Living In De-material World: On Microsoft, Train SIM and the Virtual Everything
(September 25, 2008) RedMonk
Last Monday I gave a presentation about Sustainable IT at the Big Microsoft Virtualisation kick off in Bellevue, Washington. Tuesday that week my day was relatively free so my time was a jump ball – who in the Microsoft Analyst Relations team would grab it? Two business units stepped in; developer tools and a group within Microsoft’s game division. ACES Studio is the creator of Flight Simulator, a software product even hardened Microsoft haterz love.

My take on Microsoft’s Immersive Internet play for information workers
(July 17, 2008) ThinkBalm
As an IT industry analyst I’ve covered Microsoft’s information worker software products for a long time –- particularly the company’s collaboration and social computing tools. As it dawned on me about a year ago that the Immersive Internet was going to have just as big an impact on the way information workers do our jobs as the Web has, I began to poke and probe at Microsoft product management and marketing executives in the information worker division to find out what they think about people using virtual worlds for work.

ESP: Beyond Flight Simulator
(June 1, 2008) MS&T
Microsoft Corporation is moving into the professional simulation market with the new visual simulation platform Microsoft ESP. Mr Shawn Firminger, Studio Manager, ACES Studio, is responsible for Microsoft’s simulation products. He spoke with MS&T’s Europe Editor, Walter F. Ullrich.

Lockheed Martin, FlightSafety to use Microsoft ESP platform
(February 21, 2008) Training & Simulation Journal
Microsoft has announced two more partnering agreements with large training and simulation companies for its recently unveiled Microsoft ESP visual simulation platform.  Lockheed Martin and FlightSafety International both will use ESP as part of their efforts to lower costs in their simulation on aircrew training. Those companies join Northrop Grumman and SAIC as large integrators who have joined with Microsoft on use of ESP, which was announced in November and became available Jan. 1.

Q&A: Aviation and Defense Industry Leaders Discuss Microsoft Simulation Platform
(February 20, 2008)
Microsoft ESP, a platform for developing rich simulations based on Microsoft Flight Simulator technology, is helping companies like Lockheed Martin and FlightSafety International create sophisticated training simulations to help pilots prepare for some of the most demanding conditions they'll face.

ESP Takes Flight
(January 31, 2008) Redmond Developer News
Michael Cherry, a colleague at Directions on Microsoft, used to say that Microsoft should combine its video game products with its IT wares to produce "Age of Administrators," where the players have to defend their IT infrastructures from marauding viruses and navigate unknown and mysterious management consoles, all while keeping their budget from getting out of hand.

Microsoft's Games Get Serious
(December 21, 2007) Business Week
At the end of the 2006 movie Snakes on a Plane, a passenger whose only aviation training was playing video games successfully lands a jumbo jet. Come January, thanks to Microsoft (MSFT), such a scenario won't be just a cinematic fantasy. On New Year's Day, 2008, the software giant will release a platform called Microsoft ESP based on Flight Simulator, a 25-year-old video game from Microsoft Game Studios. ESP allows corporations to design customized training simulations. The first target market: aviation companies that cater to the U.S. military and other clients.

Microsoft Debuts Games-based Training
(November 16, 2007) Rotor & Wing
Microsoft announced plans for a new visual-simulation platform, Microsoft ESP, which will be available next month. ESP enables the use of visual simulation for immersive learning and decision-making and supports PC-based commercial off-the-shelf hardware and software.

Microsoft ESP Debuts as a Platform for Visual Simulation
(November 14, 2007)
Microsoft Corp. today announced plans for a new visual-simulation platform, Microsoft ESP, available in January 2008. Microsoft ESP enables the innovative use of visual simulation for immersive learning and decision-making, supports PC-based commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) hardware and software, and enables simulations to be built faster and more cost-effectively. Simulations built on the Microsoft ESP platform will help government, commercial and academic organizations apply immersive games-based technology and interactive learning experiences to improve work-force readiness and increase operational excellence.

Microsoft to Launch Simulation Platform, SDK
(November 13, 2007) eWEEK
Microsoft plans to unveil a new platform, based on its game technology, that will bring visualization and simulation capabilities to the masses. The Microsoft ESP platform, which the company will roll out Nov. 14, will include a software development kit.

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