DJI Partners With LINE FRIENDS For First Characterized Drone LINE FRIENDS (BROWN) l Spark RC Combo Makes Flying More Fun August 06, 2018 — DJI, the world’s leader in civilian drones and aerial imaging technology, today announced a brand partnership with LINE FRIENDS on its first characterized drone, making drone technology more fun and accessible to a wider audience. Featuring one of LINE FRIENDS’ most popular characters Brown, the LINE FRIENDS (BROWN) l Spark drone is an easy-to-use, fun-to-fly mini camera drone that lifts off from the palm of your hand to capture and share the special moments in your life on the go. “DJI is excited to announce our character partnership with LINE FRIENDS, which shows DJI’s enthusiasm for making drones fun, accessible and relevant to more consumers,” said Monica Suk, Senior Communication Manager at DJI. “The DJI Spark earned its reputation as the smallest, yet powerful flying camera. It made flying a drone extremely easy, fun and more personalized.” “Similar to other things we carry in our bags, a drone is becoming a lifestyle accessory. This special edition we are launching with LINE FRIENDS will take this concept even further and make storytelling and sharing exciting, and a part of our everyday life,” said Suk. LINE FRIENDS is one of the fastest growing global character brands, and is a subsidiary of mobile messenger operator Line. Its merchandising business began online in 2011 from the creation of virtual stickers and emoticons on the Line mobile app. LINE FRIENDS characters have since then gained popularity and its merchandising business has now expanded to 108 stores globally. Like the DJI Spark, LINE FRIENDS (BROWN) l Spark drone is a full-featured mini drone that fits in almost any bag, ready to launch within seconds to shoot 12-megapixel photos and 1080p videos stabilized with a two-axis mechanical gimbal. It packs an obstacle sensing system and automated flight modes into its soda can-sized body. It is the first consumer drone that users can control by hand gestures alone, successfully removing the barriers between you and your camera in the sky. Spark comes with exciting intelligent flight options that empower you to effortlessly capture and share your memorable moments. QuickShot modes will automatically create a 10-second video from your flight that is ready to share on social media, where everyone can see your special moments. Like all the latest DJI drones, Spark also comes with features like TapFly and ActiveTrack, making flight fun, easy and enjoyable for everyone. Price and Availability The US retail price of the LINE FRIENDS (BROWN) l Spark RC Combo, including an aircraft, one battery, three pairs of propellers, a remote controller, two RC cables, one USB charger and one Micro USB cable is $399 USD. The product will be available for order at the four DJI Flagship Stores and store.dji.com for North America, China, Hong Kong and Korea markets.

At the Microsoft Build developer conference today, Microsoft and Chinese drone manufacturer DJI announced a new partnership that aims to bring more of Microsoft’s machine learning smarts to commercial drones. Given Microsoft’s current focus on bringing intelligence to the edge, this is almost a logical partnership, given that drones are essentially semi-autonomous edge computing devices.

DJI also today announced that Azure is now its preferred cloud computing partner and that it will use the platform to analyze video data, for example. The two companies also plan to offer new commercial drone solutions using Azure IoT Edge and related AI technologies for verticals like agriculture, construction and public safety. Indeed, the companies are already working together on Microsoft’s FarmBeats solution, an AI and IoT platform for farmers.

As part of this partnership, DJI is launching a software development kit (SDK) for Windows that will allow Windows developers to build native apps to control DJI drones. Using the SDK, developers can also integrate third-party tools for managing payloads or accessing sensors and robotics components on their drones. DJI already offers a Windows-based ground station.

“DJI is excited to form this unique partnership with Microsoft to bring the power of DJI aerial platforms to the Microsoft developer ecosystem,” said Roger Luo, DJI president, in today’s announcement. “Using our new SDK, Windows developers will soon be able to employ drones, AI and machine learning technologies to create intelligent flying robots that will save businesses time and money and help make drone technology a mainstay in the workplace.”

Interestingly, Microsoft also stresses that this partnership gives DJI access to its Azure IP Advantage program. “For Microsoft, the partnership is an example of the important role IP plays in ensuring a healthy and vibrant technology ecosystem and builds upon existing partnerships in emerging sectors such as connected cars and personal wearables,” the company notes in today’s announcement.

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