After much speculation and rumour, an Apple representative confirmed to various news outlets that the Cupertino giant has indeed acquired PrimeSense, an Israel-based company specialising in 3D sensor technology.

Media reports peg the purchase price at around $360 million, although Apple declined to give a figure.

PrimeSense has previously worked with Microsoft’s Kinect gaming product, which uses cameras and “depth sensors” to capture players’ motions and incorporate them into Xbox gameplay.

The Israeli firm has subsequently expanded its product line, explains AllThingsD, to include more hardware than the original large, stationary sensor seen in the Kinect.

PrimeSense has also made recent advances in incorporating its technology into mobile devices.

By shrinking down the sensor used in the Kinect, reports the BBC, the firm showed it working with a Nexus 10 tablet at a Google developers’ conference in May.

According to PrimeSense, its sensing technology gives digital devices “the ability to observe a scene in three dimensions”.

There is some media speculation, too, that the PrimeSense acquisition might help Apple in its long-rumoured aspiration to develop a distinctive TV or smart watch.