"One reason was that palm recognition is considered more private than some biometric alternatives because you cant determine a persons identity by looking at an image of their palm."
They always incrementally turn up the heat, while the frog boils. The next stage will be biometrics on your hand and forehead that clearly identify who you are, and what you are doing.
"Ultimately, using a palm as a biometric identifier puts customers in control of when and where they use the service."
See? You are in control, not them.
SPEAK TO THE HAND!
The next generation Microsoft OS is using your face to log into your computer.