IN-DEPTH

In this issue the focus is on how to create mixed-initiative spoken dialog applications with Loquendo Spoken Dialog System. Thanks to Loquendo SDS, it is now possible to develop efficient and user-friendly information systems that give users the freedom to express their requests freely - using natural speech.

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STANDARDS CORNER

• Mobile Web Initiative to Hold its First Outreach Event in Europe
  November 15, 2005
  The World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) and the sponsors of the Mobile Web Initiative (MWI) are organizing a morning of presentations related to challenges and opportunites for the mobile Web, on Tuesday 15 November 2005. The half day event will take place at the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA), central London, UK.
  
  
• SMIL 2.1 Is a W3C Proposed Recommendation
  September 27, 2005
  W3C is pleased to announce the advancement of Synchronized Multimedia Integration Language (SMIL 2.1) to Proposed Recommendation. Comments are welcome through 28 October. SMIL (pronounced "smile") puts animation on a time line, allows composition of multiple animations, and describes animation elements for any XML-based host language. Version 2.1 extends SMIL 2.0 and supports enhanced interactive multimedia presentations, reuse of SMIL syntax and semantics, and new mobile profiles. Visit the synchronized multimedia home page.
  
  
• Report of Voice Browser meeting in Toronto
  September, 20-23 2005
  The W3C's Voice Browser Working Group recently met for a face-to-face meeting in Toronto, during which several interesting systems and software tool kits were reviewed.
  The major outcomes were:
  • the CCXML document was fine-tuned in preparation for moving from Last Call Working Draft to Candidate Recommendation in October;
  • the Data-Flow-Presentation architecture which separates data model from flow model from presentation model was discussed;
  • new elements are under consideration for VoiceXML 3.0, such as speaker verification/authentication, data access from the flow component, <audio> element for presenting media such as video, and also enhancements for the <grammar> <audio>, and <record> elements and DTMF processing.
  
  

SUCCESS STORY

The VoiceXML Forum recently released a Success Story with the title: "Spain’s Bankinter Increases Customer Satisfaction with Multimodal VoiceXML Brokerage Application". Bankinter is the leading Internet bank and brokerage firm in Spain.
Bankinter’s application has both a “visual” component built in Java, and a “voice” component built in VoiceXML. Kirusa’s Multi-Modal Solution for IP voice (KMS-IPV) was integrated with Loquendo’s VoxNauta VoiceXML platform to create a speech-enabled, standards-based multimodal offering. Using Loquendo and Kirusa technology, Bankinter’s application takes advantage of the full power of VoiceXML to build the multimodal interface.

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LOQUENDO Products

• Meet Kate, Loquendo's New UK English Voice!
  October 25, 2005
  Loquendo is delighted to present Kate, the new, Emotional UK English persona. Loquendo's TTS engine has been enriched with a rich repertoire of "expressive cues", which enable its users to enliven their voice prompts. Kate’s fresh, expressive voice joins Simon to complete Loquendo’s offering of lifelike speech for the English language.
  Loquendo is the first speech market player to offer its customers the possibility to make their vocal messages expressive through conventional formulas and interjections, which are pronounced with a natural and colourful intonation.
  Let Kate introduce herself, click here. For a dialog between Kate and Simon, click here.
  >> More

Clients & Partners

• Loquendo and Dutchear Announce a Strategic Partnership to Deliver Speech-Driven Telephony Applications
  October 25, 2005
  Loquendo and Dutchear, the Dutch speech applications experts, are joining forces to implement speech driven telephony applications. Through this agreement, Dutchear will integrate Loquendo’s multilingual Synthetic Speech, Automatic Speech Recognition and Speaker Verification technologies in a wide range of speech technology applications for call routing, corporate and personal directory assistance and telephony self-service aimed at the Dutch speech market.
  Dutchear has extensive experience with developing and implementing speech driven applications for multi-nationals, mid market and small sized companies. The Dutchear solutions are aimed at short time-to-market and high ROI.
  >> More
• Siemens Business Services and Loquendo Announce a Strategic Partnership to Deliver Speech-Enabled Solutions
  October 18, 2005
  Loquendo and Siemens Business Services (SBS), the global full-service provider of information and communication technology solutions and services, have signed a strategic partnership establishing Siemens Business Services as a worldwide Value Added Reseller of Loquendo Voice Technologies.
  Loquendo’s technologies will integrate with SBS’s advanced voice applications platform enabling enterprises to provide reliable and cost-effective voice solutions. Thus customers will benefit from both Loquendo’s high-end TTS and ASR capabilities and SBS’s expertise in voice solutions and enterprise architecture integration.
  >> More
• Loquendo and CreaLog Sign Partnership Agreement
  October 14, 2005
  Loquendo and CreaLog, the leading provider of Voice Portal Solutions in Europe, announced an agreement whereby CreaLog will integrate Loquendo’s multilingual speech technologies into its flagship product CreaVoice® Voice Portal.
  The CreaLog Voice Portal Platform is powered by Loquendo Technologies - including Loquendo TTS, Loquendo ASR and Loquendo Speaker Verification - and is the basis for application-specific and individual solutions. CreaVoice® manages the caller dialogue and is responsible for coordinating all activities, including speech recognition, synthetic speech, speaker verification, voice-logging and conferencing.
  >> More
• Loquendo and Comlet Sign Partnership Agreement
  October 10, 2005
  Loquendo and ComLet, the German Systems Integrator, have entered into an agreement which enables ComLet to integrate Loquendo’s multilingual Text-to-Speech (TTS) and Automatic Speech Recognition (ASR) engines into its flagship CallPro® Voice Portal solution.
  The CallPro® Voice Portal solution is universally applicable and will provide Comlet customers with greater speech quality for all their automated systems requirements. ComLet has a rich portfolio of integration success stories in the man-machine-dialogue systems field of the automotive-industry. Their "Embedded-Systems" division creates high-end applications in the infotainment field for leading German automotive manufacturers.
  >> More
• European Commission Selected HOPS Project
  October, 2005
  The European Commission has selected the HOPS project as one of the European Projects that will be exposed at the European Commission stand in the World Summit of Information Society in Tunis next month.
  This is great news for the project, because this is a great opportunity to worldwide disseminate the work achieved in this project by all partners, including Loquendo.
  >> More

EVENTS

• Is Your Customer Contact Center Promoting Your BRAND?,
  Utrecht - The Netherlands, Mediaplaza, Jaarbeurs Utrecht, Hall 6.
  November 2, 2005.
  
  2:30 PM - Alba Dobi, Loquendo
  "International cases of speech technology deployment"
  
  3:20 PM - Sander de Graaf, Dutchear
  "Speech Applications in your Contact Center"
  
  4:10 PM - Bart Termorshuizen, Clockwork
  "On Brand Communication in the Customer Contact Center"
  
  
• Expo Call Center Lisbon 2005,
  Culturgest-Lisbon, Portugal, 3-4 November 2005.
  
  
• Expo Call Center Madrid 2005,
  Madrid, Spain, IFEMA, Feria de Madrid-Palacio Norte, 16-17 November 2005.
  
  
• Serveurs vocaux & CRM,
  Paris, L'Echangeur, 66 rue des Archives, 3:00-6:00PM, 24 November 2005 (organised by TENOR and PHONETIK).
  
  
• ISS World Fall 2005,
  Washington, DC, 7-9 December 2005.
  
  10:45- 11:15: Friday, December 9, 2005
  "Voice Investigation systems to Ascertain Targets Identity" (Luciano Piovano, Loquendo).
  
  
• SpeechTEK WEST 2006,
  San Francisco, CA, Hyatt Regency San Francisco, 5 Embarcadero Center, January 30 - February 1, 2006.