 |
LOBBY7 Launches x|mode(TM) Network Server
x|mode(TM) Breaks Into Nascent Space Embraced By Industry Leaders
BOSTON, Mass. – Oct 16, 2001 – LOBBY7, Inc., the leader in multimodal technology, today announced the availability of the x|mode(TM) Network Server, a multimodal application server for a connected network environment. x|mode(TM) enables carriers, enterprises and portals to create robust and dynamic multimodal applications that drive top- and bottom-line benefits: customer value through enhancing loyalty and simplifying service; and operational value through worker and work process efficiencies.
Multimodal applications blend speech and touch input methods with text, audio and graphics as output methods. Just as "multimedia" signifies the integration of media types (audio, video, text and images), "multimodal" signifies the merging of input and output modes in the user interface of an information appliance (touch-screen, keypad and voice commands for input; images and sound for output). Using a multimodal interface in appliances such as kiosks, mobile phones, PDAs, and car navigation systems, users can request information by voice, receive instantaneous visual feedback, interact with stylus or keypad, or mix any input/output combination based on the task or need at hand.
"As mobile appliances continue to proliferate, their interfaces remain constrained and difficult to use while still only offering pure-voice or pure-data access in certain applications," said Mykolas Rambus, President of LOBBY7. "x|mode(TM) Network Server gives carriers, enterprises, and portals a low-cost, plug-in solution to their existing and disparate voice/data infrastructures. For the first time, these organizations can weave their data and voice pipes together, thereby lowering their operational costs while, at the same time, improving worker efficiencies and customer loyalty."
x|mode(TM) enables an infinite range of applications for mobile appliance users. A field service agent will use voice to access product repair procedure knowledge bases and receive step-by-step on-screen directions or have them read in response to voice prompts. A busy traveler will be able to continue viewing a map and receive audio and visual directions simply by docking the mobile device into the car's navigation system, allowing the driver to view the map at any safe point and receive voice-command-prompted audio directions. The driver would also be able to remove the device from the car and continue on foot with all of the directions.
Industry Support for x|mode(TM) Network Server
"As multimodal technology continues to enjoy market-pull from enterprises, carriers and portals looking to take the next logical step in their infrastructure development - the integration of their existing voice and data systems - LOBBY7 is well on its way to establishing x|mode(TM) as a best-of-breed multimodal solution," said Mike Phillips, CTO of SpeechWorks International, Inc. (Nasdaq: SPWX), a global leader in speech recognition and text-to-speech (TTS) technologies and services. "SpeechWorks is pleased to provide the speech interface for this promising new technology."
"Enterprises continue to streamline their operational systems and improve and extend customer relationships," said Sharon Ward, Vice President of Enterprise Applications and Customer Relationship Management for the Hurwitz Group. "As they research their options for accomplishing these goals, LOBBY7's x|mode(TM) is well positioned to harness this need by providing natural and effective presentation logic applications for the enterprise customer and customer-facing mobile agents."
Mark Leiter, Vice President at Cap Gemini Ernst & Young adds, "Companies today must find novel ways of making communications with customers, suppliers, and employees both more timely and impactful. LOBBY7 is a truly unique and innovative firm that is firmly positioned to bring this next generation of communications to life, with their x|mode(TM) Network Server representing a pioneering step in enabling companies to capture this value."
"Our new devices demand entirely new modes of interaction. Merely transferring outdated telephone and desktop interface metaphors into this new multimodal wireless world is a recipe for consumer frustration, and corporate disaster," said Paul Saffo, Director at The Institute for the Future. "x|mode(TM) is on the leading edge of the direction we should be headed in -- delivering environments that allow our new devices to become powerful, unobtrusive, and indispensable companions in our ever more mobile lives."
Technology and Components
At the core of the x|mode(TM) Network Server platform resides LOBBY7's patent-pending active state management and modality management engines. These components seamlessly integrate voice and data infrastructures at the application server level, allowing both channels to be simultaneously utilized. A fully server-based system, x|mode(TM) easily plugs into existing data and voice networks without requiring any additional infrastructure equipment or specialized devices, operating optimally under second-generation, GPRS and third-generation networks.
x|mode(TM) is built from the ground up using a J2EE framework designed to meet the needs of very large commercial deployments through a highly scalable, clustered architecture. Its architecture is completely based on industry standards such as VoiceXML, XHTML, WML, and SALT (Speech Application Language Tags) which greatly facilitates migration of existing pure-voice or pure-data applications into a multimodal environment.
A powerful set of authoring tools that help minimize time-to-market of a multimodal application complete the x|mode(TM) Network Server product suite. Rather than consisting of a completely new development environment, x|mode(TM) extends popular integrated development environments (IDEs) such as Adobe GoLive!(TM) and Macromedia DreamWeaver(TM), giving designers and developers a strong set of tools to quickly build applications in a very familiar environment. This flexible authoring architecture allows general functionality to be packaged and distributed in pre-built modules that facilitate rapid application development, testing and deployment.
Pricing is available upon request.
About LOBBY7
LOBBY7's x|mode(TM) Network Server and x|mode(TM) Embedded Server multimodal technologies enable a new breed of applications that deliver simple, powerful user interactions across a wide range of information appliances. This breakthrough technology enables simultaneous blending of speech, touch and graphics, so that users have fluid, efficient access to information systems through voice commands, touch controls, or both at the same time. x|mode(TM) allows carriers, enterprises, and portals to extract new value from existing systems - or generate new offerings altogether - that streamline work processes and improve customer access and reach. For more information, visit http://www.lobby7.com/.
SpeechWorks, OpenSpeech and SpeechWorks Here are trademarks or registered trademarks of SpeechWorks International, Inc. in the United States and other countries. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.
|
|
