I6NET, a provider of interactive voice and video response technologies, and LumenVox (News - Alert), a speech recognition software company, jointly announced release of the VXI* 3.1 VoiceXML browser. The latest version of this VoiceXML browser enables existing VXML applications to run on the Asterisk PBX platform. The new VoiceXML (News - Alert) browser, which is powered by the LumenVox Speech Engine, also enables users to develop new speech recognition solutions affordably.

 

For those who are not familiar with VoiceXML (voice eXtensible markup language), it is a markup language similar to HTML that enables users to develop Web-based applications using their voice. It utilizes speech recognition and touchtone for input, and pre-recorded audio and text-to-speech synthesis for output. Any telephone can access VoiceXML applications via a VoiceXML browser, which is running on a telephony server.

 

VXI* it is a software-based voice and video browser that runs on Asterisk (News - Alert). Asterisk is an open source telephony engine and toolkit; it can be considered as a complete, software PBX (private branch exchange). This open source platform for telephony applications is a comprehensive call-processing server in and of itself. It can be either used as a standalone system or as an adjunct to a previously existing PBX or Voice over IP (VoIP) implementation.

 

"The release of VXI*, powered by the LumenVox Speech Engine, allows the large pool of VXML developers to run existing speech applications on the Asterisk platform or to develop new ones that are standards-based," said Bill Meisel, president of TMA Associates and Publisher & Editor of Speech Strategy News, in a statement. "The widespread use of the Asterisk platform presents an opportunity for VoiceXML developers to increase adoption of speech solutions in cost-sensitive markets. And who isn't sensitive to cost?"

 

LumenVox said that its speech engine is an accurate, standards-based speech recognizer that can perform speech recognition on audio data from any audio source. It can also support multiple languages. The company claims that it is the only speech recognition software that is natively integrated with Asterisk and also is distributed and supported by Digium (News - Alert).

 

"It was a natural choice for us to select I6NET's VXI* VoiceXML browser and the LumenVox Speech Engine on the open source Asterisk platform," said Alexey Patsko, CEO and founder of MyVocal, in a statement. "We are very pleased with ease of development with VXML and integration between i6NET and LumenVox technologies, and will have a very robust platform to support the strong growth and global roll-out of the MyVocal service."

 

 

MyVocal is a mobile audio service company which provides audio content such as podcasts, travel guides, audio-books, etc. The addition of new speech recognition browser facilitates the company’s subscribers to use the voice service without a single key press.