Babel's Text-to-Speech Technology PocketBabil Now Available for Symbian

MONS, BELGIUM - Babel Technologies S.A, a group designing, developing and licensing voice processing technologies, has announced that PocketBabil, its Text-to-Speech (TTS) solution for embedded environments, has now been ported to the Symbian environment. Specifically designed for the mobile devices market, the Symbian operating system offers unlimited opportunities for application designers to move from customized platforms toward a standard and open platform that can now feature synthetic speech. The speech libraries are available on Nokia Series 60, Nokia Series 80 and Symbian ver7. With many years of experience in mobile devices, Symbian is now becoming a standard platform for smartphones. Many mobile phone manufacturers have selected this operating system for their new generation of high-end cellular phones. Symbian offers manufacturers the flexibility of an open platform allowing the continuous addition of new applications and features, and the robustness of a standard defined by the main players in this field. The voice capability, which was already a main aspect of mobile phones, combined with the flexibility of Symbian, makes smartphones a multi-purpose device ideal for speech-based applications. While typical voice features like voice dialling, message reading, etc. used to run on specific hardware, new applications like content management, human interfacing, or rehabilitation applications, are now easily implemented on portable devices that run on Symbian. Commenting on the announcement, Vincent Fontaine, Babel Technologies' CEO said: "Babel's TTS technology is very well suited to fit the memory limitations of some of the existing smartphones. Porting Babel's embedded text-to-speech to the Symbian environment, enables application designers or content providers to offer a complete product and application family on many devices, such as Symbian, WinCE, Linux, etc. with the same TTS-interface, look and feel." Also, MONS, BELGIUM - Babel Technologies S.A. announced that Eway Telecom has added support for Babel's next-generation TTS engine, BrightSpeech, to its eVox 2.0 Audiotex Monitor. Eway Telecom is a French engineering and IT-services company specialized in setting up and maintaining service lines. By supporting BrightSpeech, Eway has been able to install and fully equip an Audiotel service for UCPA, France's largest outdoor activities specialist. The UCPA Audiotel service provides travel and other information to UCPA registered travellers via their reservation number. Similar voice projects are currently under development at Eway. Created by Eway, eVOX is the result of 10 years experience in voice applications. It integrates the best speech technology with UNIX on development configurations that can manage from four to up to several hundred lines: analog and digital, speech synthesis and speech recognition, VoiceXML, voice/fax, transmissions, teleconferencing, PABX, CTI and Call-centres. Jean-Marc Geoffroy, responsible for Speech Technology at Eway comments: "We have chosen BrightSpeech mainly for its quality. We believe the French, as well as the English and German language versions of BrightSpeech, are among the best currently available on the market. It is now entirely possible to deploy a voice service that is completely driven by speech synthesis without having quality restraints". BrightSpeech is a text-to-speech (TTS) solution from Babel Technologies. It offers application opportunities for software developers wishing to use synthetic speech as an information carrier of exceptional quality, for their products or services. Based on Unit Selection technology, this human-sounding TTS engine can be easily integrated into telecoms servers and multimedia applications. Commenting on the announcement, Vincent Fontaine, Babel Technologies' CEO said: "BrightSpeech continues to demonstrate how its unmatched naturalness is helping companies to provide an even better service for their customers. BrightSpeech provides a flexible and cost effective method of adding the convenience of high quality speech to a wide range of applications." He added: "Furthermore, with the selection of languages available, BrightSpeech enables applications to be deployed rapidly across many countries." Also, Babel Announces Partnerships with Rehabilitation Market Companies MONS, BELGIUM - Babel's BrightSpeech will be used as assistive tools and applications. Babel Technologies S.A., provider of speech and language technology, has announced a number of strategically significant agreements with eminent developers of products and services developed specifically for the rehabilitation sector. Sensotec will bundle Babel's TTS engine BrightSpeech, in its reading machine called "Reporter". The Sensotec Reporter is a stand-alone reading machine that converts printed text into speech. Additionally, it is also distributing BrightSpeech French and Dutch (B) for Jaws, ZoomText, Dolphin and other assistive tools. Data Braille Service will distribute BrightSpeech French and Dutch (B) with its current range of products, including: Braille reading machines, scanning software, note takers and other assistive tools and software. Integra is distributing BrightSpeech French and Dutch (B) with its current range of products, including Braille note takers and typewriters, screen readers and reading systems. P-Voice is using BrightSpeech Dutch (B) and French for bundling with a communication program for people who cannot speak and have limited abilities to successfully operate a computer. P-Voice enables these people to speak through their computer by selecting photos or symbols. Skil focuses on people with specific communication or operation needs and is distributing BrightSpeech Dutch (B), French, US English, Swedish, Spanish and German with its current range of assistive tools for communications. CRETH is using BrightSpeech French for specially developed office tools and programs to adapt the workplace and facilitate the social and professional integration of the handicapped. IRSA will use BrightSpeech French in its personalized educational and re-adaptation programs in its various educational, residential and day-care centres. La Lumière is using BrightSpeech French in their educational and IT-training programs. Commenting on the announcement, Vincent Fontaine, CEO of Babel Technologies, said: "There are many applications that BrightSpeech is well suited to. It's naturalness and superb voice quality make it the ideal solution for integration or bundling with assistive tools and technologies, where BrightSpeech can play a significant role in ensuring that people with disabilities or learning difficulties can enjoy a higher quality of life."