Conita Introduces Back End for Voice Recognition - Conita Technologies PVAStudio - Product Announcement

ENT, April 12, 2000

Voice recognition software inspires a lot of oohs and ahhs, but its use in a business setting has always been questioned. Conita Technologies Inc. (www.conita.com) is attempting to address these questions. The company recently introduced PVAStudio, "Personal Virtual Assistant" software that allows vocal access to network-based applications.

PVAStudio is not voice recognition software itself, but rather a framework for integrating a voice interface into networks. The solution relies on Nuance as its voice recognition engine.

What PVAStudio adds to Nuance is the ability to understand the content of speech, rather than phonetic transcription of the utterance.

PVAStudio understands some spoken language to perform computer operations. PVAStudio, for example, is integrated with Microsoft BackOffice, allowing users to access Exchange folders and other applications with voice commands. With a mobile phone, users are able to check e-mail from nearly any location.

The solution acts as a front end for Exchange and other BackOffice applications. Users can customize the software to integrate with applications macros. In particular, Conita is targeting the customer relationship managment (CRM) market since its users frequently depend on mobile, effortless access to address customer needs. Mobile businessmen and other professionals can benefit by accessing e-mail and CRM software through telephones, eliminating the need for laptops.

Conita plans to introduce the product on a large scale this month.