Nuance Communications Launches South African Text-to-Speech Voice

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
(Free-Press-Release.com) July 20, 2007 --

Nuance Communications, Inc. (NASDAQ: NUAN), a leading supplier of speech and imaging solutions, and Intelleca, South Africa�s leading provider of telecommunications-grade voice solutions, introduced a South African English version of its RealSpeak� text-to-speech (TTS) engine that dynamically converts any input text into spoken output. The new female TTS voice, named Tessa (Text-to-Speech South Africa), can be used to deliver premium voice quality and natural-sounding synthesized speech for call center and network-based speech applications, as well as automotive, desktop and mobile applications.

Developed in conjunction with Intelleca in South Africa, Nuance�s development partner for speech recognition language models in the region, Tessa is the latest addition to the Nuance� RealSpeak� TTS portfolio, a collection of nearly 40 voices representing more than 28 different languages and dialects. Whether users want to enhance call center service, develop automated voice dialing applications, speech-enable an in-car navigation system or automate directory assistance services, RealSpeak delivers a friendly, expressive, highly intelligible speech interface.

"The introduction of Tessa continues our aggressive investment in the creation of new RealSpeak TTS voices that deliver the natural-sounding output required for quality speech applications," said Peter Hauser, senior vice president and general manager for Nuance International. "With an unrivaled TTS language portfolio, now including South African English, Nuance is uniquely positioned to deliver TTS solutions that meet the localized needs of a global audience. We are delighted to have cooperated with Intelleca in developing our latest RealSpeak voice."

As the leader in providing telco-grade open-voice solutions, Intelleca is known for its expertise in coupling sophisticated telephone solutions with automatic speech recognition (ASR), text-to-speech (TTS), and speaker verification (voice biometrics) technologies. Intelleca has a five-year track record in developing a broad-based model of South African English by incorporating hundreds of thousands of speech samples capturing the unique characteristics of the dialect.

"Nuance has unparalleled experience in the research and development of text-to-speech solutions," said Michael Renzon, Intelleca CEO. "And with Tessa, we�ve created a TTS experience that is more natural and expressive than anything that�s been achieved before. Beyond the baseline of accurate pronunciation requirements, Tessa delivers effective phrasing and emphasis, even sophisticated emotions."

More information can be found online at http://www.nuance.com/

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