VoiceXML Forum Expands Board of Directors; Certifies 18 VoiceXML Platform Implementations
NEW YORK - The VoiceXML Forum named Genesys Telecommunications Laboratories, Inc., an Alcatel company, and Holly Connects as Sponsor Members of the VoiceXML Forum and that the companies have joined its Board of Directors. Genesys became a Sponsor Member through its acquisition of VoiceGenie Technologies in April 2006. Holly Connects and Genesys join Sponsor Members AT&T, HP, IBM, Intel, Loquendo, Lucent, Motorola, Nuance, Oracle, Tellme, Verizon and West Corporation in providing strategic direction and leadership to the Forum. In addition, InfoNXX, Microsoft and Tecnomen have joined the Forum as Promoter Members.
"We are pleased to welcome Genesys and Holly Connects to the Board of Directors and InfoNXX, Microsoft and Tecnomen to the VoiceXML Forum community," said Ken Rehor, chair of the VoiceXML Forum. "The decision by companies of this caliber to participate as this level demonstrates the tremendous industry support behind the Forum and the importance of VoiceXML."
VoiceXML Forum Certifies 18 Platforms
The Forum also announced that 18 VoiceXML platform implementations have been certified to date through the Forum's Platform Certification Program. VoiceXML platforms from Aspect Software and Vail Systems were recently certified as compliant with the latest release of the Forum's VoiceXML 2.0 test suite, and these companies join Avaya, Edify, Envox Worldwide, Genesys, Holly Connects, Nortel, Nuance, Voxeo, Voxpilot and West Corporation as vendors of certified platforms. CT Labs, an independent testing laboratory working on behalf of the Forum, conducted the testing. More information about the certified platforms can be found on the Web at www.voicexml.org/platform_certification/certified_platforms.html.
"Certification helps ensure cross-vendor interoperability of platforms, tools and applications, which stabilizes and matures the industry," continued Rehor. "That gives customers confidence that a wide variety of VoiceXML-certified platforms are sound speech technology investments. We are pleased to see Aspect Software and Vail Systems successfully complete their certifications."
The VoiceXML Platform Certification Program test suite includes more than 600 tests that cover the W3C VoiceXML 2.0 Recommendation and is based on the W3C's VoiceXML 2.0 Implementation Report. To aid vendors in preparing for certification, the Conformance Test Suite in the VoiceXML Platform Certification Program is available, at no charge, for public download from the Forum's Web site at www.voicexml.org. Forum Sponsor and Promoter Members also can download a Web-based test harness to aid in running the tests. Companies wishing to have their platforms tested may register on the Forum's Web site at www.voicexml.org or contact the Forum at voicexml-admin@voicexml.org.
The VoiceXML Forum is currently working on several technical initiatives, including those related to speaker biometrics, tools and media resource control protocol (MRCP). The Forum's Speaker Biometrics Committee recently published several working draft documents for member and public review, including:
- Speaker Identification and Verification Requirements
- Speaker Identification and Verification Introduction and Best Practices
- Speaker Identification and Verification Applications
- Data Exchange File Format for Speaker Identification and Verification (jointly developed with ANSI)
The Speaker Biometrics Committee is seeking feedback on these documents. For more information, visit: http://www.voicexml.org/resources/biometrics.html.