Nuance Communications Releases New Suite of Speech-Enabled Enterprise Applications

BURLINGTON, Mass. - Nuance Communications, Inc. (NASDAQ: NUAN) launched SpeechAttendant Large Enterprise Edition (SA-LEE), an integrated product suite that combines auto attendant and directory services with enhanced applications.

The foundation of the new product suite is a speech auto attendant that enables employees to place internal calls by speaking the name of a person or department. Designed specifically for large organizations, the system provides single number access to all employees across the enterprise. Built on this core speech-enabled employee directory, SA-LEE introduces new add-on applications including an Employee Password Reset feature and specific communications capabilities to support business continuity and disaster recovery efforts.

Employee Password Reset enables employees to reset their own passwords for more than 60 enterprise applications over the telephone. Leveraging Nuance's patented biometric voice verification technology, SA-LEE's Employee Password Reset feature uses each employee's "voiceprint" to confirm caller identity before authorizing password changes.

The new product suite also adds new capabilities to the core speech auto attendant to facilitate individual and group communication in a crisis. Enterprises can initiate employee roll call, redirect calls to locations with redundant systems, send broadcast messages to targeted personnel, and provide self-service access to emergency information. Specific tools to support an organization's business continuity and disaster recovery strategies include the following applications:

• Call Redirect - enables employees to forward calls to any of eight numbers using voice commands. 
• Roll Call - employees call into the system, say their name, and confirm their status. Employees can also use Roll Call to communicate important information in emergency situations. 
• Broadcast Messaging - automates notification of key management, response teams, or employees before, during, and after a crisis. SA-LEE broadcasts emergency information via multiple modes of communication (e.g., office phone, mobile phone, pager, e-mail, etc.) until every recipient has been notified. 
• Self-Service Information Center - provides 24/7 automated access to a range of up-to-date employee directory information, including office, mobile, pager and fax numbers, and email or mailing address. Callers speak the person's name and choose from a spoken menu of options to obtain the desired information.

Based on the patented Voice Search Engine technology used for carrier automated directory assistance, SpeechAttendant Large Enterprise Edition provides voice access for enterprises with 25,000 or more directory listings. SA-LEE offers a selection of telephony interfaces to allow implementation with an organization's current infrastructure.