Nuance Acquires Spinvox, Voice-to-Text Technology
Posted by Jesse Ward on Monday, January 4, 2010 · 
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Nuance Communications, a maker of voice-recognition software, announced last week that it has acquired SpinVox, a provider of voice-to-text services to telecommunications companies, for $102.5 million in cash and stock.
Nuance says there is a growing demand for voice-to-text services, given that the number of voice mail boxes worldwide has passed 1 billion, and more than 150 billion voice mails are generated each year, according to the company.
“Around the world, the voice-to-text market has experienced tremendous growth over the last year, with a variety of innovative services being delivered by carriers and unified communications providers,” said John Pollard, vice president, Nuance Voice-to-Text Services. “With SpinVox’s robust infrastructure, language support and operational experience, we will broaden the reach and capabilities of our platform.”
Nuance, which makes Dragon NaturallySpeaking speech-recognition software, says the combination of the two companies’ technologies will produce carrier-grade voice-to-text services capable of handling millions of messages per day. The combined platform will comprise full- and partial-speech automation, Web services integration and other advanced features.
The company faces increasing competition, not the least of which is from Google Voice. SpinVox has a more international reach, however, working with major telecommunications providers around the world, including Rogers Wireless of Canada, Vodafone and Movistar in Spain, Telstra of Australia and Vodacom of South Africa. The service works in English and several other languages, including French, German and Spanish.
Read the release.
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