Nuance Communications Inc. on Tuesday will launch its second packaged speech application, this time targeting the authentication of callers so they can access sensitive information and perform transactions over the phone.
The Menlo Park, Calif., speech vendor plans to announce Nuance Caller Authentication 1.0. The application, which sits atop Nuances Verifier voice-authentication engine, uses biometric voiceprints to verify a callers voice against its database of enrolled callers.
The application provides a prebuilt voice user interface, a set of standard configurations and reporting capabilities to track such data as the number of callers enrolled, call volume and caller frequency.
“[It] addresses the challenge that call centers are facing—providing automated and secure access to information and transactions,” said Marcello Typrin, a Nuance group product marketing manager.
Common uses for Nuance Caller Authentication would include authorizing credit-card transactions and stock trades, changing an address in an account, or paying bills through an automated system, Typrin said.
The application follows about a year behind Nuances introduction of its first packaged application, Nuance Call Steering 1.0, for routing calls through voice recognition. The company has focused more on creating standard speech applications as an alternative to the custom speech development that has often been required for speech-enabled applications.
“The time is right to begin packaging up these applications, given the type of expertise being demonstrated,” said Matt Keowen, Nuances director of corporate marketing. “You can expect to see a bunch of things from Nuance in this area.”
Keowen declined to specify the type or timing of other possible speech applications in Nuances plans.
Nuance Caller Authentication, available Tuesday, requires Nuances speech-recognition engine and platform called the Nuance Voice Platform. The company in March introduced a new version of that platform, focusing on new developer tools.
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Pricing for Nuance Caller Authentication starts at $2,700 per port and includes the Nuance Verifier 3.5 engine, Typrin said.
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