BaBel Technologies

PRESS RELEASE -- JUNE 30, 2003

-- EWAY SELECTS BABEL FOR eVOX 2.0 VOICE SERVER SOLUTION

- Eway Telecom deploys BrightSpeech for UCPA Audiotel service -

MONS, BELGIUM – June 30, 2003 -- Babel Technologies S.A., a global player in providing pioneering speech and language technology, has today announced that Eway Telecom has added support for Babel’s next-generation TTS engine, BrightSpeech, to its eVox 2.0 Audiotex Monitor. Eway Telecom is a French engineering and IT-services company specialized in setting up and maintaining service lines. By supporting BrightSpeech, Eway has been able to install and fully equip an Audiotel service for UCPA, France’s largest outdoor activities specialist. The UCPA Audiotel service provides travel and other information to UCPA registered travellers via their reservation number. Similar voice projects are currently under development at Eway.

Created by Eway, eVOX is the result of 10 years experience in voice applications. The eVox voice monitor integrates the best speech technology with UNIX on development configurations that can manage from four to up to several hundred lines: analog and digital, speech synthesis and speech recognition, VoiceXML, voice/fax, transmissions, teleconferencing, PABX, CTI and Call-centres.

Jean-Marc Geoffroy, responsible for Speech Technology at Eway comments: “ We have chosen BrightSpeech mainly for its quality. We believe the French, as well as the English and German language versions of BrightSpeech, are among the best currently available on the market. It is now entirely possible to deploy a voice service that is completely driven by speech synthesis without having quality restraints”.

BrightSpeech is the revolutionary next-generation text-to-speech (TTS) solution from Babel Technologies. It offers unlimited application opportunities for software developers wishing to use synthetic speech as an information carrier of exceptional quality, for their products or services. Based on Unit Selection technology, this human-sounding TTS engine can be easily integrated into telecoms servers and multimedia applications, making it the ideal speech solution for voice portals, interactive voice response systems, unified messaging (including e-mail reading), educational software and interactive kiosks.

Commenting on the announcement, Vincent Fontaine, Babel Technologies’ CEO said: “BrightSpeech continues to demonstrate how its unmatched naturalness is helping companies to provide an even better service for their customers. BrightSpeech provides a flexible and cost effective method of adding the convenience of high quality speech to a wide range of applications.” He added: “Furthermore, with the selection of languages available, BrightSpeech enables applications to be deployed rapidly across many countries.”

The software has been released in Dutch (B), French, German, Spanish, Swedish and US English, and an on-going development effort ensures that it will progressively cover Babel’s full range of 18 languages. In the course of 2003, BrightSpeech will also be adapted to mobile platforms to provide the same unequalled naturalness and supreme voice quality for automotive and mobile device applications.

PRESS RELEASE -- JUNE 26, 2003

-- BABEL ’S ADVANCED TEXT-TO-SPEECH TECHNOLOGY POCKETBABIL NOW AVAILABLE FOR SYMBIAN

MONS, BELGIUM – June 26, 2003 -- Babel Technologies S.A, a world-leader in pioneering speech processing technologies, has announced that PocketBabil, its Text-to-Speech (TTS) solution for embedded environments, has now been ported to the Symbian environment. Specifically designed for the mobile devices market, the Symbian operating system offers unlimited opportunities for application designers to move from customized platforms towards a standard and open platform that can now feature synthetic speech. The speech libraries are available on Nokia Series 60, Nokia Series 80 and Symbian ver7.

With many years of experience in mobile devices, Symbian is now becoming a standard platform for smartphones. Many mobile phone manufacturers have selected this operating system for their new generation of high-end cellular phones. Symbian offers manufacturers the flexibility of an open platform allowing the continuous addition of new applications and features, and the robustness of a standard defined by the main players in this field.

The voice capability, which was already a main aspect of mobile phones, combined with the flexibility of Symbian, makes smartphones a multi-purpose device ideal for speech-based applications. While typical voice features like voice dialling, message reading, etc. used to run on specific hardware, new applications like content management, human interfacing, or rehabilitation applications, are now easily implemented on portable devices that run on Symbian.

PocketBabil is the embedded text-to-speech version of Babil, a high-quality multi-lingual TTS synthesizer, based on Babel ’s unique Multi Band Resynthesis Overlap Add (MBROLA) concatenative algorithm.

This patented technology is available in 18 languages. PocketBabil can produce any utterance in a given voice or language and features high segmental quality and fluidity of speech. It is a software-only system that requires very few hardware resources in terms of memory and computational load. This TTS solution enables extremely fast development of new voices and languages.

Commenting on the announcement, Vincent Fontaine, Babel Technologies’ CEO said: “Babel’s TTS technology is very well suited to fit the memory limitations of some of the existing smartphones. Porting Babel’s embedded text-to-speech to the Symbian environment, enables application designers or content providers to offer a complete product and application family on many devices, such as Symbian, WinCE, Linux, etc. with the same TTS-interface, look and feel.”

PocketBabil is the ideal speech solution for portable devices and embedded equipment, and has been released in Arabic, Czech, Danish, Dutch (B&NL), Finnish, French, German, Icelandic, Italian, Norwegian, Portuguese (Brazilian & Portuguese), Spanish, Swedish, Turkish, UK and US English. The software currently runs on WinCE, Symbian, Linux environments or on platforms without OS.

PocketBabil is also available for Texas Instruments’ high-performance, power-efficient OMAP^TM wireless processing platform, which is delivering voice and multi-media enhanced applications for 2.5G and 3G wireless handsets and PDA’s and other multi-media-enhanced devices.

PRESS RELEASE -- JUNE 17, 2003

-- MICROVOCAL SELECTS BRIGHTSPEECH FOR EUROPE ’S FIRST READING KIOSKS

- Public information made more accessible for blind and visually impaired -

MONS, BELGIUM – June 17, 2003 -- Babel Technologies S.A., a global player in providing pioneering speech and language technology has today announced that Microvocal, a major provider in customized and accessible information technology solutions for the blind and visually impaired, has integrated Babel ’s revolutionary BrightSpeech Text-to-Speech (TTS) solution in its automated reading kiosk. The reading kiosk has been specifically developed to grant access to information in public places like airports, train stations, shopping centres, city halls and so on, to people who have difficulties reading standard documentation, leaflets, books and other written material.

Microvocal’s automated reading kiosk enables the blind and visually impaired to easily and rapidly read typed documents, simply by clicking one button. It has been equipped with a customized scanner and a document guide, an audio headset (so as not to disturb others), and a case with a button to activate the reading and anti-theft systems. The reading kiosk is simple to use and does not require any user-assistance. The Microvocal automated reading kiosk is currently available in French, English, German and Spanish and thus offers unlimited opportunities to access sites, places and information, on a Europe-wide scale. The decision to use Babel’s BrightSpeech engine was based on its outstanding human sounding-quality and ‘naturalness’ in the languages that Microvocal required

BrightSpeech is Babel Technologies’ next-generation text-to-speech (TTS) solution. BrightSpeech offers unlimited application opportunities for software developers wishing to use synthetic speech as an information carrier of exceptional quality, for their products or services. Based on Unit Selection technology, this human-sounding TTS engine can be easily integrated into telecoms servers and multimedia applications, making it the ideal speech solution for voice portals, interactive voice response systems, unified messaging (including e-mail reading), educational software and interactive kiosks.

Vincent Fontaine, Babel Technologies’ CEO, said: “Speech technology has proven to have many worthwhile applications. With the introduction of the Microvocal reading kiosk, speech technology is now providing the blind and visually impaired with access to essential information in many public places.” Fontaine added: “Once again, BrightSpeech has shown its flexibility and suitability in an application that will increase the quality of life for millions of citizens across Europe.”

Microvocal already uses various speech technologies from Babel in both its Speakey product (an integrated software package that groups a multitude of information technology functions in one tool) and in Papyrus (an easy to use and versatile document management solution). The software is completely voice-driven by speech synthesis where users can select their preferred voice, amongst which are Babel ’s Infovox, Babil and BrightSpeech text-to-speech voices. Providing access to software and information remains fundamental for the blind, visually impaired and other target groups to allow them to go about their daily lives just as well as other people do.

PRESS RELEASE -- JUNE 6, 2003

-- SPEECH IN A BOX FROM BABEL’S VOXBOX

- Babel delivers ‘Plug & Play’ speech solution for rapid deployment -

MONS, BELGIUM – June 6, 2003 -- Speech as an interface is set to become even more prevalent across a broad range of industries and applications, following the introduction of the first combined speech technology hardware and software solution, the VoxBox, from Babel Technologies S.A. Presented in a rugged and compact box, VoxBox is a multi-purpose audio processor system that uses Babel’s near human-sounding Text to Speech Technology (TTS), Babil, to immediately speak aloud any text message it receives. By making speech technology more accessible for commercial applications, VoxBox marks a significant step forward in the wider adoption of speech and language technology in the industrial environment.

Designed to be an easy to implement alternative to bespoke speech solutions, VoxBox brings low cost multi-lingual (up to 18 languages) speech technology to applications as diverse as public announcement systems at train stations and airports, for animated games or for voiced warnings for alarm and surveillance systems. Text messages sent to VoxBox are instantly synthesized, providing users with greater communication flexibility and making it far easier to update customers or passengers with new information or warnings in real-time. As users are not limited to communicating only pre-recorded messages or alerts, VoxBox can help increase the quality of service customers receive.

VoxBox is an autonomous and open system that can be quickly connected to a wide range of systems thanks to its RS232 serial line and USB port. Due to its exceptional ease of use and installation, it enables companies to hook up to any device like PLC’s, industrial equipment, medical equipment, and so on and thus accelerate the ‘time to market’ of their multi-lingual projects. Babel has future-proofed VoxBox by equipping it with a highly powerful memory and CPU to ensure that it is open to their forthcoming synthesis engines like BrightSpeech.

Commenting on the introduction of the VoxBox, Vincent Fontaine, CEO of Babel Technologies, said: “Many companies recognise the time and cost benefits of speech-enabling certain functions across their organisation, either to lower their costs and overheads or to improve customer service.” He added: “VoxBox is the first solution in a box to provide customers with all the convenience of speech without the cost, installation or development complexities that sometimes arise with bespoke applications, and therefore brings the benefits of speech technology to a far greater audience.”

VoxBox was created following strong demand from Babel’s customers who wanted a ‘plug and play’ TTS solution. The demand indicates that many organisations across many sectors now consider speech and language technology to be a key part of their organisations’ strategy. Babel’s current customers include Texas Instruments, Alva, Igel, Franklin and EZOS.

PRESS RELEASE -- MAY 19, 2003

-- BaBel selected by AVAYA for use in IVR solution

- Dutch and French Language versions of Babel's BrightSpeech delivers unsurpassed naturalness to Avaya's R1 Interactive Response platform -

MONS, BELGIUM – May 19, 2003 -- Babel Technologies S.A, a world-leader in speech processing technologies, today announced that Avaya, the global leader in Interactive Voice Response systems, has deployed Babel’s BrightSpeech Text-To-Speech (TTS) engine on its R1 Avaya^TM Interactive Voice Response system. The Avaya R1 now features both Babel Technologies’ French language version and the newly released Dutch (B) language version of BrightSpeech, Babel’s next-generation text-to-speech solution.

Avaya^TM Interactive Response R1, is a sophisticated platform for the development of advanced customer self-service solutions. By adopting the BrightSpeech speech server, developers are able to implement the latest speech engine technology, pre-built speech tasks and VoiceXML programming tools. With the R1 system, companies that require a Natural Language solution suitable for applications in many languages now have a portable, flexible solution that is available 24/7.

Avaya comments: “Avaya is pleased to add support for BrightSpeech, particularly in the Belux Region, as BrightSpeech offers surprisingly high quality speech in the Dutch, French and German languages versions. BrightSpeech gives our customers new options for delivering cost savings and creating new revenue-generating automated services on the award winning Avaya Interactive Response platform.”

BrightSpeech is the revolutionary next-generation text-to-speech (TTS) solution from Babel Technologies. Babel’s BrightSpeech offers unlimited application opportunities for software developers wishing to use synthetic speech as an information carrier of exceptional quality, for their products or services. Based on Unit Selection technology, this human-sounding TTS engine can be easily integrated into telecoms servers and multimedia applications, making it the ideal speech solution for voice portals, interactive voice response systems, unified messaging (including e-mail reading), educational software and interactive kiosks.

Commenting on the announcement, Vincent Fontaine, CEO of Babel Technologies said: “Since its release, BrightSpeech has enjoyed considerable demand from organisations that want to quickly and easily add speech to their applications. Central to BrightSpeech’s appeal is that it offers a near-human sounding voice in multiple languages, combined with unlimited application opportunities.”

BrightSpeech can be trialled by visiting the Babel web site at www.babeltech.com.

PRESS RELEASE -- MAY 16, 2003

-- BaBel announces availability of Dutch - Language version of Brightspeech TTS Engine

- Version 1.2 of Babel's naturally-sounding Next-Generation Synthetic Speech Surpasses all expectations -

MONS, BELGIUM – May 16, 2003 -- Babel Technologies S.A, a world leader in speech processing technologies, today announced version 1.2 of BrightSpeech, its next-generation Text-to-Speech (TTS) technology. Babel has also announced the commercial availability of the Belgian Dutch language version of this exceptionally realistic-sounding synthetic speech engine.

BrightSpeech is a TTS-system based on Unit Selection technology for a more natural-sounding effect. The Windows-based solution is ideal for easy and fast integration of speech in telecommunication servers and multimedia-solutions like voice portals, IVR-systems, unified messaging (including e-mail reading), educational software and interactive kiosks. The software is now available in Dutch (B), French, German, Spanish, Swedish and US English. Babel is increasing development efforts to progressively cover all 18 languages it currently supports for its current and established TTS solution, Babil.

The latest version of BrightSpeech now includes many new functions to enable software developers to integrate speech much faster and more efficiently. These new functions include: a Voice Manager to personalize voices; the Equalizer and Speed Tag support now allows online control, and the Spelling mode (of considerable importance for the Rehabilitation and Educational sector). BrightSpeech Version 1.2 also features a new edition of the Natural Language Processor (NLP) for the current set of languages and supports larger – almost unlimited - dictionaries.

Vincent Fontaine, CEO of Babel Technologies commented: “We have enjoyed extremely positive feedback from the international market on BrightSpeech’s quality. The Belgian Dutch language addition now enables Babel to offer a more complete offering for local and international markets.” Fontaine added: “This new version confirms the leadership position of this new approach towards synthetic speech for its naturalness and superb voice quality. Our development team placed a great deal of emphasis on the intonation-module, which has significantly improved the intelligibility and listening comfort of the speech output We invite everyone to visit our website and let this product speak for itself!”

BrightSpeech can be trialled on www.babeltech.com. The full range of languages which BrightSpeech supports is as follows: US English, UK English, Spanish, German, French, Dutch (B&NL), Italian, Portuguese, (P & Br), Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, Icelandic, Turkish, Czech and Arabic. BrightSpeech is fully compatible with the existing range of Babil TTS solutions and developers can easily migrate to this new technology. Upgrading to BrightSpeech is a simple as installing a new voice.

Babel Technologies will continue to develop and adapt BrightSpeech to deliver the same human voice quality for RISC-platforms, like StrongARM, SH3, SH4 en MIPS. Here, the software will mainly be used for applications in the automotive and mobile devices sector.

PRESS RELEASE -- APRIL 16, 2003

-- Franklin Electronic Publishers selects Babel's TTS Engine to bring high quality speech in multiple languages to its handheld reference products.

MONS, BELGIUM – APRIL 16, 2003 -- Babel Technologies S.A has today announced that Franklin Electronic Publishers, Inc. (AMEX:FEP), world leader in electronic reference books and language learning, is embedding Babel’s Text To Speech (TTS) technology, PocketBabil, to bring high-quality speech and intonation to its electronic books.

Designed for the embedded market, PocketBabil has been developed to minimize the time-to-market effort to develop new multi–lingual applications, considerably accelerating its integration on target platforms. In this arrangement with Franklin , Babel will deliver its TTS engine in various languages and will customize its software to utilize Franklin ’s proprietary word search and spell correction algorithms.

Franklin’s Vice President Engineering and Chief Technology Officer, Kurt Goszyk, stated: “By combining Babel ’s high quality text to speech engine with Franklin ’s powerful search and spell correction features, our hand held reference products will benefit from a significant improvement to the user interface. In a 130,000 word dictionary, for example, even if the word is misspelled, Franklin algorithms provide instantaneous definition lookup. Once the correct definition is found, passing these phonemes to the Babel engine results in high quality synthesised speech that closely parallels that of a normal natural speech.”

Franklin has sold more than 29 million eBooks through 45,000 retail outlets worldwide, as well as via its web site, and through its direct marketing operation. Based in Burlington , New Jersey , Franklin Electronic Publishers, Inc. was established in 1981. Since the company introduced the world's first handheld eBook in 1986, it has been exploiting the potential of eBooks to create a fundamentally new way of reading.

Commenting on the announcement, Vincent Fontaine, CEO of Babel said: “ Franklin ’s decision to use PocketBabil is an industry endorsement of the quality of our speech technology. Franklin has recognised that the clarity and pronunciation abilities of our TTS engine is vastly superior to other solutions, and therefore wholly appropriate given Franklin ’s leadership position in the market.”

As well as providing solutions for the language learning market, Babel also provides speech and language technology for the telecommunications, rehabilitation, multimedia, automotive, mobile devices and industry sectors.

PRESS RELEASE -- MARCH 12, 2003

-- International Publisher Klett Adopts BaBel Speech Recognition Technology to evaluate pronunciation in Bilingual Language Learning

MONS, BELGIUM – MARCH 12, 2003 -- Babel Technologies S.A. has today announced that Klett Sprachen GmbH, the multinational language publisher, is to use Babel’s Babear v2.5 speaker-independent Automatic Speech Recognition (ASR) system in it PONS product line. PONS is Klett’s self study brand and includes dictionaries and bilingual language learning products in English, German, Spanish, Italian and French. Babel’s ASR engine will allow users of the new system to perform pronunciation exercises, there-by helping them to improve their ability to understand and speak foreign languages.

PONS has had an established presence in the language-learning sector since 1978. With 350 titles in 20 languages, PONS has a wide array of dictionaries ranging from self-instruction methods and to software for schools, offices, work and travel. PONS titles are very easy to use, being modern and with an up-to-date vocabulary. Their easy to use format enables users to find what they are looking for both quickly and efficiently. In addition to the dictionaries, PONS also offers a selection of business software, self-learning packages and e-dictionaries.

Babear is a fully-featured Speech Recognition software product designed for the embedded market and it has been engineered to minimize the time-to-market effort to develop new applications. Its high accuracy allows detection of incorrectly pronounced words, therefore making it the perfect solution for advanced language learning applications.

Commenting on the announcement, Vincent Fontaine, CEO of Babel said: “This latest implementation of a Babel technology shows the scope and opportunity that ASR technology can offer across a wide range applications. We are delighted that Klett, one of the world’s most established language learning publishers, has embraced our technology.” He added: “2002 was a very successful year for Babel , this year it is set to make further announcements with key industry players that will secure Babel ’s position as the leader in the ASR and TTS solutions.”

PRESS RELEASE -- MARCH 12, 2003

-- BABEL TECHNOLOGIES OUT IN FORCE AT CEBIT 2003

- BaBel to demonstrate latest products and technologies across core market sectors -

MONS, BELGIUM – MARCH 12, 2003 -- At CeBIT 2003, Babel Technologies S.A., will be announcing the pre release of the US-English language version of BrightSpeech, its next generation Text-to-Speech (TTS) solution. BrightSpeech can be easily integrated into telecom servers and multimedia applications making it an ideal speech solution for voice portals, interactive voice response systems, unified messaging (including e-mail reading), educational software and interactive kiosks. Babel will also be demonstrating the latest version of the enhanced version of its recently announced desktop TTS multi-lingual software. The Windows-based solution offers unlimited application opportunities for software developers wishing to use synthetic speech as an information carrier and those integrating synthetic speech into their products or services.

Babel recently received a Special Award for ‘Belgian Starter of the Year’ at the 2002 Data News Awards for Excellence. The Data News Awards for Excellence is one of the most prestigious annual ICT-events in Belgium, recognizing innovative products and services. Babel will be celebrating this accolade at CeBIT by demonstrating innovative products and technologies that are targeted at its six key markets, including: telecommunications, rehabilitation, multimedia, automotive, mobile devices and industry.

For the telecommunications sector, Babel will show BrightSpeech US English, Swedish, French, German and Spanish. For multimedia applications, Babel will demonstrate: BrightSpeech, Desktop and Babil (TTS); Babear, Lex, Language Learning (ASR) and many more. Customer applications on display will include: Microvocal, Inspiration, Klett, Granada Learning, Wizcom etc.

Other applications and demonstrations include the Xybernaut industrial PC, speech enabled Ipaqs and an HP Jornada, as well as a PocketPC demo with voice activated name dialling.

Commenting on its presence at CeBIT, Vincent Fontaine, CEO of Babel said: “CeBIT remains Europe’s most important and widely recognised technology show. Therefore it presents companies with the perfect opportunity to meet with new and existing clients which is why we are showing such a broad range of Babel technologies and solutions.” He added: “2002 was an immensely successful year for Babel, and this was recognised by The Data News Award. By having a strong presence at CeBIT and demonstrating the scope of our technology offerings, Babel expects to go from strength to strength in 2003.”

PRESS RELEASE -- JANUARY 14, 2003

-- BABEL ANNOUNCES BRIGHTSPEECH SWEDISH AT COMDEX SCANDINAVIA 2003

Swedish Version

First Public Showcase of Swedish language version of BrightSpeech TTS engine

MONS, BELGIUM & GÖTEBORG, SWEDEN – JANUARY 14, 2003 -- Babel Technologies S.A. and Babel-Infovox AB, a world-leader in speech processing technologies, today announced the availability of the Swedish language version of BrightSpeech, its next generation Text-to-Speech (TTS) solution. The Swedish language version of BrightSpeech will be shown to the public for the first time at Comdex Scandinavia, (Swedish Exhibition & Conference Centre, Göteborg/Sweden) and visitors to the Babel-Infovox stand (B0705) will be able to experience a demonstration of the technology for themselves. BrightSpeech Swedish is also available for demonstration from the Babel website (www.babeltech.com).

BrightSpeech’s technology is based on Unit Selection for improved naturalness, and has been available in French, German and Spanish since BrightSpeech was launched in October 2002. Babel will continue its development efforts to progressively cover all 18 languages it now supports with Babil, its current and established TTS solution. BrightSpeech can be easily integrated into telecom servers and multimedia applications making it an ideal speech solution for voice portals, interactive voice response systems, unified messaging (including e-mail reading), educational software and interactive kiosks.

Vincent Fontaine, CEO for Babel Technologies commented: "BrightSpeech received a very enthusiastic reaction from the industry following its introduction last October. Most recently, our Development Team received extremely positive feedback from our customers and visitors who tested BrightSpeech Swedish at the Open House Babel-Infovox hosted in Stockholm last December. Our focus is now on expanding our efforts to develop the other languages." Lars-Erik Larsson, CEO of Babel-Infovox added: "We are encouraging the speech development community to test BrightSpeech’s unequalled naturalness and supreme voice quality at Comdex Scandinavia or to visit our web site and let this product speak for itself!".

The full range of languages which BrightSpeech will support, is as follows: US English, UK English, Spanish, German, French, Dutch (NL), Dutch (BE), Brazilian Portuguese, European Portuguese, Italian, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, Icelandic, Turkish, Czech and Arabic. BrightSpeech is fully compatible with the existing range of Babil TTS solutions and application developers can easily migrate to the new technology. Upgrading to BrightSpeech is as simple as installing a new voice.

PRESS RELEASE -- JANUARY 08, 2003

-- BABEL TO OFFER ADVANCED TEXT-TO-SPEECH ON TEXAS INSTRUMENTS' OMAP PROCESSING FOR WIRELESS PHONES, PDAS

MONS, BELGIUM – JANUARY 08, 2003 -- Babel Technologies S.A, a world-leader in speech processing technologies, has announced that its Text-to-Speech (TTS) solution, PocketBabil, is now commercially available for Texas Instruments’ (TI) high-performance, power-efficient OMAPTM wireless processing platform. Babel’s speech solutions using TI’s OMAP platform for 2.5G and 3G wireless handsets and PDAs will enable mobile users to listen to text messages (SMS), receive spoken feedback, and listen to e-mail and voice prompts.

TI’s OMAP platform for wireless processing, delivers voice and multimedia enhanced applications for 2.5G and 3G wireless handsets and PDAs, and other multimedia-enhanced devices.

Mobile text messaging is becoming increasingly popular. According to a recent GSM Association report, over 24 billion text messages were sent worldwide in May 2002. Listening to a message is a convenient, safe and natural way to receive those messages. Babel’s TTS technology on mobile devices will help to prevent mobile phone users from compromising safety while still enjoying the benefits of communication via text message.

Paul Werp, worldwide marketing director for TI’s OMAP platform, said: "As text-based applications for wireless devices become more prolific, text-to-speech and speech-to-text technology will continue to gain popularity." He added: "Babel has successfully ported its application to TI’s OMAP platform to help handset manufacturers ensure the end-user experience remains convenient and easy to use, regardless of the complexity of future devices and applications."

Vincent Fontaine, Babel Technologies’ CEO, commented, "In today’s wired world, the mobile handset is an essential device for both personal and professional use. Mobile access to information saves time and increases productivity, and speech enabling the mobile handset is the next logical step forward in their development."

About TI’s OMAP Developer Network

Babel Technologies is a member of the OMAP Developer Network, a group of software developers creating advanced wireless applications for 2.5G and 3G handsets. OMAP developers enable rapid deployment of enhanced applications across leading operating systems in key areas like multimedia, security, messaging, gaming, speech, location based services and mobile commerce. Wireless handset manufacturers also benefit from the high performance and power efficiency of TI's OMAP platform, and worldwide systems level integration services provided by independent OMAP Technology Centers. The OMAP platform has been selected by leading manufacturers such as Nokia, Palm, Fujitsu, Sendo, Panasonic, HTC and others for their 2.5 and 3G wireless devices. For more information about the OMAP Developer Network, the OMAP platform or independent OMAP Technology Centers, please visit: www.omap.com.

PRESS RELEASE -- DECEMBER 18, 2002

-- BABEL RECEIVES DATA NEWS SPECIAL AWARD FOR EXCELLENCE

BELGIAN STARTER OF THE YEAR

MONS, BELGIUM – DECEMBER 12, 2002 -- Babel Technologies S.A, a world-leader in speech processing technologies, today announced that it has received the Special Award for ‘Belgian Starter of the Year’ at the 2002 Data News Awards for Excellence. The Data News Awards for Excellence is one of the most prestigious annual ICT-events in Belgium, recognizing innovative products and services. Now in its sixth year, the Belgacom and Rockwell Automation-sponsored Awards were divided into five categories: software, hardware, network & telecom, services and special awards. Data News readers sent in their votes and a jury of former laureates of the Data News ICT Manager Contest awarded three prizes per category: one Award for Excellence and two Quality Awards.

Vincent Fontaine, CEO of Babel Technologies commented: "To be presented with the Belgian Starter of the Year Award is recognition of Babel’s continuing ability to commercialise speech technology innovation and to deliver competitively to a growing speech technology market. Our vision for the future is supported by a solid business strategy that is enabling us to meet the demands of customers and to remain a leader in the speech processing technologies industry."

2002 has been a successful year for Babel Technologies. It recently announced BrightSpeech, a next generation Text-to-Speech (TTS) solution, based on Unit Selection technology. This means that it has been developed with a library of pre-recorded human speech units, for improved naturalness. The Windows-based solution offers unlimited application opportunities for software developers wishing to use synthetic speech as an information carrier and for those integrating synthetic speech into their products or services.

Earlier this year, Babel announced that its TTS engine had been implemented in WizCom’s Reading Pen II, a completely portable device that enables disabled users to scan-in printed text and then see, and also hear the text read aloud. WizCom is the world-leading provider of hand-held scanning and recognition technologies.

Babel also announced that EZOS, a leading provider of mobile internet software and services, is to embed its Automatic Speech Recognition (ASR) and Text-To-Speech (TTS) technology into its micro-browsers. These are developed specifically for mobile devices and currently embedded in the HP Jornada 928 Wireless Digital Assistant (WDA), the xda from O2 and the Sagem WA3050.

PRESS RELEASE -- NOVEMBER 18, 2002

-- BABEL RELEASES BRIGHTSPEECH - A HUMAN SOUNDING TEXT-TO-SPEECH APPLICATION

Next Generation TTS engine boasts unsurpassed naturalness

MONS, BELGIUM – NOVEMBER 18, 2002 -- BaBel Technologies S.A, a world-leader in speech processing technologies, today announced the imminent release and availability of a next generation Text-To-Speech ( TTS ) solution called BrightSpeech. BrightSpeech is a TTS engine, based on Unit Selection technology. This means that it has been developed with a library of pre-recorded human speech polyphones, for improved naturalness. The Windows-based solution offers unlimited application opportunities for software developers wishing to use synthetic speech as an information carrier and for those integrating synthetic speech into their products or services.

BrightSpeech can be easily integrated into telecoms servers and multimedia applications making it an ideal speech solution for voice portals, interactive voice response systems, unified messaging ( including e-mail reading ), educational software and interactive kiosks. During Q1 2003, BrightSpeech will be adapted to mobile platforms providing the same human sounding voice for automotive and PDA applications. The software will be released in French, German and Spanish versions by the end of November 2002, with US English and Swedish following during Q1 2003. BaBel has increased development efforts to progressively cover the 18 languages it currently supports with its current and established TTS solution, Babil.

Vincent Fontaine, CEO for BaBel Technologies commented : " This new release represents a breakthrough for TTS technology, setting new standards for synthetic speech in terms of naturalness and voice quality. Our development team also placed a great deal of emphasis on the intonation module, which has significantly improved the intelligibility and listening comfort of the speech output. ".

Fontaine added : " We have extremely positive feedback from our market test trials and are focussing development efforts to swiftly expand upon the three languages we will deliver to market this month. We are encouraging the speech development community to visit our web site and let this product speak for itself ".

BrightSpeech can be trialled by visiting the BaBel web site at http://www.babeltech.com . The full range of languages, which BaBel will support with BrightSpeech, is as follows : US English, UK English, Spanish, German, French, Dutch ( NL ), Dutch ( BE ), Brazilian Portuguese, European Portuguese, Italian, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, Icelandic, Turkish, Czech and Arabic. BrightSpeech is fully compatible with the existing range of Babil TTS solutions and application developers can easily migrate to the new technology. Upgrading to BrightSpeech is as simple as selecting a new voice.

BaBel Technologies will also be delivering BrightSpeech for RISC based mobile platforms, such as StrongARM, SH3, SH4 and MIPS. Here it will be used mainly for automotive and PDA applications. The first of these products will be available from Q2 2003 onwards.

PRESS RELEASE -- OCTOBER 15, 2002

-- BaBel Technologies demonstrates new TTS platforms at SPEECHTEK 2002.

At SpeechTEK 2002, Babel Technologies S.A., a developer of speech processing technologies, will be out in force demonstrating its wide range of speech and language technologies developed specifically for mobile, automotive and language learning markets. Babel will be demonstrating both new and existing products, including BrightSpeech, its brand new Text To Speech (TTS) engine, and Infovox Desktop, the latest version of its Text-to-Speech (TTS) multi-lingual software. SpeechTEK also marks the first public showing of Babel’s Arabic-language speech recognition engine.

BrightSpeech is a TTS engine that is set to accelerate the acceptance and adoption of speech technologies in the market. Developed specifically for telecommunication applications, Babel has paid particular attention to the intonation of synthetic speech in order to deliver naturalness of speech. BrightSpeech will be available in November in third languages (French, German, and Spanish) , English and Swedish will come out very quickly.

Visitors to the stand will also be able to experience Infovox Desktop, a new diphone-based TTS engine that has been developed with a library of pre-recorded human speech diphones for more natural sounding speech. The Windows-based solution offers application opportunities for software developers wishing to use synthetic speech as an information carrier and those integrating synthetic speech into their products or services. Infovox Desktop will initially be available in 12 languages, with 18 languages available by 2003, and is aimed at the education and disability markets.

Additionally, Babel will be demonstrating its recently announced Arabic language version of a speaker independent, medium vocabulary with continuous speech. Babel is the first and only multi-lingual speech technology developer to have developed an Arabic language version. Developed specifically for telecom and multimedia applications, the engine enables developers to integrate robust speech recognition in Arabic for any application. The embedded version of the Arabic PocketBabEar Speech Recognition is available from October 2002.

Visitors will also be able to experience PocketBabil (embedded TTS in twelve languages) and PocketBabear (embedded ASR in 12 languages).

Commenting on its presence at SpeechTEK, Vincent Fontaine CEO of Babel Technologies said: "SpeechTEK is the premier show for speech and language technology products. It is appropriate that given Babel’s leadership position on the market, that we are previewing our new speech and language solutions at this show." He added: "2002 has been an exceptional year for Babel, in terms of new technologies unveiled and high profile customer wins. We anticipate that our presence at SpeechTEK will further secure Babel’s position as the leading player in the speech and language arena."

In 2002, Babel announced that its TTS engine is being used in Wizcom’s Reading Pen II. Specifically developed for the language learning markets, the Reading Pen II helps people with learning difficulties read and understand words. Babel also announced and agreement with EZOS, to embed its TTS engine into platforms developed specifically for mobile applications.

PRESS RELEASE -- OCTOBER 03, 2002

BaBel-Infovox releases latest Text-To-Speech Multi-Lingual Software

- Infovox Desktop boasts more features and increased ease of use -

Babel-Infovox, a wholly owned subsidiary of Babel Technologies S.A, a world-leader in speech processing technologies today announced the release and availability of its latest Text-to-Speech (TTS) multi-lingual software, Infovox Desktop, a replacement for the popular Infovox 330. Boasting new features and increased ease of use, Infovox Desktop is a diphone based text-to-speech engine that has been developed with a library of pre-recorded human speech diphones for more natural sounding speech. The Windows-based solution offers unlimited application opportunities for software developers wishing to use synthetic speech as an information carrier and those integrating synthetic speech into their products or services.

Infovox Desktop has been developed with a host of new and improved features. These include: a new KeySpeaker application, which can spell and read aloud as the user types in any Windows application; a new graphical equaliser enables the user to adjust the acoustical features of each voice as they wish; an improved voice manager that enables users to create new voices with specific voice or equaliser settings and user lexicon association. There are also improved help files for the Infovox Engine and applications, as well as an improved install/uninstall program.

Infovox Desktop is exceptionally easy to use. It offers full control of voice parameters such as volume, pitch and intonation, and it also has a variable reading speed. Users can even change the pronunciation of any word. Furthermore, text can be read sentence by sentence, or spelled out, character by character.

Vincent Fontaine, CEO of Babel comments: "This latest development of Infovox Desktop addresses the needs and requirements of the product’s market. Babel-Infovox has added new features to the existing feature-set to make Infovox Desktop an even more attractive proposition for integrators and end-users alike."

Fontaine added: "We have already had extremely positive feedback from our market test trials and Babel-Infovox is now focussing development efforts to swiftly expand upon the 12 languages we support today."

Infovox Desktop is currently available in British English, US English, German, Swedish, Norwegian, French, Dutch, Icelandic, Finnish, Danish, Spanish and Italian languages. Babel-Infovox plans to support 18 languages by the end of the first quarter of 2003. Babel-Infovox TTS solutions already have strong penetration in the education and disability markets, and it is expected that Infovox Desktop will continue to lead the market in the those sectors.

Babel-Infovox Desktop supports Windows 9x, ME. Windows NT, 2000, or XP and requires a PC with a Pentium processor or above. The software needs at least 4Mb of hard disk space for the TTS engine and 15-25 Mb hard disk space for each language installed. It also requires a Windows-compatible 16-bit sound card.

The Babel-Infovox Desktop TTS engine can be trialled by visiting the Babel-Infovox web site at www.infovox.se.*

PRESS RELEASE -- SEPTEMBER 10, 2002

MONS, BELGIUM – SEPTEMBER 10, 2002-- Lars-Erik Larsson, former manager ScanSoft Sweden joins BaBel Technologies.

BaBel Technologies S.A., a world-leader in speech processing technologies today announced that the former manager of ScanSoft Sweden, Lars-Erik Larsson, has joined BaBel Technologies as Chief Executive Officer of BaBel-Infovox AB. Larsson's appointment is effective immediately and he will based at BaBel-Infovox' office in Stockholm, Sweden.

Larsson will be responsible for BaBel-Infovox's corporate strategy, its day-to-day operations in the Nordic regions and for strengthening the company's messaging and positioning in the Nordic market. BaBel-Infovox / BaBel Technologies Text-To-Speech ( TTS ) technology is currently available in 18 languages : American English, British English, Danish, Dutch ( Holland and Belgium ), Finnish, French, German, Icelandic, Italian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Portuguese ( Brazilian and Portugal ), Czech, Turkish and Arabic.

Larsson has over 20 years of experience in the high-tech industry, working with organizations including Unisys and GlobalOne ( formerly known as France Telecom ).

Prior to joining BaBel, Larsson was a senior director at speech and language specialist, Lernout & Hauspie. There, Larsson was responsible for establishing and developing the company's presence in the Nordic region, as well as being responsible for the company's sales and marketing operation in that territory.

Commenting on Larsson's appointment, Vincent Fontaine, CEO of BaBel Technologies said : "Lars-Erik joins BaBel at an exciting time. The speech and language market is buoyant, and BaBel is experiencing increasing demand for its speech and language solutions. With his experience of the speech and language sector and his understanding of the Nordic region, Lars-Erik will play an invaluable role in the further developing BaBel's presence in the Nordic territory."

PRESS RELEASE -- SEPTEMBER 03, 2002

MONS, BELGIUM – SEPTEMBER 03, 2002

Babel's embedded technology helps the disabled to read and learn
Babel Technologies and EZOS announce strategic partnership agreement.

> Babel's Embedded Technology helps the disabled to read and learn.

MONS-BELGIUM - Babel Technologies S.A., a developer of speech processing technologies, announced that PocketBaBil, its Text-To-Speech ( TTS ) synthesizer technology, has been implemented in the new Dutch-language version of WizCom Technologies' Reading Pen II. The Reading Pen II is a portable device that enables disabled users to scan-in printed text and then see, and also hear the text read aloud. WizCom is a provider of hand-held scanning and recognition technologies, and this agreement is the most recent in a number of contract wins for Babel.

PocketBabil is the embedded version of Babil, a multilingual TTS synthesizer, based on Babel Technologies' unique Multi Band Resynthesis Overlap Add ( MBROLA ) concatenative algorithm. This technology is now available in 18 languages. It is a software only system with a low computational load and enables development of new voices / languages.

Reading Pen II, based on WizCom's second-generation hand-held scanner, is designed to provide assistive technology to help the disabled to read and learn. The success of the original English language product in the US and UK, prompted requests for other language versions.

The product's integrated TTS mechanism offers users the choice to hear the whole scanned line or any individual word pronounced aloud. Additionally, users may choose to hear the syllabic breakdown of any word. The scanned word appears in an enlarged font on the pen's LCD screen for the benefit of sight-impaired users, and can be viewed in its entirety or divided into syllables.

Users of Reading Pen II can build a list of the last 300 words scanned and transfer it to their PC for later reference. By enabling users to recall, pronounce and define these words again, learning becomes easier. Reading Pen II scans inverted and hyphenated text and is adjustable for left or right-handed users.

The Dutch Reading Pen II , to be released during Q4 2002, will be distributed internationally by Lexima BV a subsidiary of Ha-thek BV.

> Babel Technologies and EZOS announce strategic partnership agreement.

MONS, BELGIUM - EZOS will embed Babel's Automatic Speech Recognition ( ASR ) and Text-To-Speech ( TTS ) technology into its micro-browsers, which are developed specifically for mobile devices ans currently embedded in the HP Jordana 928 Wireless Digital Assistant ( WDA ), the xda from O2 and the Sagem WA3050.

Users of mobile devices featuring the new, speaker-independent voice-controlled browser, will be able to access the web, corporate networks and email services using voice commands ( ASR ). The device can then read aloud the content to the user ( TTS ). Implementing speech and language technology into a mobile device makes it easier for the user to multi-task, reducing time and increasing their efficiency and productivity. There are also considerable safety benefits in industries such as field sales where professionals spend much of their time on the road and may need to access customer information and directions from their corporate database whilst driving.

Commenting on the announcement, Vincent Fontaine, CEO of Babel Technologies said : "Speaking to a device remains the easiest way to control it". This is particularly true where there are a number of menus that need to be navigated. With a device like a PDA, voice control provides quicker and more convenient access to the most commonly used functions.

He added : "By combining our technologies, Babel and EZOS offer an attractive proposition for any manufacturer that wants to offer speech and languages technology to a noisy or mobile environment".

Jean-Claude Streel, EZOS' business development manager, said : "Babel is a strategic partner for Ezos. With 18 languages, Babel has the biggest language catalogue in ASR and TTS, an important factor for our global customer base. Furthermore, Babel's technology is speaker independent and able to understand and interpret different voices and accents".

PRESS RELEASE -- FEBRUARY 22, 2002

MONS, BELGIUM – FEBRUARY 22, 2002 -- Babel Technologies, a European leading speech technology provider, announced today that it has completed a 5 million EUR fund raising with major investors active in the IT sector, Part’Com, SRIW and IMBC.

The success of the private placing, the acquisition of Infovox in September 2001 and partnerships with major players in telecommunications, mobile and multimedia applications confirm the leading position of Babel Technologies on the European market.

“The confidence of the investors in Babel Technologies gives us the opportunity to accelerate the development of the new generation of speech technologies, to reinforce our strategy in sales and marketing in order to continue to provide reliable and user-friendly speech interfaces.”, said Vincent Fontaine, CEO and co-founder of Babel Technologies.

About Babel Technologies

BaBel Technologies S.A. and Babel-Infovox AB form a corporate group, designing, developing and licensing cutting-edge voice processing technologies. The companies are located in Mons, Belgium and Stockholm, Sweden, closely linked to university research centers like Faculté Polytechnique de Mons, Multitel asbl, CTT Stockholm, etc. It comprises an award-winning team of engineers, with comprehensive expertise in all aspects of Speech Processing who have now launched a world-beating range of products in the following areas : Automatic Speech Recognition, Text-To-Speech and Speaker Verification.

BaBel Technologies rapidly became a major player on the market thanks to its outstanding multi-lingual, multi-platform products. BaBel Technologies collaborates with leading companies in the telecom, multimedia and embedded markets, including Texas Instruments, Comverse, the US Army, Telia, etc.

For additional information, please look at www.babeltech.com or contact Vincent Fontaine (fontaine@babeltech.com) at +32 65 374275

About PART’COM

Part'Com is a Paris-based investment capital firm, with the mandate of managing private equity investments in telecom, media and e-business ventures. Its team of 13 investment professionals manages € 500 million with 85 participations in telecom and media companies in Europe and North America. Part'Com is active since 1986 when it was founded as a venture capital initiative by the Caisse des Dépôts Group (CDC) and is today part of CDC Ixis. For additional information, please look at www.partcom.com or contact Pierre Chevalier at +33 1 40 64 23 27

About SRIW

The mission of SRIW Group is to intervene financially for the long term, in companies not only in Belgium but also abroad, with the objective of promoting the economic development of the Walloon Region, either directly or indirectly. They participate in projects for redeployment, modernisation or growth of the companies concerned. The financial resources which they contribute to the companies concentrate on activities aimed at the long term. This contrasts with the conventional, short-term financing covered by traditional bankers. For additional information, please look at www.sriw.be or contact Philippe Deville at +32 4 221 98 11.

About IMBC Objectif N°1

S.A. Invest Borinage-Centre (IBC) provides the areas of Mons, Borinage and Centre, with a new financial tool intended for small and medium sized companies (SME). I.M.B.C. Objectif No 1 is IBC's subsidiary specialized in venture capital namely focusing on developing high-tech corporations and innovative industrial actors. Of the 75 million EUR at the disposal of IBC GROUP, 50 million EUR have been invested in more than 300 companies. For additional information, please look at www.imbc.be or contact Sylvie Créteur at +32 64 264866.

PRESS RELEASE -- SEPTEMBER 7, 2001

MONS, BELGIUM & STOCKHOLM, SWEDEN – SEPEMBER 7, 2001 -- BaBel Technologies, a European leading speech technology provider, announced today that it has acquired Infovox, the text-to-speech division of the Swedish telecom operator TELIA A.B. Infovox is the market leader of text-to-speech for North-European countries.

This acquistion is part of BaBel's strategy to expand its product line and market presence in order to provide customers with a global range of products. It also underscores BaBel's commitment to provide a wide language availability of its products and technologies.

Infovox provides high quality multi-lingual text-to-speech products and are used in all three major categories of TTS applications : telecom, desktop/multimedia and embedded systems. The acquisition of Infovox complements BaBel's award-winning family of multi-lingual speech recognition and text-to-speech engines. Additionally, the acquisition will broaden BaBel's European customer base and provide the company with increased research and development resources and expertise in speech technologies.

"With this acquisition, we're achieving two important goals" said Vincent Fontaine, CEO of BaBel Technologies S.A., "First, we expand our product range and language availibility, and we will increase our R&D force to develop the next generations of technologies. Second, the acquisition of Infovox puts BaBel in a leading position in several segments of the European text-to-speech market."

"The establisment of Infovox as a separate company means ideal conditions for a strong focus on product offer and market presence," said Bengt Waernulf, CEO of Babel-Infovox AB. "Together with Babel Technologies we will have an attractive range of products on the expanding speech market."

Infovox was founded in 1983 and has 19 employees located in Sweden. Infovox was acquired by TELIA in 1989. In 1997, Infovox signed an agreement with BaBel Technologies to license MBROLA, a high quality speech synthesis engine. Infovox will operate as a wholly owned subsidiary of BaBel Technologies S.A.

About BaBel Technologies

BaBel Technologies S.A., a leading speech technology provider, designs, develops and licenses cutting-edge voice processing technologies since 1997. The company is based in a university research center within a country where several languages are spoken. It comprises an award-winning team of engineers, with comprehensive expertise in all aspects of Speech Processing who have now launched a world-beating range of products in the following areas : Automatic Speech Recognition, Text-To-Speech and Speaker Verification.

More information about Infovox here.