Praxon adds voice recognition

LAS VEGAS - Praxon last week announced it would bundle voice recognition cards from iVoice in its Phone Data Exchange line of converged phone servers.

The company demonstrated voice recognition on Phone Data Exchange (PDX) with the iVoice card at the Communications Solutions Expo in Las Vegas.

PDX users will be able to set up voice-enabled directories, allowing callers to say the name of the person they are trying to reach instead of dialing an extension. The iVoice card and software could also let users set up voice-enabled customer service systems.

Voice recognition was previously available predominantly in proprietary PBX systems designed for large companies, says Joyce Tam, marketing director for Praxon. The Windows NT-based PDX, combined with the iVoice card, makes voice recognition accessible to smaller companies and branch offices, she adds.

Ellipsis Graphix, a Los Gatos, Calif., print brokering firm, uses the Praxon PDX in its 20-person office. Frank Shuman, Ellipsis' president, says he is interested in adding voice recognition to his system.

"The PDX system lets me do a lot of things for my office," such as calling customers directly from a contact database on a PC, Shuman says. "[Voice recognition] would make it that much easier for customers to contact us."

PDX performs the functions of a PBX or key phone system, including voice mail, auto attendant, call transferring and forwarding. The PDX also acts as a unified e-mail/voice mail server that lets users call contacts from applications such as Microsoft Outlook. Users can also set up phone system preferences from a PC.

"End users demand enhanced functionality when they buy a phone system" that converges voice and data, says Joe Gagan, a senior analyst with The Yankee Group. There are cost savings in buying server-based PBXs - which can cost 40% less per seat than proprietary PBXs - but it's applications such as voice recognition that will drive the market for converged PBXs, he adds.

The PDX with an iVoice card starts at $200 per seat.