March 15, 2007
Dial Tone 2.0
According to Beta News, Microsoft aims to replace dial tones with voice-aware services.
"Called "Dial Tone 2.0" - it will essentially replace the dial tone for all telephone service, including land lines and cellular, with an automated voice that asks its user a question.
"Right now, the phone has been relatively unchanged in decades," remarked McCue to reporters this morning. "You still pick it up today, and you hear two tones meshed together as the dial tone, and you have to type in a bunch of numbers to get something done or to reach somebody.
We think that world is ripe for change; we think that when you pick up a phone, [it] should ask you, 'What do you want to do? Who do you want to call?' And you can say what you want: 'Call Mom at home.' 'Call Mike on his mobile phone.' You can say, 'Call Mike and Jeff,' and have a conference call immediately happen."
In three years' time, Raikes predicts, about 100 million people will have the capability to do quick voice-driven dialing ability, or "click-to-call," from within their everyday applications."
[via digg]
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