SAN FRANCISCO, California, March 27, 2000 –
"The world wide web has become a ubiquitous part of everyday life. Why should computers always be needed to access it?" said Ron Benson, founder of VocalPoint. "VocalPoint now makes it possible for our business partners' end-users to access the Web, using any phone." VocalPoint, an application service provider developing voice solutions that deliver Web content over any phone, today announced the closure of a $3.6 million investment led by The Ignite Group and Angel Investors, L.P.

VocalPoint Browser- Access to the Web via Telephone

VocalPoint's browser makes it possible to navigate, browse, and read any standard HTML or XML Web page using any telephone. For example, a user can conduct an e-commerce transaction such as buying a CD, reading and responding to e-mail, accessing stock portfolios or personalized services over the phone using voice commands. Information contained on the web page is then read aloud to the user either as a pre-recorded human voice or computer-simulated voice.

"VocalPoint is the first to voice-enable the web without needing a specialized markup language," said Garry Chinn, VocalPoint's CTO. "Earlier experiments in voice-enabled web browsing were awkward, requiring every web page to be re-written with a different markup language. VocalPoint has changed all that. With little or no effort, our e-commerce and carrier partners can give their users instant access to the web from any phone."

Investors See Strong Potential

The Ignite Group is the lead investor in VocalPoint's first funding round. Specializing in software, telecommunications, and the Internet, The Ignite Group (www.ignitegroup.com) has strong connections in both Silicon Valley and Asia.

"With Nippon Telecom and Telegraph (NTT) a major limited partner, we naturally have a strong interest in innovative communications applications," said Steve Payne, General Partner of The Ignite Group, "Audio-enabling Web content over the telephone is exciting technology with enormous potential. The ability to browse existing online content with an audio browser is the secret ingredient that will bring audio-enabled web browsing into the mainstream.

Bob Bozeman, General Partner of Angel Investors, a leading technology investment firm that has also invested in VocalPoint, added, "We have a substantial investment with VocalPoint – reflecting the tremendous opportunity the company presents, and the exciting future that voice-enabling the Web brings."

VocalPoint Voice ASP

VocalPoint also provides an outsourced service and technology that enables Web companies to extend their reach and build a new distribution channel. No partner engineering, content re-purposing, or APIs are required to voice-enable a site. This eliminates costly investments in emerging technologies and infrastructure. The VocalPoint solution uses a combination of robust, best-of-class network, hardware and software technologies to enable the reliable and scalable delivery of web content from any phone. The voice interaction features of the VocalPoint solution, accessible from any fixed or wireless phone, are powered by the latest advancements in automatic speech recognition and text-to-speech technologies, and is based on flexible, open standards to easily provide a tailored solution for each partner.

To guarantee ease of maintenance, scalability, and flexibility the core components of the VocalPoint voice browser technology are server-based and use open standards such as Java, C++, HTTP, HTML, CSS and XML. This open standards approach guarantees rapid adoption and support of future technologies.

To guarantee reliability and up time of the service, the VocalPoint solution relies on a high-availability, secure and redundant network and telephony infrastructure

About VocalPoint
VocalPoint provides industry-leading voice ASP solutions enabling end-users to obtain Web content using spoken commands via any telephone, including wireless. Because VocalPoint's technology does not require content rewriting, capital investment, or systems integration, it enables quick implementation of an IVR alternative, immediate cost savings, and increased reach and access to Web content, anytime, anywhere.

Incorporated in 1997 and based in San Francisco, California, VocalPoint is working with vertical portals and telecommunications and wireless providers worldwide. Companies interested in voice enabling and extending the reach of their web content are invited to call 415.615.0600.