Thats an entire generation of football kids lost

A less general version of voice search is free directory assistance servicesthat use speech recognition and operate from any phone, e.g., Microsofts1-800-CALL411, Googles 1-800-GOOG411, AT&Ts 1-800-YellowPages, and JingleNetworks 1-800-FREE411. Instead of a list of search results, these voice-onlyapplications speak the business name for confirmation and provide the number orcomplete the call. "Once one adopts any voice-enabled application, one has essentially learned thevoice user interface," Meisel said. "Its easy to predict that adoption of voiceinput on mobile devices will grow quickly, but its more difficult to see howany one company can come to dominate." Another motivation for the availability of a hands-free voice solution is theuse of mobile phones while driving.

"In vehicles, a voice option is a must, andautomobile companies as well as mobile operators know it," confirmed Tom Schalk,AVIOS vice president, and vice president, voice technology, at ATX Group, whichsupports wireless services for auto companies. "If a voice interface is includedto support this important case, it is available at other times as well." "There are differences in approaches, both to the technical aspects of speechrecognition and delivering responses and to the business models of the variousplayers," noted Scholz. "The resulting contest will be decided indirectly byconsumers, moderated by the options that their wireless carrier supports." The three-day Voice Search Conference, in its second year, brings together thekey people that will influence the "Voice Search Wars," including speakers fromAT&T, Google, IBM, Microsoft, Nuance, and Yahoo! Innovative smaller companiessuch as SpeechCycle, Loquendo, and Novauris are also well-represented. MarcDavis, Chief Scientist, Yahoo! Connected Life, will be giving a keynote talk on"Speaking to the Web, the World, and Each Other: The Future of Voice and theMobile Internet." About the Voice Search Conference Voice Search 2009 is the second year of a conference organized by the AppliedVoice Input Output Society (AVIOS) and Bill Meisel (president, TMA Associates,and editor, Speech Strategy News) to address the disruptive role of speechrecognition, text-to-speech synthesis, and multimodal user interfaces in mobile,Web, and call center applications SpeechCycle is a principal sponsor of theconference Loquendo and Novauris are supporting sponsors The conference isMarch 2-4 in sunny San Diego, California. About AVIOS The Applied Voice Input Output Society is a non-profit professional society,created over a quarter-century ago, dedicated to promoting the development anddiffusion of real world applications of speech technology.

For more on AVIOS,see About Bill Meisel and Speech Strategy News William Meisel, president, TMA Associates, is publisher and editor of SpeechStrategy News and an analyst on market and product opportunities created by thematuring of speech technology Dr. Meisel began his career as a professor ofelectrical engineering and computer science at USC, founded a speech recognitioncompany, and has been an independent analyst in speech technology and marketssince 1991. AVIOSPeggie Johnson, TMA AssociatesBill Meisel, Copyright Business Wire 2009. Akron Beacon Journal columnist Patrick McManamon, in describing how a reader questioned whether Browns owner Randy Lerner realized the damage that has been done to the fan support for his team, wrote: "Imagine this...11 years of losing...three years with no football...the Belichick years...Thats an entire generation of football kids, lost."Truer words were never spoken.I was born in Cleveland, and grew up 60 miles south, in Canton. For most of my childhood, Cleveland was a two-team town: The Browns in the winter, and the Indians in the summer. The Cavaliers didn't join the fray until 1970, and pro hockey never really caught on.I was part of a generation that came along just after the glory years of Otto Graham, Marion Motley, and Dante Lavelli.

The heroes of our childhood were Jim Brown and Leroy Kelly, Gene Hickerson, Dick Schafrath, Paul Warfield, and Gary Collins. Black and white images of our mud-splattered heroes graced local newspapers after each game. Fans in Northeast Ohio viewed Cleveland Stadium as a shrinecold, dank and dreary though it waswhere the ghosts of Browns teams past still lingered, and cheers from championship seasons echoed in the rafters.It was special.Not any more The Browns have become a depressing laughingstock. The atmosphere at Browns' games, once electric, is now somber, as if a specter of doom hangs over the stadium (which it does) TV ratings are down Interest among fans is waning. Media analysts search for words and shrug at how bad things have become.The Pittsburgh Steelers even pity them now, for crying out loud.