Dragon Systems Unveils Revolutionary
Breakthrough with Continuous Speech
Recognition

Dragon NaturallySpeakingTM Enables Users
to Talk to Their PC Continuously and Naturally

 

New York, NY -- April 2, 1997 -- A revolutionary breakthrough in continuous speech recognition technology was announced today at a press conference in the World Trade Center, by worldwide leader Dragon Systems, Inc. The Newton, MA-based company, which launched a number of industry firsts in speech recognition for more than a decade, introduces Dragon NaturallySpeaking, the world's first general purpose, large vocabulary, continuous speech recognition product. Dragon NaturallySpeaking enables users to dictate general text more naturally using continuous speech, i.e., without pauses between words.

"When I first started in speech recognition 25 years ago, there was some doubt that this day would ever come," said Jim Baker, CEO and Co-Founder of Dragon Systems. "Now, Dragon is proud to announce the speech product that everyone has been waiting for. This application is ideal for people who need to get their ideas and words rapidly into text, and want to be freed from the tyranny of the keyboard."

With Dragon NaturallySpeaking, users no longer need to type text into a computer. Users simply talk in a natural manner and pace. The spoken words immediately appear on the screen with every word spelled correctly. The powerful text editing and formatting capabilities allow users to bold, italicize, change the font, etc. by voice commands. Documents can be printed or copied into popular applications, such as Microsoft Word, Corel WordPerfect, Qualcomm Eudora, Lotus Notes, etc.

"An achievement of this magnitude is only possible due to the accomplishments and goodwill of our colleagues," said Jim Baker, President and Co-Founder of Dragon Systems. "We have conquered a series of technical challenges, created practical products and launched these into a global economy. Passion and persistence are the primary fuel in this quest. Today, we have the privilege of declaring victory - a victory for us all."

Dragon Systems is also strongly committed to international markets. "Dragon Systems plans to introduce international versions of Dragon NaturallySpeaking later this year," said Andreas Widner, International Marketing and Sales Director.

Features and Benefits

Pricing and System Requirements

Dragon NaturallySpeaking will be released in two editions: the Personal Edition and the Professional Edition. The Personal Edition enters beta testing in two weeks and the Professional Edition in the summer. First shipments of the Personal Edition are expected in this quarter and will be priced at $695US. Professional versions aimed at vertical markets, will be priced starting at $995US.

For a limited time, all new U.S. and Canadian purchasers of DragonDictate Classic and Power Editions will be eligible for a free beta copy of Dragon NaturallySpeaking Personal Edition. All beta users will be able to to upgrade to the shipping version of Dragon NaturallySpeaking Personal Edition for a nominal fee. Existing registered DragonDictate customers will receive information on discounted purchases of Dragon NaturallySpeaking.

"In addition to announcing a breakthrough technology, we will offer Dragon NaturallySpeaking at a breakthrough price, making this available to the widest number of people possible," said Jim Baker. Dragon NaturallySpeaking supports Microsoft Windows 95 and Windows NT (version 3.51 and 4.0). It requires a 133 MHz Pentium, 32 MB RAM for Windows 95, and 48 MB RAM for Windows NT.

Dragon NaturallySpeaking supports a broad range of built-in audio industry standard sound cards, including Creative Labs SoundBlaster 16 and compatibles, as well as notebooks with built-in 16-bit audio. Proprietary speech cards are not required for either desktops or portables.

 

Dragon Systems, Inc., The Natural Speech Company, is a worldwide leader in PC speech recognition. Dragon develops and markets high-performance, cost-effective speech and language technology tools that, in multiple world languages (including American English, British English, French, German, Italian, Spanish and Swedish), enable users to create any text, issue commands, and enter and access data simply by speaking. The company also licenses its technology worldwide through developers, distributors, resellers, OEMs (Original Equipment Manufacturers) and ISVs (Integrated Software Vendors). Dragon Systems ports its technology across multiple operating systems and hardware platforms - from hand-held devices and personal computers to workstations, and is pursuing leading-edge research and development projects for computer and telecommunications applications.

Founded in 1982, Dragon Systems is headquartered in Newton, Massachusetts; its Dragon Systems UK Ltd. subsidiary, which is focused on speech recognition for telephony and high-noise environments, is based in Cheltenham, England; Dragon Systems GmbH is located in Glashutten, Germany in the greater Frankfurt/M. area.

Dragon Systems and DragonDictate are registered trademarks of Dragon Systems, Inc. NaturallySpeaking, the Natural Speech Company and Select-and-Say are trademarks of Dragon Systems. All other trademarks are the property of their respective holders.