Nuance Vocalizer Brings Voice to Blio eReader

Nuance Communications (NASDAQ: NUAN) and K-NFB Reading Technology Inc., today announced that the Nuance Vocalizer text-to-speech technology will be available as part of the Blio eReader Software when it launches next month. Blio will be the first eReader to preserve the image-rich format of books and magazines, including their layout, typesetting, images, color and graphics, while also supporting extensive media formats, including video, graphics and web links. With the Nuance Vocalizer, Blio readers will have the ability to listen to e-content through a natural, lifelike voice.

Blio will be making Nuance’s text-to-speech available as a downloadable accessory on Blio eBook Stores, enabling customers to further customize their eReader experiences by listening to "Samantha” and "Tom,” Nuance’s incredibly natural voices.

"We designed Blio to offer the eBook market a device that fully maintains the integrity of printed media by offering a rich and visually-compelling experience to consumers. However, we wanted to ensure that these visual elements could be enhanced through the power of today’s sophisticated speech technology,” said Ray Kurzweil, voice-recognition inventor and founder of K-NFB. "With Nuance’s speech technology, Blio can now bring words and characters to life in a way that makes the eReader experience even more enjoyable and accessible for book and magazine aficionados everywhere.”

Additionally, Blio will also make Nuance’s text-to-speech technology available to manufacturers developing eReaders or integrating eReader functionality on mobile devices, including tablets, with Blio software. With the availability of Nuance’s robust text-to-speech capabilities, all Blio customers, manufacturers and developers will be able to speech-enable eReader content, allowing consumers to sit back and enjoy the convenience of listening to books, magazines and more.

"Blio truly demonstrates how advances in both eReader and speech technology are coming together to change the way people interact with media,” said Michael Thompson, senior vice president and general manager, Nuance Mobile. "The combination of Blio’s amazing color-filled, 3D eBooks with our lifelike speech technology offers the market a compelling eReader experience at a time where differentiation and customization are critical.”

Nuance Vocalizer supports more than 30 languages and is optimized for integration with a wide variety of platforms, creating an exciting potential for fully speech-enabled consumer electronics. Nuance’s speech technology is featured in the market’s most popular consumer devices, including personal navigation devices, smartphones, mp3 players and a variety of PC software applications, including Dragon NaturallySpeaking, and the "voice” behind the popular Ford SYNC. Nuance’s broad mobile portfolio of speech and predictive input solutions are changing the way consumers interact with their mobile devices, and ship on more than four billion devices – a result of its extensive relationships with every major mobile OEM and carriers around the world.

About Nuance Mobile

Nuance Mobile builds innovative, intelligent and intuitive touch and speech interfaces to simplify and enhance the way people interact with mobile devices, applications, and services. Nuance Mobile solutions make mobile devices and in-car systems easier to use, automate customer self-service, and optimize the access and discovery of even the most advanced mobile applications and content – regardless of technical know-how, location, environment, or physical and literacy capabilities.

About Nuance Communications, Inc.

Nuance is a leading provider of speech and imaging solutions for businesses and consumers around the world. Its technologies, applications and services make the user experience more compelling by transforming the way people interact with information and how they create, share and use documents. Every day, millions of users and thousands of businesses experience Nuance’s proven applications and professional services. For more information, please visit: nuance.com.

About K-NFB Reading Technology, Inc.

K-NFB Reading Technology, Inc., is a joint venture between Kurzweil Technologies, headed by CEO Ray Kurzweil, a 30-year innovator and pioneer in assistive technologies and the inventor of the first print-to-speech reading machine for the blind; and the National Federation of the Blind, the largest, most influential membership organization of blind people in the United States. K–NFB Reading Technology, designer and developer of the Blio eReader, creates products that revolutionize access to print for anyone who has difficulty seeing or reading print, including the blind and learning disabled. Our world-renowned reading software has been especially designed for and paired with the Nokia mobile phones to create the smallest text-to-speech reading devices in history, the knfbReader Mobile and the kReader Mobile.

Nuance, Dragon NaturallySpeaking and the Nuance logo are trademarks or registered trademarks of Nuance Communications, Inc. or its subsidiaries in the United States of America and/or other countries. All other company names or product names may be the trademarks of their respective owners. The statements in this press release, relating to future plans or future events or services, are forward-looking statements which are subject to specific risks and uncertainties. There are a number of factors which could cause actual events or results to differ materially from those indicated in such forward looking statements, including fluctuations in demand for the Nuance products, the relationship with partner and the continued development of Nuance products. The reader is warned not to rely on these forward-looking statements without reservation, since these are simply reflections of the current situation. Nuance disclaims any obligation to update any forward-looking statements as a result of developments occurring after the date of this document.