As reported all over the Web, Microsoft is acquiring TellMe Networks.
This is big news. TellMe has been a major player in the Voice (web) application space.
Microsoft is getting a company with the technology, IP, and experience in both mobile and voice, as very few companies out there have. Ironically, TellMe Mobile was first released as a Java ME application, but the same core technology will soon be applied to Windows Mobile.
Not long ago, I wrote a piece titled The Future of the Web and Mobile, where I emphasized the importance of voice in the future of mobility and the Web:
“So what is bigger than “local” applications space? The answer is Web/browser-based applications space. And what is bigger than Web/browser applications space? The answer is voice space.”
Microsoft has been very smart in understanding that Voice is and will be a key component in mobile applications… and this acquisition proves that. This acquisition also means that the doors are wide open for new companies wanting to fill in the new gap that has being created. Will TellMe be swallowed by the Blackhole called Microsoft, to become a Microsoft-only solution? Or will Microsoft allow TellMe free reign, keeping the TellMe platform available to others wanting to pay for it? Time will tell.
I won't be surprised if Google or even Yahoo! are or have been looking into this (Voice) space… and they should. They should consider acquiring Nuance, which is the “brains” behind many of the voice recognition solutions out there, including TellMe.
ceo