Talking to the TV, and getting a response

Would the lives of couch potatoes be even easier if they could talk to their television sets?

At least two companies, the OneVideo Technology and Agile TV, are developing speech-recognition products that will let viewers change channels with voice prompts like "search" and "find." Comcast, the country's largest cable provider, and other companies are testing the systems that have the potential to do for television what the Clapper did for the lamp.

Though a voice-activated channel changer is not a new idea, the current incarnation has been prompted as much by advertising as by convenience. The device would make it easier for consumers to order a movie, a pizza or a car dealer's brochure, eliminating the need to dial toll-free numbers or to scroll through menus on the television.

"From an advertising standpoint, it would be easier and more motivating" to let people ask for what they want, said Paul D. Woidke, the vice president of technology at Comcast Spotlight, the cable company's advertising wing. "We see interactive advertising as being a great opportunity."

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The services, which are both on display at the cable industry's annual trade show now under way in San Francisco, are relatively simple to use. Consumers speak into a microphone placed on a remote control or on a set-top box. The products can recognize verbs like find, scan and record, topics like sports and movies, and the names of movie stars.

The scan feature finds, say, a comedy show, then finds a new comedy channel every three or four seconds until you pick one. Say "find football" and you can choose from a menu of games. Subscribers can say "go to sleep" to turn off the service.

Agile's service, called Promptu, also recognizes about 15 regional accents, and both systems claim to filter out extraneous noise.

The brains of Promptu are at the distribution hubs run by cable companies. This means consumers need two-way communications with their television provider, something satellite providers do not have.

Unlike Promptu, OneVideo's product, OneListener, uses a microphone installed on a set-top box, not a remote control, said Stephen Grody, managing director of OneVideo. No software is installed at the distribution hub either, making it possible for satellite or phone companies to offer the service, too. (Consumers, however, may need a new set-top box.)

With hundreds of channels and thousands of hours of video now available on most cable and satellite systems, providers are working with an array of program guide developers. But most require remote controls packed with buttons or menu screens that can create more detours than pathways to your favorite shows.

"There has been a tremendous increase in programming," said Frank Anthony, the chief executive of Navic Networks, which produces software for digital set-top boxes. "But the current tools are not sufficient for easy-to-find and easy-to-navigate searches."

Comcast has given Promptu to 50 employees to test at home. No company has committed to offering one to its customers, but several companies say they could sell or give away the voice-activated products to win and retain subscribers. Customers with poor eyesight or other disabilities may also be targeted.

Woidke said that most consumers would have to get used to using their vocal cords to change channels and select movies before they could start using their televisions to order bags of potato chips.

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