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When it comes to speech application standards, it seems we've been asking all the wrong questions.
The VXML versus SALT debate is currently a hot topic in the IT conference rooms of organizations that rely on efficient, cost-effective contact centers. Phrases like "intense competition" and "battle royale" are bouncing around the trade press. Rival consortiums are at work writing specs and generating headlines, and some of the biggest names in technology have entered the VXML versus SALT fray.
So, which speech standard will win, VXML or SALT? A good question, but possibly a wrong question.
Given the real reasons organizations deploy speech-enabled technologies and the fundamental nature of technology standards themselves, our focus should be more on the application than on the application standard.
Ask yourself this: how often does someone using an accounting program or other application know or care whether that software was written in C or in Java-based code? When was the last time a customer hung up the phone and said, "Hey, that was the best VoiceXML application I have ever heard"?
The fact is, it's easy enough to get caught up in the debate over which standard is superior and which will dominate. Standards matter. But what matters most to the end user, and therefore what should matter most to contact centers and their system suppliers, is the quality and performance of the application itself.
With the end user in mind, now may be the time to ask some different and more relevant questions about VXML and SALT. The answers may surprise you.
The Future Of Speech
One thing is certain: speech recognition is the future of voice automation and a very important part of a customer or employee self-service strategy. In fact, some industry analyst firms indicate that over 80 percent of all customer interaction is still done with a telephone call.
Interactive voice response (IVR) is now a foundation technology of the customer service marketplace and is common in the contact centers of companies in financial services, insurance, telecommunications and a wide range of other industries.
As customer-oriented organizations seek to drive both service performance and cost efficiencies, the next major wave of investment is the incorporation of speech-based IVR solutions. The entire concept of IVR systems is...