“Striking a Healthy Balance”: Speech Technology in the Mobile Ecosystem

Abstract

Mobile speech technology has experienced an explosion of ­adoption across a variety of markets – from handsets and automobiles to a variety of ­consumer electronic devices and even the mobile enterprise. However, we are just scratching the service on the benefits that speech can provide not only consumers, but also carriers and manufacturers. This chapter takes a closer look at the advent of speech technology in the mobile ecosystem – where it is been, where we are today, and where we are headed – keeping in mind the delicate balancing of a variety of ­multimodal capabilities so as to optimally fit the user’s needs at any given time. There is no doubt that speech technologies will ­continue to evolve and provide a richer user experience, enabling consumers to leverage­ the input and output ­methods that are best suited for them moment to moment. However, the key to success of these technologies will be thoughtful integration of these core technologies into mobile device platforms and operating systems, to enable creative and consistent use of these technologies within mobile applications. For this reason, we approach speech capabilities on mobile devices not as a single entity but rather as part of an entire mobile ecosystem that must strive to maintain homeostasis.