Press Releases

Angel.com's Unique On-Demand Offerings Based on Nuance Speech Technologies Address Needs of Broad Marketplace

MENLO PARK, Calif. & McLEAN, Va.- (BUSINESS WIRE) - Feb. 9, 2005 - Nuance (Nasdaq:NUAN), the voice automation expert, and Angel.com, a leading provider of web-based, advanced telephony solutions, today announced a strategic relationship to bring voice automation solutions to the small to mid-size business (SMB) market. This alliance addresses a critical problem faced by the SMB marketplace - how to provide superior customer service with minimal costs. Angel.com's offering enables companies to quickly deploy low-risk voice automation solutions that deliver many of the same benefits provided by large custom voice applications, at a much lower cost. Angel.com's web-based tools and pay-per-use pricing model, combined with Nuance's industry-leading voice technologies and platform, will make these solutions accessible to businesses of all sizes.

More than 1,400 small business customers, such as real estate agents, restaurant owners, doctors and retail shops, currently turn to Angel.com for voice automation solutions. Requiring no hardware or software purchases, Angel.com's on-demand service allows businesses to create interactive speech applications - called "Voice Sites" - via a web browser and intuitive self-service tools. Within minutes, end users with no prior speech or telephony experience can automate mission-critical business processes such as customer support, marketing campaigns and front desk services ("virtual receptionists"). Angel.com is also used for specialty applications such as grass roots campaigns, real estate audio tours and event information hotlines. Instantly connected to standard toll-free or local phone numbers, all Angel.com Voice Sites are billed on a per-minute basis.

"We're excited by all of the possibilities our relationship with Nuance brings to the table," said Michael Zirngibl, president and CEO, Angel.com. "Together, we will be able to arm the SMB market with the most advanced capabilities voice automation has to offer. Additionally, we are looking forward to working with Nuance as we develop new Angel.com offerings, and provide stronger features in existing solutions."

As part of the alliance, Angel.com's on-demand, self-service speech solutions will be made available on the Nuance Voice Platform(TM). The Nuance Voice Platform, recently named the leading speech self-service platform by Forrester Research, supports VoiceXML 2.0 - the open, industry standard for voice applications and services. Angel.com's solutions will also leverage Nuance's award winning text-to-speech engine, Nuance Vocalizer(TM). Nuance Vocalizer converts text in a database into spoken words, allowing companies to automate the delivery of dynamic information over the phone.

"The ease of use of Angel.com's turn-key speech solutions, combined with the power and scalability of Nuance Voice Platform, will provide an unprecedented level of support for the growing SMB market," said Chuck Berger, president and CEO, Nuance. "Now, these smaller companies will be able to reap the rewards that large enterprises have been able to gain via voice automation."

About Nuance
In an era where a focus on the customer is essential to business success, Nuance provides leading companies with voice-automation solutions that enable both an outstanding customer experience and corporate cost efficiency. Nuance is a leader in the voice automation market, providing software and solutions to more than 1,000 companies worldwide. Clients include Avon, British Airways, Nomura Securities, OnStar, Sprint PCS, United Parcel Service, Vodafone and Wells Fargo. Nuance (Nasdaq:NUAN) is headquartered in Menlo Park, Calif., and has offices around the world. For more information, visit www.nuance.com or call 1-888-NUANCE-8.

About Angel.com
Angel.com is a leading provider of on-demand Interactive Voice Response (IVR) solutions, which enable organizations of all sizes to quickly deploy powerful telephony applications. More than 1,400 customers turn to Angel.com's patented Voice Site technology to power customer service and marketing phone numbers using intelligent speech recognition that can automate most phone-based interactions. With an innovative Internet-based solution that requires no investment in hardware, software, or human resources, Angel.com balances the need for high quality communications with affordable pay-as-you-go pricing.

About MicroStrategy
Founded in 1989, MicroStrategy is a global leader in business intelligence (BI) technology. MicroStrategy provides integrated reporting, analysis, and monitoring software that helps the world's leading organizations make better business decisions every day. Companies use MicroStrategy to transform vast amounts of data into actionable information that enhances their performance, productivity and competitive edge. MicroStrategy's customers include the top twelve FORTUNE 500 global telecommunications companies, the top eight global pharmaceutical companies, and nearly two-thirds of the top 50 global retailers. MicroStrategy has relationships with systems integrators and technology partners, including IBM, HP, PeopleSoft, Sun, and Teradata. More information about MicroStrategy (NASDAQ: MSTR) is available at www.microstrategy.com