Importance

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Abstract

Information that is latent in a caller's voice is processed for purposes of improving the handling of the call in any type of voice-interactive application. This implicit information in a caller's voice is not related to the actual words being said but rather to the characteristics of how those words are being said. This information, related to the caller's unique demographic profile, is used to decide how to respond to the caller for improved business performance. For example, by estimating the age and the gender of a caller based on his/her voice signal, a vendor associated with a calling center or Web site is able to make a sophisticated choice of what advertisement to present to the user or how to formulate a response to the caller. Similarly, this latent voice information can be used to determine which agent is likely best suited to handle a call with a caller with an estimated demographic, with the caller then being connected to that agent. Further, the caller may be provided with information that is best associated with a person having the estimated characteristics. This information may take the form of the presentation of an advertisement geared to be of interest to a person having those characteristics. The estimated characteristics can also be used to provide personalized service and add security to transactions.

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First Claim