RealNetworks is adding video to its interactive voice-response feature, letting mobile operators incorporate a video interface for finding information, content and entertainment.
The company announced the new service on Wednesday at the CTIA Wireless tradeshow in San Francisco. The service, which mobile operators will subscribe to and offer to their subscribers, will be available to customers already subscribing to an operator's video-telephony service.
Video telephony is a service that's been envisioned almost since the phone was invented. It allows operators to add video to real-time conversations between two people, using the voice part of the mobile network. Until 3G came along, video telephony would have been impossible, because it uses so much bandwidth. However, with higher-capacity 3G networks, mobile operators can offer video services. And RealNetworks' service offers a new twist on the traditional idea of video chat.
The RealNetworks service will work as follows. Operators will deploy the service in their network, and subscribers with video-calling plans and video-telephony-capable phones will simply dial a phone number, or say "information", for example, if the service is voice-activated. They'll then be presented with a menu of visual options, such as movie trailers and times, traffic, music and shopping.
Because the interaction takes place via a video-call session, operators can add a video-calling plan as an extension of a voice plan, adding another potential revenue stream for operators.
"Everyone knows how to make a phone call," Vern Poyner, senior vice president at RealNetworks, said in a statement. "By offering this new feature, via video telephony, we believe it will help operators see a return on the significant investments they've made in deploying 3G networks."
