AgileTV, a start-up based in Menlo Park, California, raised $22 million in venture funding for voice navigation services for the cable television industry. Agile TV’s core product, Promptu, uses a voice activated remote control and server-centric voice recognition technology that allows cable television viewers to search for favorite programs by genre or find a specific show simply by saying the program name, network name, favorite actor or sports team regardless of whether it’s on broadcast, On Demand or DVR. The system uses a dynamically managed database of more than 100,000 phrases. The company claims higher than 90% voice recognition accuracy.
“As cable television continues to add new programming choices and advanced services such as On Demand and DVR functionality, viewers increasingly need a simple way to navigate through hundreds of channels and programs,” said Michael Willner, CEO of Insight Communications, the nation’s ninth largest cable operator.
The funding was led by Valence Capital Management and included Insight Communications and private investors including Lauder Partners.
http://www.agile.tv
