« FreedomBox Featured in AFB AccessWorld | Main | De Witt & Associates Assistive Technology Update »
May 31, 2006
Mobile Speak Pocket and Mobile Magnifier
Humanware and Code Factory announce distribution agreement for Mobile Speak Pocket and Mobile Magnifier.
The HumanWare Group of Christchurch New Zealand, and Code Factory of Barcelona Spain, today announced that they have entered into a partnership to bring access to Pocket PC and PDA Phone devices to blind people in HumanWare's largest markets.
The agreement means that HumanWare has become the exclusive master distributor for Mobile Speak Pocket, and the soon to be released Mobile Magnifier, in the USA, Australia and New Zealand. HumanWare can also offer these products to customers in the UK and Canada.
"We're delighted to be able to offer this exciting product to customers", says Jonathan Mosen, who will be Product Marketing Manager for Mobile Speak Pocket at HumanWare.
"HumanWare aims to offer a variety of quality blindness products to meet the needs of our customers, ranging from products that provide a completely blindness-specific experience through to solutions that empower people to make the most of off-the-shelf technology. With Mobile Speak Pocket and Mobile magnifier, we have the best product in
the industry to meet the needs of those who wish to purchase off-the-shelf PDAs and run Pocket PC applications such as Pocket Word, Pocket Outlook, Pocket Excel, Pocket messenger, the Audible Player, Pocket Skype and more. We'll be bundling Mobile Speak Pocket with a range of hardware, including some exciting new Braille technology to be announced shortly."
Jonathan Mosen says today's announcement is particularly significant for customers of cellular networks using the CDMA standard.
"Blind people have had good access to some GSM-based hardware for some time, but those who wish to use networks like Sprint, Telecom New Zealand and Verizon did not have a truly accessible option until the arrival of Mobile Speak Pocket. Now, blind people have as much choice in terms of their cellular provider as do the sighted."
Jonathan Mosen emphasised that Mobile Speak Pocket is an addition to the existing products offered by HumanWare, and that all current HumanWare products remain under very active development.
Code Factory's Chief marketing officer, Irja Emma Gerdes, says Code Factory welcomes the chance to work closely with HumanWare.
"Both Code Factory and HumanWare have a reputation for innovative user interface and strong product support. With HumanWare's extensive reach in its major markets, Mobile Speak Pocket will be even easier to obtain with quality local support."
About Code Factory
Code Factory was founded in 1998 and is situated in Terrassa, Barcelona. Code Factory's success lies in giving excellent customer support and to respond immediately to the needs of the end users. Among our customers are well-known companies and organizations like ONCE and carriers like TMN, Vodafone, Redcom, SFR and many more. Good partners
help us to provide excellent text-to-speech technology for our products and to incorporate Braille devices into our software. For more information, visit www.codefactory.es or call +34 93 733 70 66. Code Factory has also launched a website for the Mobile Speak Pocket user community, which can be accessed at www.mspusers.com
About HumanWare
HumanWare designs and manufactures innovative technology for people who are blind, deaf-blind, visually impaired and learning disabled. Formed in 1988, HumanWare exports approximately 98% of its products worldwide to more than 30 countries. Sales offices have been established in the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Sweden, The Netherlands, Australia and New Zealand and the company supports a strong distribution network throughout North America, Europe, Asia and the Middle East.
Posted by Marten at May 31, 2006 12:48 PM