ATX Forecasts Arrival of Customized In-Vehicle Voice Applications in 2003

    White Paper to Auto Industry Focuses on Integration of Telematics and
                         Interactive Voice Technology

    DALLAS, Feb. 24 -- Delivering interactive voice recognition
applications customized for specific automotive brands and perhaps even model
lines within a brand will become a key component of new telematics programs
delivered by ATX beginning in 2003.  ATX, the world's leading independent
telematics service provider, identified the increased emphasis on
customization and personalization of in-vehicle, interactive voice technology
in an exclusive white paper report to the automotive industry authored by Dr.
Thomas Schalk, ATX's voice technology principal.
    In his report, "Immediate Telematics Benchmarks for Interactive Voice
Technology," Dr. Schalk identifies several benchmarks the telematics industry
needs to deliver immediately and in the near future to automakers' telematics
programs.  He also identifies the primary technical hurdles the industry needs
to solve in the next couple years to ensure motorists' acceptance of the
technology and voice-delivered telematics services.
    Dr. Schalk is recognized as one of America's top experts in interactive
voice recognition technology, a critical enabler of distraction-free
telematics services to consumers in their vehicles.
    The report emphasizes the importance of a consistent, intuitive and
seemingly seamless interface between the system and the driver whether the
system is used by the driver to control the in-vehicle environment or to
receive driving directions using in-vehicle location-based technology.
According to Dr. Schalk, voice-delivered telematics must focus on ensuring the
technology recognizes the skill level of the motorist interacting with the
system, filters out repetitive prompts characteristic of many early versions
of the technology and becomes more anticipative of drivers' needs.  He
emphasizes these goals are not complex and can be achieved in "adaptive"
steps.
    Some key, immediate hurdles Dr. Schalk identifies for telematics-based
speech technology include ensuring voice applications are acoustically modeled
for the specific vehicle as well as being able to discern commands among
multiple voices and conversations within a vehicle.  Long-term challenges
include integrating voice technology associated with embedded in-vehicle and
off-board systems.
    "ATX achieves 95 percent voice recognition accuracy through analysis of
audio recordings of real user experiences," noted Dr. Schalk.  "Once an
application is deployed, usability studies are employed to improve the
performance of the application, making it easier to use and more reliable.
The hands-free automotive environment is a challenging environment and the
voice recognition technology needs to be optimized as much as possible.  The
ultimate goal is to provide interactive voice recognition applications that
approach human-to-human interaction."
    Improving user experience is an ongoing focus at ATX.  ATX's voice
recognition technology is custom-built, tying several proprietary applications
to IBM's Via Voice platform.  ATX's interactive voice recognition technology
is primarily used today to deliver first-generation routing assistance and
real-time, location-based traffic reports to telematics-equipped vehicles.  In
2003, the technology will be expanded to activate and control several other
telematics applications currently being tested.
    "Taking interactive voice technology to the next level of performance and
extending it to new applications will be one of our company's key strategic
objectives for 2003," said Steve Millstein, ATX president and chief executive
officer.
    Telematics is an emerging industry that provides a variety of data and
voice services to motorists based upon their vehicles' location.  The
technology integrates in-vehicle electronic sensors, wireless communications,
off-board computer processing and GPS satellite-based location technology.
Today, it is primarily used to provide motorists with a suite of emergency and
navigational services that take into account the vehicle's actual location.
Telematics also will increasingly provide motorists with more real-time
information on how well the vehicle is operating including an early warning
detection and/or troubleshooting system for problems under the hood.
    With ATX's unique vRM (vehicle Relationship Management) program,
telematics also is tailored to help automakers and their affiliated
dealerships with better real-time data from the vehicles, enabling them to
provide better service for their customers and better management of the
"rolling stock" that's been sold or leased and is now in the market.
    About ATX:  ATX is headquartered in Dallas-Fort Worth.  ATX provides
leading-edge telematics services for mobile applications including automatic
collision notification, location-based emergency response and roadside
assistance, stolen vehicle recovery, navigation and other location-based
information services.  The company pioneered in-vehicle and automotive
aftermarket applications of telematics beginning in 1995 and in 2002
introduced vRM (vehicle relationship management), which tailors telematics to
help automakers and their affiliated dealerships reduce costs, increase
customer retention and loyalty, and generate revenue.  ATX customers include
Mercedes-Benz, BMW, and Jaguar.  For more information, visit
http://www.atxtechnologies.com .