TOKYO - October 9, 2002 - InternetSpeech, a premier voice Internet technology provider based in San Jose, California, today announced the Japanese launch of Voice i-Mode using its netECHO® technology. netECHO is the only voice Internet solution to date that provides complete anywhere, anytime Internet access using any phone.
The Japanese version of netECHO was launched in February 2002 to give consumers and businesses access to Japanese and English web site contents, email access and on-line ordering of products just by picking up the phone. The new i-Mode service expands that to let users talk and listen to any i-Mode site; a popular service that is accessed by over 40 million i-mode phone users.

Developed and deployed in the U.S. in 2000, netECHO empowers users by enabling them to navigate the Internet and listen to information from any web site, using simple voice commands and any telephone. NetECHO patent pending technology provides content from any Web site in real-time, going beyond traditional voice portal features like news, weather, stock quotes and horoscopes. Customers can also search by key words and perform e-commerce transactions.

"InternetSpeech is devoted to offering true Internet access through a simple telephone interface," said Dr. Emdad Khan, founder, president and CEO of InternetSpeech. "Because of i-Mode's high popularity, we have voice enabled i-Mode sites to extend true Internet access to many more people in Japan. InternetSpeech also plans to voice enable other sites so that all available standards in Japan are unified allowing a j-Phone user to listen to i-Mode contents and vice versa, for example."

InternetSpeech's voice Internet service is ideal for a variety of market segments, including:

• Mobile business professionals who need access to data while out of the office;
• Senior citizens who have difficulty in using computers or viewing small screens or using a phone key pad;
• Those with disabilities, particularly the visually-impaired;
• People who don't own a computer, or who don't have one readily available; and
• WAP or other small screen-based phone users who want to hear real Internet content versus reading limited, pre-packaged online information on a tiny screen

NetECHO also supports business applications. The innovative technology instantly automates the voice-enabling process, making Web content accessible in real-time in an interactive audio format for customers who call from any phone. Depending on the site's content, customers can hear company news, as well as product and pricing information, check their order or account status, purchase products, obtain product support, and more, by using their own voice. Unlike other methods of voice-enabling (e.g. VoiceXML) that require extensive re-writing of Web content, voice-enabling with netECHO happens on the fly, without any re-coding, significantly saving costs and development time.

For additional information on InternetSpeech and netECHO, consumers, ISPs and businesses can call 03-5770-7041.

About InternetSpeech:
InternetSpeech develops and markets netECHO, the only software available that provides businesses and consumers complete anytime, anywhere voice-based telephone access to the Internet. The company's patent-pending technology can be bundled with other products, such as traditional computer-based Internet access or voice mail, and can be customized to meet individual business needs, such as employee access to Intranet sites. InternetSpeech also offers business software that automates the process of voice-enabling a company's Web site and applications in any language, furthering the development of a globally connected voice Internet. InternetSpeech, a privately held company headquartered in San Jose, Calif., launched netECHO in November 2000. For more information about InternetSpeech, visit www.InternetSpeech.com or www.internetspeech.com/jp, or call 03-5770-7041.

netECHO is a registered trademark of InternetSpeech.