Abstract: A system for selecting advertisements for a web page. An advertisement request is received and the web page content is evaluated to identify a first advertisement query based on the content of the web page and a second advertisement query based on the content of the web page or a behavioral feature. A first set of advertisements is retrieved based on the first advertisement query and a second set of advertisements is retrieved based on the second advertisement query. The first set of advertisements is blended with the second set of advertisements to form a blended advertisement set. The blended advertisement set is provided for display with the web page.

Abstract: A method of determining which of a plurality of ad slates to present on a web page uses an expected utility function, wherein the expected utility function takes into account known and unknown variables and utility functions associated with each combination of unknown variables, to calculate an expected utility for each slate, and presents the slate with the highest expected utility.

Abstract: Advertisements are selected for display on search results pages or web pages displaying requested content. A request associated with a user is received for an advertisement, such as for display on a search results page or a content-displaying web page. Profile information associated with the user is identified. An inverted index is queried based on the identified profile information. The inverted index includes a list of user attributes and a list of at least one advertisement and corresponding weight factor that correspond to each listed user attribute. A plurality of advertisements is determined in the inverted index based on the query. The determined advertisements are filtered to generate an advertisement presentation configuration that includes at least one of the identified advertisements.

Abstract: A system and method are disclosed for rewriting queries. The queries may be rewritten into a bid phrase for identifying search results and/or advertisements. The bid phrase may be a keyword that is purchased for sponsored searching. A mapping between potential queries and bid phrases may be generated. The mapping may be referenced upon receiving a search query for identifying a query rewrite with a bid phrase for that search query. The mapping may be generated in preprocessing.

Abstract: Method and apparatus for multi-pass speech recognition. An input device receives spoken input. A processor performs a first pass speech recognition technique on the spoken input and forms first pass results. The first pass results include a number of alternative speech expressions, each having an assigned score related to the certainty that the corresponding expression correctly matches the spoken input. The processor selectively performs a second pass speech recognition technique on the spoken input according to the first pass results. Preferably, the second pass attempts to correctly match the spoken input to only those expressions which were identified during the first pass. Otherwise, if one of the expressions identified by the first pass is assigned a score higher than a predetermined threshold (e.g., 95%), the second pass is not performed.

Abstract: Method and apparatus for multi-pass speech recognition. An input device receives spoken input. A processor performs a first pass speech recognition technique on the spoken input and forms first pass results. The first pass results include a number of alternative speech expressions, each having an assigned score related to the certainty that the corresponding expression correctly matches the spoken input. The processor selectively performs a second pass speech recognition technique on the spoken input according to the first pass results. Preferably, the second pass attempts to correctly match the spoken input to only those expressions which were identified during the first pass. Otherwise, if one of the expressions identified by the first pass is assigned a score higher than a predetermined threshold (e.g., 95%), the second pass is not performed.

Abstract: A computerized method is provided for electronically directing a call to a class, such that an utterance spoken by a speaker and received by a call-routing system is classified by the call-routing system as being associated with the class, such that the call-routing system includes a speech-recognition module, a feature-extraction module, and a classification module. The method includes extracting features from recognized speech; weighting elements of a feature vector with respective speech-recognition scores, wherein each weighting element is associated with one of the features; ranking classes to which the features are associated; and electronically directing the call to a highest-ranking class.

Abstract: A method and system for barge-in acknowledgement are disclosed. A prompt is attenuated upon detection of speech. The speech is accepted and the prompt is terminated if the speech corresponds to an allowable response.

Abstract: Method and apparatus for multi-pass speech recognition. An input device receives spoken input. A processor performs a first pass speech recognition technique on the spoken input and forms first pass results. The first pass results include a number of alternative speech expressions, each having an assigned score related to the certainty that the corresponding expression correctly matches the spoken input. The processor selectively performs a second pass speech recognition technique on the spoken input according to the first pass results. Preferably, the second pass attempts to correctly match the spoken input to only those expressions which were identified during the first pass. Otherwise, if one of the expressions identified by the first pass is assigned a score higher than a predetermined threshold (e.g., 95%), the second pass is not performed.

Abstract: Method and apparatus for multi-pass speech recognition. An input device receives spoken input. A processor performs a first pass speech recognition technique on the spoken input and forms first pass results. The first pass results include a number of alternative speech expressions, each having an assigned score related to the certainty that the corresponding expression correctly matches the spoken input. The processor selectively performs a second pass speech recognition technique on the spoken input according to the first pass results. Preferably, the second pass attempts to correctly match the spoken input to only those expressions which were identified during the first pass. Otherwise, if one of the expressions identified by the first pass is assigned a score higher than a predetermined threshold (e.g., 95%), the second pass is not performed.

Abstract: Method and apparatus for multi-pass speech recognition. An input device receives spoken input. A processor performs a first pass speech recognition technique on the spoken input and forms first pass results. The first pass results include a number of alternative speech expressions, each having an assigned score related to the certainty that the corresponding expression correctly matches the spoken input. The processor selectively performs a second pass speech recognition technique on the spoken input according to the first pass results. Preferably, the second pass attempts to correctly match the spoken input to only those expressions which were identified during the first pass. Otherwise, if one of the expressions identified by the first pass is assigned a score higher than a predetermined threshold (e.g., 95%), the second pass is not performed.

Abstract: A voice processing and verification system accounts for variations dependent upon telephony equipment differences. Models are developed for the various types of telephony equipment from many users speaking on each of the types of equipment. A transformation algorithm is determined for making a transformation between each of the various types of equipment to each of the others. In other words, a model is formed for carbon button telephony equipment from many users. Similarly, a model is formed for electret telephony equipment from many users, and for cellular telephony equipment from many users. During an enrollment, a user speaks to the system. The system forms and stores a model of the user's speech. The type of telephony equipment used in the original enrollment session is also detected and stored along with the enrollment voice model. The system determines the types of telephony equipment being used based upon the spectrum of sound it receives.