Abstract: An acoustic echo removing apparatus detects space information representing a location of a sound source using a plurality of microphone input signals that are received through a plurality of microphones, and generates an acoustic echo estimation signal from a far-end talker voice signal using an adaptive filter coefficient. The acoustic echo removing apparatus detects a double talk segment using the space information, and determines update of the adaptive filter coefficient according to whether the double talk segment exists.

Abstract: A method, a system, and computer readable medium comprising instructions for monitoring caller experience are provided. The method comprises obtaining caller experience of at least one step in a call flow, selecting a plurality of steps from the at least one step to form a group, presenting caller experience of the plurality of steps in first level of the call flow, and presenting the group as a step in a second level of the call flow.

Abstract: A method, a system, and computer readable medium comprising instructions for monitoring caller experience in a call flow are provided. The method comprises collecting at least one selection by at least one caller in a call flow, generating performance analysis of a voice response system, combining the at least one selection and the performance analysis into a set of data, applying a monitoring formula to the set of data to form a result representing caller experience; and presenting the result to at least one service provider.

Abstract: Customer service calls to media service providers are addressed by remotely monitoring and diagnosing the customer's installed equipment. Such remote diagnosis decreases the need for assistance from customer service representatives and on-site repair technicians. In a method of operating a customer service routing system for a media service provider, subscriber equipment is first identified and then data specific to the subscriber equipment is collected. Relevant data can be maintained as an equipment health history in a database that is updated periodically by automatic monitoring. The database can be located within a remote server. Equipment data can be extracted automatically and relayed directly to the subscriber, thereby bypassing interaction with a customer service representative.

Abstract: Equalizer controller and controlling method are disclosed. In one embodiment, an equalizer controller includes an audio classifier for identifying the audio type of an audio signal in real time; and an adjusting unit for adjusting an equalizer in a continuous manner based on the confidence value of the audio type as identified.

Abstract: An automated system is disclosed for detecting situations in which identical segments of conversation appear within two different recordings. The system automatically detects where within each of two audio recordings an identical conversation segment begins and ends, thus enabling detection of conversations where multiple prison inmates participated in a conference call.

Abstract: Disclosed is a multi-mode communication notification system and method for improving communication between an inmate and a third party by enabling a third party to send a web-initiated contact request for a specific inmate and further allowing the inmate to check his/her contact requests or be automatically notified of contact requests. Additionally, the system electronically notifies the third party when the specific inmate has been notified of the contact request. Further, the system notifies the third party if they have missed a call from the specific inmate.

Abstract: A method is provided for safeguarding anonymity during a communication with a correspondent, between a caller and a user being called. The communication has an anonymous nature. The method includes the following steps: upon receiving a response from the correspondent to the communication sent by the caller, putting the caller on hold; analysis of the response received from the correspondent, for determining whether the correspondent corresponds to the voicemail of the user being called; and in the case of a positive determination, playing to the caller an anonymous welcome message in which the identity of the user being called is masked.

Abstract: Methods, systems, and apparatus for crosstalk avoidance in a telecommunications network are disclosed. In one aspect a method includes determining, by a network element and for each vectoring group from multiple vectoring groups, a transmission load of the vectoring group based on transmission loads of links within the vectoring group; allocating, by the network element, a different transmission interval to each vectoring group from the multiple vectoring groups based on the transmission load of the vectoring group and transmission loads of other vectoring groups in the multiple vectoring groups; and transmitting, during each different transmission interval, at least a portion of the transmission load of the vectoring group that was allocated the different transmission interval.

Abstract: A method and apparatus of processing a user call via an intelligent voice response (IVR) call processing application is disclosed. One example method may include receiving a call from a user device, obtaining user information from the received call, comparing the user information to at least one pre-stored user information stored in a user databank associated with a user account, and calculating a first confidence level by comparing the user information to the pre-stored user information. The method may also include authorizing the user device to receive an offer based on the first confidence level, and transmitting the offer to the user authorized by the first confidence level.

Abstract: A method is described for call treatment based on user association with one or more user groups. The method includes receiving a phone call from a call source that is directed to a call recipient, identifying a user group associated with the call recipient, and determining a number of received indications assigned to the user group. The received indications are assigned to the user group by users associated with the user group, and the received indications reflect a desire by the users for a special treatment of future calls from the call source. The method also includes distinguishing treatment of the phone call from the call source based on the number of received indications.

Abstract: A system and method for providing contact center services in a hybrid operations environment. A first controller in a first operations environment is configured to receive a first message for establishing a media session, and transmit a request for media service. A media controller in a second operations environment is configured to provide media to a target device during the media session in response to the request; receive during the media session a second message from the first controller; and control the media based on the second message from the first controller.

Abstract: Incident support routing is described. The Internet is utilized to distribute the received customer support calls among a plurality of customer support agents who may be remotely located and geographically distributed. Voice data to voice-over-IP (VOIP) data packet conversion and VOIP to voice conversion may be utilized to facilitate a customer support call between a customer's telephone and a customer support agent's computer system.

Abstract: Acoustic echo cancellation is improved by receiving a speaker signal that is used to produce audio in a room, and receiving audio signals that capture audio from an array of microphones in the room, including an acoustic echo from the speakers. To cancel the acoustic echo, one adaptive filter is associated with a corresponding subspace in the room. Each of the audio signals is assigned to at least one of the adaptive filters, and a set of coefficients is iteratively determined for each of the adaptive filters. The coefficients for an adaptive filter are determined by selecting each of the audio signals assigned to that adaptive filter and adapting the filter to remove an acoustic echo from each of the selected audio signals. At each iteration, a different audio signal is selected from the audio signals assigned to the adaptive filter in order to determine the set of coefficients.

Abstract: Systems and methods of handling customer contacts at a customer care system that streamline the handling of such customer contacts based on information about previous contacts received from the same customers. The system includes a repeat contact engine, which is connectable to at least one data/communications network. The repeat contact engine includes a controller, at least one database communicably connected to the controller, and a data extractor communicably connected between the data/communications network and the database. The controller includes a server, a rule processor communicably connected to the server, and a policy engine associated with the rule processor. Based on information about at least one previous contact, the system can derive a rule that, in response to its application, would cause a predetermined response, representative of the predicted purpose of an incoming contact, to be provided over a corresponding channel through the data/communications network.

Abstract: A user-friendly and interactively created multimedia electronic message, as well as a system and method for creating such messages, combines an audio component (e.g. a voice-over, music, etc.) with user-interaction events that act upon selected visual media that serve as a visual background to the message. The visual media can be images, sequences of images, video, files such as documents or simply a pre-established library of background templates. The user interaction events can be sketch animations, text animations, symbols, shapes, emoticons and image transformation (e.g. pan, zoom, rotation, etc.) events. The user-interaction events may be time-correlated with the audio component through a common clock that is initiated by, and runs throughout, the audio recordation process, or they may be added outside of the audio component time-line.

Abstract: A system and method for pairing agents and callers within a call center environment is provided. A call is received from a caller into a call center. A voice sample is received from the caller during the call and traits of the caller are identified from the voice sample. The traits of the caller are compared to traits of one or more candidate agents within the call center. A similarity is determined between the caller and each candidate agent based a number of the traits shared by the caller and that candidate agent. One of the candidate agents is selected based on the similarity and the caller is connected with the selected candidate agent.

Abstract: A method and system for presenting additional information about a user are provided. The user may be a calling party or a called party. A request for information in addition to the information normally contained in the caller ID may be constructed and sent to a repository of additional information that returns the additional information. If the user is a calling party, the additional information may be presented on the called party's communication device. If the user is a called party, the additional information may be presented on the calling party's communication device. A system including the repository may receive the request. An authoring and editing component of the system may allow the user or others to edit the additional information about the user. The system may select and send the additional information based on a set of parameters in the request and the access type of the requestor.

Abstract: Contact centers may incorporate automated agents to respond to inquiries. The inquiries may solicit a substantive response, for example, by providing a time when the inquiry asks for the departure time for a flight. Such responses omit the normal conversational subject matter used to embellish person-to-person conversations and appear are very machine-like. Herein, a source of user context, such as a social media website, customer database, or other data, is accessed. Certain aspects of the customer may then be identified and used to embellish the reply with additional and/or alternative content. As a result, the reply may be more conversational.

Abstract: Applying services to calls involving subscribers to a telephony services provider includes receiving an indication of a call placed to or from a first call participant. The indication is received by a telephony services provider over a first signaling path of the call that is established between the telephony services provider and a first telephony proxy server that is controlled by a telephony infrastructure provider. Control signals configured to affect a voice path of the call that is established between the first telephony proxy server and a second telephony proxy server also controlled by the telephony infrastructure provider but associated with a second call participant are identified. The identified control signals are sent to the first telephony proxy server over the first signaling path and to the second telephony proxy server over a second signaling path that is established between the telephony services provider and the second telephony proxy server.