Tech News: Jott, Voice To Text Service, Ending As Of May 3rd 2011

Just got this email from the Jott folks that's a sad piece of tech news:

Dear Jotters,


We are writing to remind you that the Jott service will be ending on May 3rd, 2011. Please be assured that we'll continue to work to help you through this transition. We truly appreciate your business and enthusiastic support over the years, and apologize for any inconvenience this may cause. Learn more about why we're ending the service

That's too bad. Unfortunately, I never used Jott much, but when I did, it was a kick to see my voice get translated to text, then come out on Twitter. But for some reason Jott wasn't compelling to use. It may be that it took an extra step or two to use with Twitter on the smartphone. But, for whatever reason, this blogger stopped using it after a one-month go at it, two years ago.  

So, today I click on the link, and learn...

In 2006 Jott emerged as a leader in mobile voice-to-text applications. Now, nearly two years after Jott’s acquisition and a successful integration into Nuance, we will officially end the Jott service. This may seem counter-intuitive – success leading to a shutdown. But while it is an ending of sorts, the reality is that the technology, service, talent and imagination of Jott will continue on as part of a far broader set of services. The Jott team, vision and technologies are an integral part of a global business which includes partners such as AT&T, Rogers, Bell Canada, Vodafone, Cisco, Vonage, and many others.


The dramatic expansion of Nuance’s voice-to-text services is clear evidence that consumers will respond to innovations that carriers offer, and with that in mind, we will focus our voice-to-text service investments on carrier and enterprise distribution, and no longer on Jott.com.


What to expect
After May 3rd, 2011 you’ll no longer be able to access any of the Jott services – Jott Assistant, Jott Voicemail, or Jott for Salesforce. Until then, Jott will continue to run as you’ve come to expect. You will not be charged for this last month – we’re making it free to all of our current subscribing customers, starting today, April 4th, 2011. Those of you who have paid in advance for annual or pay-as-you-go plans should expect to see a refund by June 2nd, 2011 for any unused portion of your plan as of April 4th, 2011.

For more information, visit the Jott blog here.  But what's Nuance?

It's essentially just like Jott, but more focused on communications solutions for corporate clients, and in different business areas. Indeed, the Nuance website is confusing, because it's hard to tell if it's offering a product app or is a consulting firm.

It will be interesting to see what Jott does with Nuance.  I have one idea of what they should do, but I think I'll keep this one for myself.  

Stay tuned.