BT Conferencing and Dolby Make Conference Calls Sound and Feel Like In-Person Meetings

Technology trial expected to increase collaboration, reduce travel costs, and improve the effectiveness of meetings for in-person and remote participants

LONDON & SAN FRANCISCO - Tuesday, September 25th 2012 [ME NewsWire]

(BUSINESS WIRE)-- BT Conferencing, one of the world’s leading providers of audio and video conferencing solutions, is joining forces with Dolby Laboratories Inc. (NYSE:DLB), pioneers in the science of sight and sound, on a technology trial designed to make audio conference calls more effective by making them sound and feel like in-person meetings.

The trial promises to improve business communication by combining Dolby expertise in core signal processing and human psychoacoustic perception with BT’s world-class capabilities in the field of unified communications.

BT’s conferencing services with Dolby® Voice™ technology will leapfrog several existing conferencing solutions by creating a spatial audio scene that allows participants to engage in dynamic, flowing conversations. This approach creates the impression that sounds are coming from unique points in space (as they would in real life), so call participants can easily identify who is speaking and what they are saying.

The core BT MeetMe conferencing service was initially supported by traditional time-division multiplexing (TDM) based audio conferencing bridge equipment. This has been upgraded to a platform based on voice over Internet protocol (VoIP) and is a key part of BT’s audio and video conferencing solutions. It is also fully integrated into the BT One portfolio of unified communications solutions, which BT Global Services delivers to global corporations and government organizations.

Dave Hobday, Managing Director, BT Enterprises, said: “BT has been a long-time innovator in offering productive conferencing services to our global business customers. We are looking forward to this trial. Our objective is for all conference-call attendees to become productive participants, engaging more naturally in conversation and generating better outcomes from meetings. We hope the trial of Dolby Voice can provide a unique and improved experience for conference-call users, which will lead to us deploying it as part of the BT MeetMe service for conferencing customers in due course.”

Andrew Border, Senior Director, Voice Business Group, Dolby Laboratories, said: “Audio conferencing promised a reduction in the need for face-to-face meetings, but when the stakes are high, people meet in person to capture important details and express themselves clearly. With Dolby Voice, there’s no longer any need to travel just to hold an effective business meeting.”

About BT

BT is one of the world’s leading providers of communications services and solutions, serving customers in more than 170 countries. Its principal activities include the provision of networked IT services globally; local, national and international telecommunications services to its customers for use at home, at work and on the move; broadband and internet products and services and converged fixed/mobile products and services. BT consists principally of four lines of business: BT Global Services, BT Retail, BT Wholesale and Openreach.

In the year ended 31 March 2012, BT Group’s revenue was £18,897m with profit before taxation of £2,445m.

British Telecommunications plc (BT) is a wholly-owned subsidiary of BT Group plc and encompasses virtually all businesses and assets of the BT Group. BT Group plc is listed on stock exchanges in London and New York.

For more information, visit www.btplc.com.

About Dolby Laboratories

Dolby Laboratories (NYSE:DLB) advances the science of sight and sound to create more immersive, engaging experiences. Founded in 1965, Dolby is best known for high-quality audio and surround sound in environments from the cinema to the living room, from mobile devices to the boardroom. For more information about Dolby Laboratories or Dolby technologies, visit www.dolby.com.

Dolby and the double-D symbol are registered trademarks of Dolby Laboratories. Dolby Voice is a trademark of Dolby Laboratories. S12/26074 DLB-G

Contacts

Dolby Laboratories

Sean Durkin, 415-645-5176

sean.durkin@dolby.com