Grimsby Telegraph Introduces Kate, The Virtual Newsreader

PRLog (Press Release) – Jun 12, 2008 – A virtual newsreader is the newest recruit to the web-site of the Grimsby Telegraph. Developed by Virtual Character consultants, Daden Limited, the talking avatar reports current news stories for newspaper's online edition.

Called “Kate”, the assistant is based on “chatbot” technology created by Daden Limited. Kate takes advantage of latest web-delivered text-to speech and animated avatar  technology to report on the most recent headlines and breaking news at Grimsby Telegraph's web site.

Grimsby Telegraph editor Michelle Lalor said: “We pride ourselves at being at the heart of the community and delivering news to you in innovative ways. Technology in the media industry has moved on in leaps and bounds, and now the internet is a major part of what we do.

“We have been running video reports every day now – and sometimes up to three or four videos a day – for more than a year, and breaking news 24-hours-a-day has been the norm for at least two years.

“We have done so much to it, we were left scratching our heads a little about what more we could do – and then the idea of the newsbot was born.

“They are a great example of how differently news can be reported – it’s all about novelty and fun. Of course, Kate is only virtual, but we wanted to give her a personality to make her what she effectively is – a new member of the reporting team. “We hope you like her as much as we do!”

Journalists at the Grimsby Telegraph upload Kate with the latest news through a simple web interface designed by Daden. This lets them preview the next news bulletin before putting it live – enabling them tocheck pronunciation and phrasing.

David Burden, Daden's Managing Director said “Grimsby Telegraph are proactive in their use of technology and were clear with what they wanted to achieve. As a virtual newsreader Kate provides another way for people to interact with their online edition”

The technology behind Kate could also be used to dynamically capture the news from RSS feeds, engage in dialogue about the news stories being read or even drive a 3D newsreader in a virtual world such as Second Life.