Brainshark Picks up the Phone

Brainshark (www.brainshark.com) announced the availability of version 5.0 of its web-based rich media communications service. The updated version allows users to listen to Brainshark presentations via the telephone.

The company said listening over the phone is valuable when viewing confidential materials, like financial information or proprietary knowledge. It also makes it easier for users that don't have multimedia-enabled PCs.

Brainshark customers can also use the phone to record a presenter's voice. The audio is then streamed using Windows Media or RealPlayer while the synchronized presentation is displayed in the viewer's browser.

"Brainshark provides an immediate and consistent solution to our ongoing challenge of sharing information with colleagues around the globe," said Ali Erfan, Global Technology Marketing manager of 3i Group PLC, a venture capital firm with offices in 40 locations worldwide. "Since we are able to publish and access communications materials on demand, it makes tackling multiple time zones very easy. In addition, we're now able to implement Brainshark without the challenge of having to think about the hardware that every individual has on his or her desktop."

"Our customers are reaping the benefits of more effective communications, and are rapidly adopting rich-media communications as part of their daily business processes," said Mark Yacovone, co-founder and vice president of product management with Brainshark.

An alliance with Informio, a voice solution company, provided the technology for the telephone playback feature.