Gates Unveils Upgrades Of Mobile OS, Speech Server

Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates on Wednesday unveiled the latest version of the company's operating system for mobile devices, and an upgrade of its speech software.

Gates announced the Windows Mobile 2003 Second Edition software and Speech Server 2004 during a keynote to developers attending the combined Microsoft Mobile Developer Conference, VSLive! Show, and SpeechTek Spring conference, in San Francisco.

The speech came the same day the European Union slapped the software giant with a record $613 million fine for violating antitrust laws. Gates did not mention the action during the keynote.

The second edition of the mobile platform adds features that include support for square-screen resolution and dynamic screen-switching between landscape and portrait modes. In addition, the OS supports video graphics array (VGA) and quarter video graphics array for high-resolution displays.

Gates showcased Motorola's new MPx advanced cellular phone featuring the latest upgrade of Mobile 2003.Speech Server 2004 enables companies to unify Web and telephony infrastructures and to speech-enable existing or new applications built with Microsoft's development tool suite, Visual Studio .Net. These applications can be used for Windows Mobile-based Pocket PCs and advanced cellular phones, often called "smartphones."