Breakthrough Communications Technology Receives Disability Rights Advocates’ highest honor

From: Interpretype - Nov 20, 2006

For Immediate Release:
November 17, 2006

For Information Contact:
Darlene Fox, Interpretype ITYâ„¢
585-272-1155
info@Interpretype.com

Aaron Baker, Dixon Schwabl Advertising
585-383-0380 ext 223
Aaron_baker@dixonschwabl.com

BERKELEY, CA. – Interpretype® LLC, headquartered in Rochester, N.Y., has received the Disability Rights Advocates’ Eagle Award for 2006. The company was honored for its Interpretype® ITY™ technology which was developed as a tool for businesses and organizations to enable their staff to effectively communicate with customers and employees who are Deaf, hard of hearing, and speech-disabled. This distinguished award honors just four recipients each year.

Interpretype® ITY™ technology provides businesses and organizations with a means for staff, without any special training or skills, to communicate with Deaf, hard of hearing, or speech-disabled customers. Using a simple screen and keyboard, the technology enables immediate communication and understanding at retail shopping outlets, airports, government agencies, courtrooms, and educational institutions. ITY™ utilizes a full-size keyboard that makes communication easy, fast, and accurate. A low-profile screen enables users to maintain eye contact for personal interaction.

Each year, Disability Rights Advocates honors four corporations, individuals, or organizations with Eagle Awards for their efforts to advance the rights of individuals with disabilities. Interpretype® ITY™ was selected for its unique capability to enable face-to-face transactions in business settings between those who can speak and those who cannot. Past recipients include Mitsubishi Electric, Marriott International, Microsoft Corp., ABC Extreme Makeover: Home Edition, Dateline NBC, and Sun Microsystems.

“We are honored to receive this distinguished award from Disability Rights Advocates and to stand as a recipient among some of the world’s most respected leadership corporations,” said Ken Gan, founder and president of Interpretype®. “As a business owner I discovered that there was a real need to ensure that businesses deliver the best possible service to every customer regardless of disability or language barrier.”

Gan continues, “ITY™ provides the clarity in communicating and understanding that leads to delivering quality services to Deaf, hard of hearing, speech-disabled, and even Spanish-speaking customers. We are thrilled to offer a product that has made such a material difference.”

Gan initially developed Interpretype® ITY™ as a customer service tool to use in his auto repair shop to better communicate with Deaf and hard of hearing customers. After witnessing the success of this new device in his own business and after receiving such enthusiastic feedback from his customers, Gan began to market the product in and around Rochester. Since its inception in 2002, Interpretype® ITY™ has rapidly become a significant communication tool for organizations that want to maximize their human value within the organization, as well as provide extraordinary service through the use of this technology. Interpretype® ITY™ is currently being sold throughout the United States and Europe.

About Interpretype®, LLC
Interpretype®, LLC, is an innovator in the manufacture of communications technology that allows instant face-to-face communication anywhere and anytime without the use of speech. The company offers a broad portfolio of products, including English/Spanish real time translation technology that can be integrated into a variety of different circumstances, which allows for effective communication between individuals or groups of people. For more information, please visit the website at www.interpretype.com.

About Disability Rights Advocates
Disability Rights Advocates’ mission is to ensure dignity, equality, and opportunity for people with all types of disabilities throughout the United States and worldwide. Through negotiation and litigation, Disability Rights Advocates has made thousands of facilities throughout the country accessible and has enforced access rights for millions of people with disabilities in many key areas of life, including education, employment, transportation and health care. Disability Rights Advocates also engages in non-litigation advocacy throughout the country, including research and education projects focused on opening up access to schools, the professions and health care. For more information, visit www.dralegal.org.

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