Newspaper vocalisation & services: Riksdag & Departement chooses Acapela Group

Swedish news journal Riksdag & Departement chooses TTS-solution from Acapela Group.

When the news journal Riksdag & Departement (Swedish Parliament’s newspaper) was looking for a simpler, quicker and more economic solution to record and distribute its audio version, initially intended for visually impaired people, they chose a Text-to-Speech (TTS) solution from Acapela Group.

Riksdag & Departement (R&D), 'Sweden’s newspaper on political developments today', is issued 38 times a year and has a circulation of 10800. The first audio version, a 60 minute synthesis of the journal’s contents recorded by a human voice/in a studio, was distributed by mail on CD.

When looking for a more efficient and modern method, R&D considered the Internet combined with speech synthesis as a possible solution. Of all the bids received, the one from Acapela was judged to be the most comprehensive and relevant to R&D’s requirements. The excellent quality of Acapela’s TTS and the quick and flexible production process were determining factors. Instead of just getting a synopsis of the magazine, subscribers that prefer listening to reading can now access the full contents of every issue.

'We decided to switch to a new, modern method of distributing the audio version of our news which is more cost efficient than previous methods and is of very good quality', says Nils Funcke, editor in chief of R&D.

The printed version of the journal is distributed on a Monday and the audio version must be available by the following Wednesday at the latest.
The editorial staff send a pdf file of the contents to Acapela on the Friday before distribution of the printed version. Acapela then creates the audio version employing its TTS technology, using either the Elin or the Erik Swedish voices, and delivers the journal within two working days.  Subscribers will be able to download R&D either in DAISY or in MP3-format, from www.rod.se or via a link sent out by email. For those who prefer, the journal can still also be sent out on a CD. Readers, or listeners, will now be able to download an MP3-file of the journal and listen to it on their cell phone or MP3-player.

'We are very pleased to work with R&D on this project. Thanks to the highly improved quality of speech synthesis over the last couple of years and new techniques for producing audio newspapers, more and more people will get the opportunity to listen to their favourite newspaper or magazine whilst out driving or walking for example. Everyone can now benefit from this development, not only visually impaired people', says Lars-Erik Larsson, CEO of Acapela Group.

About Riksdag & Departement:
With its 38 issues per year, the Riksdag & Departement (Parliament & Ministry) news journal covers all stages in the government’s decision making process, from receiving and debating an initial proposal through to the final decision.
It provides information on all directives for official enquiries/reports, proposals coming out of studies and investigations, memorandums from the ministries, governmental proposals and decisions made by the Parliament - nothing in the political process leading to new laws escapes.
R&D also covers the EU, including commentary on the Council of Ministers, the European Parliament and the Commission. R&D was first published in 1939.
Officially R&D is Parliament’s newspaper but it has no influence whatsoever on content.
The editor in chief of R&D, Nils Funcke, was awarded in 2008 the journalistic prize of the Swedish lawyers association. The magazine has, according to the jury, become “an interesting and informative publication paying special attention to legal issues”.

For more information, please visit www.rod.se (only in Swedish).
The information above was taken from www.rod.se and translated by Acapela.