{"id":334305,"date":"2017-07-06T07:23:17","date_gmt":"2017-07-06T07:23:17","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/citifmonline.com\/?p=334305"},"modified":"2017-07-06T07:23:17","modified_gmt":"2017-07-06T07:23:17","slug":"alibaba-reveals-echo-like-smart-speaker","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/citifmonline.com\/?p=334305","title":{"rendered":"Alibaba reveals Echo-like smart speaker"},"content":{"rendered":"

Alibaba is the latest technology giant to unveil a smart speaker.<\/p>\n

The voice-controlled Tmall Genie can be used to play music, run third-party apps and buy goods from the Chinese retail giant’s online stores. Like many such devices, it lacks a display.<\/p>\n

At launch, it will understand only Mandarin and be sold in the company’s domestic market.<\/p>\n

It will compete in China against devices already\u00a0launched by Baidu\u00a0and\u00a0JD.com.<\/p>\n

Tencent – China’s biggest technology company by market capitalisation – has announced it has a similar product in development.<\/p>\n

In the West, Amazon’s Echo range of smart speakers compete against Google Home. Apple and Microsoft have similar products scheduled for release soon. And Samsung is readying a speaker of its own, powered by its new Bixby virtual assistant, according to a\u00a0report by the Wall Street Journal on Tuesday.<\/p>\n

Smarter shopping<\/strong><\/p>\n

Alibaba’s new product derives its name from the company’s e-commerce platform – Tmall – and during a demonstration in Beijing was used to order a delivery of Coca-Cola and buy credit for a phone.<\/p>\n

\"Tmall<\/span><\/figure>\n

Tmall allows local and international retailers to run their own virtual storefronts on its platform and says it is China’s third most visited shopping site.<\/p>\n

“It clearly is an advantage if – like Amazon – you can pull consumers into your retail ecosystem with a smart speaker,” said Eden Zoller from the technology consultancy Ovum.<\/p>\n

“But one thing we need to remember is it’s early days for this category, and there remain questions of consumer trust in using the digital assistants to buy goods, on a smartphone or smart home speaker device.<\/p>\n

“By that, I mean both the security of the transaction and privacy concerns about how personal data is leveraged and shared.”<\/p>\n

Alibaba has addressed these concerns in part by using voiceprint-technology to try to restrict purchases to recognised users.<\/p>\n

In addition, it has built in support for Alipay, the company’s popular online payment system, which is similar to PayPal.<\/p>\n

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