By Tom Davey Advanced Micro Devices Inc. and Quarterdeck Corp. have agreed to bundle their products in a bid to expand the market for a wave-table audio chip and new Internet audio telephony software. Users who want to carry on conversations over the Net will need an Internet connection, an audio card, a microphone, and speakers on their PCs.
Full duplex allows users at both ends to transmit and receive on the same channel at the same time.
Although the bundled product is not yet available, several audio board manufacturers are considering whether to offer the software with their AMD-based cards, according to AMD officials. AMD is also negotiating with other audio software vendors to bundle their products with add-in boards based on the chip. For the past two to three years, users have been able to make rudimentary voice connections over the Net, enabling them to avoid the toll to long distance carriers. If both parties were to speak at the same time, the overlap portion would not be audible. Placing a call over the Net is still not nearly as simple as using a telephone.