Codec2 low-bandwidth voice codec released

Codec2 <http://www.rowetel.com/blog/?page_id=452> is an Open Source 
digital voice codec for low-bandwidth applications, in its first Alpha 
release. Currently it can encode 3.75 seconds of clear speech in 1050 
bytes, and there are opportunities to code in additional compression 
that will further reduce its bandwidth. The main developer is David Rowe 
<http://www.rowetel.com/>, who also worked on Speex 
<http://www.speex.org/index.shtml.en>.

Originally designed for Amateur Radio, both via sound-card software 
modems on HF radio and as an alternative to the proprietary voice codec 
presently used in D-STAR <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/D-STAR>, the 
codec is probably also useful for telephony at a fraction of current 
bandwidths.

The algorithm is based on papers from the 1980's, and is intended to be 
unencumbered by valid unexpired patent claims. The license is LGPL2. The 
project is seeking developers for testing in applications, algorithmic 
improvement, conversion to fixed-point, and coding to be more suitable 
for embedded systems.