Amazon has confirmed the discontinuation of the celebrity voices features on its virtual assistant Alexa, as per a report by The Verge. As a result, customers will no longer be able to buy or access the voices of well-known actors including Amitabh Bachchan, Samuel L. Jackson, Melissa McCarthy, and American former professional basketball player Shaquille O'Neal.
In a note on the product pages for the available celebrity voices, Amazon indicates that they are no longer available for purchase.
"After three years, we're winding down celebrity voices," a spokesperson for Amazon told The Verge. "Customers will be able to continue using these voices for a limited time, and can contact our customer service team for a refund."
A note on Amitabh Bachchan's page reads, ''This skill is no longer available for purchase. Customers who previously purchased this experience will continue to have access for one year from the date of purchase.''
Those who have already purchased Ms. McCarthy's or Mr. O'Neal's voices will be able to use them until September 30. Meanwhile, Mr. Jackson's voice will be available until June 7, 2023.
Launched in 2019, the feature allowed users to set their favorite celebrity's voice as the voice of Alexa. It made use of Amazon's neural text-to-speech model, which employs machine learning and is intended to sound more lifelike. In 2020, the feature came to India, and Mr. Bachchan became the first celebrity voice for Alexa in the country.
"The baritone that has enchanted the Indian film industry for over five decades will soon deliver a unique voice experience to the many Indian customers who use Alexa," Amazon announced in 2020.
It's not exactly clear why Amazon has decided to discontinue the feature.
