Voice Powered Plans Expanded ‘Informercial’

Voice Powered Technology International Inc., a fledgling Canoga Park maker of a voice-activated control for programming videocassette recorders, said it plans a national expansion of a televised “informercial” about the product.

Since launching sales last fall, Voice Powered has mainly advertised its $169 VCR Voice Programmer in radio advertisements narrated by the company’s founder and chairman, Michael Bissonnette. The hand-held gadget, which accepts voice commands to program a VCR, is sold via a toll-free telephone number only.

Voice Powered has previously said that it lost about $4.9 million in 1992 on sales of $1.7 million, which is not unusual for a start-up company. Voice Powered also said its sales “have increased rapidly” this year, and it expects to report a profit for all of 1993.