In the future, SpokenLayer plans to tag its publishers' written content that has an audio analog with a "listen" button. Although it doesn't mention a "listen later" option, it would be wise to somehow connect the button with the app.

SpokenLayer faces some obvious challenges in the near future. For example, how will it manage the labor intensive task of creation and quality control for the vast amounts of audio it will be dealing with? Rights issues may also be an issue.

Someday, synthetic speech will be able to emulate our own voices. Better yet, it will be able to emulate famous voices. Think of what it would be like to have the voice of Winston Churchill read A History of the English-Speaking Peoples to you? Or to have James Earl Jones read something you've written? While those possibilities remain in the distant horizon, SpokenLayer, by adding an aural layer to the Web, could be a baby step toward that future. 

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