1. A method for implementing an interactive automated system, comprising: processing spoken utterances of a person using a processing system located in proximity to the person; transmitting the processed speech information to a remote data center using a wireless link; analyzing the transmitted processed speech information to scale and end-point the speech utterance; converting the analyzed speech information into packet data format; selecting at least one optimal specialized speech recognition engine to translate the converted speech information into text format; transporting the packet speech information to the at least one selected specialized speech recognition engine using an internet-protocol transport network; retrieving the recognition results and an associated confidence score from the at least one specialized speech recognition engine; continuing the automated dialog with the person if the confidence score meets or exceeds a pre-determined threshold for the best match; and selecting at least one alternative specialized speech recognition engine to translate the converted speech information into text format if the confidence score is low such that it is below a pre-determined threshold for the best match.