Many people take their hearing for granted, but for those who are deaf or hard-of-hearing, closed-captioning is a vital resource. Our focus is to get the word out about the changing laws, tricks, techniques and technologies that are shaping captions. [learn more]
Nearly 300 churches recently received a letter from the FCC revealing that their closed captioning exemptions had been revoked. As sudden as this notice may seemed to its recipients, the action was actually years in the making. In 1996, Congress created closed captioning requirements for television content. Between that point and 2005, very few exemptions […]
Many people are aware that a DVD can contain subtitles, but few realize that closed captions can also be included. In fact, authoring a DVD with captions may seem like a daunting task, but it is actually a much easier process than you might think. Using DVD Studio Pro, all you need once you’ve completed […]
While many legislative changes and technological improvements have recently improvement media accessibility for the hard of hearing community in the United States, a current mandate is also providing a similar victory for the visually impaired. As part of the 21st CVAA, rules that were originally established in 2000 have been reinstated concerning video description services […]
Much progress has been made in recent months regarding accessibility and closed captioning of television content on the Internet. In July, the FCC’s Video Programming Accessibility Advisory Committee released a report that established a six month timeframe for the new rules that require captions on the Internet. In short, the FCC must release advanced rules […]
The conversation surrounding closed captions has traditionally focused on the television set and, more recently, even around Internet based video services. What is often overlooked, though, is the great need for accessibility at live entertainment events. A great example of the importance of closed captions is evident in the athletic stadium experience. In addition to […]
Last week, both Netflix and CNN felt the impact of their lack of captioning, when activist groups brought lawsuits claiming discrimination. It’s a lesson all content providers, both large and small, could learn from. On June 15, a class-action suit was brought against Time Warner in Alameda, CA. The next day, the National Association of […]
Earlier this month, the Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers (SMPTE) announced that it is making its closed captioning standard for online video content available absolutely free of charge. While SMPTE typically sells its standards, the organization has notably released this standard for free in an effort to “accelerate the availability of online video […]
Technological advances are continually changing the way we do things in our everyday lives. From enhancements to education and entertainment to improvements in how we regularly communicate, new technologies have created a tremendous amount of access that is available right from our fingertips. Perhaps what is even more exciting, though, is the use of new […]
Netflix is a movie lover’s dream, with thousands upon thousands of films and television shows from every genre. Streaming service made it even more convenient. It meant no more waiting for DVDs to arrive, but it also meant almost non-existent closed captioning. Although Netflix was not required by law to provide closed captioning on their […]
It’s a good time to live in America, when almost everything is captioned for the information and convenience of deaf and hard-of-hearing people. Still, there are programs that don’t have to be captioned – a holdover from the days when captioning was expensive, more time consuming and could put smaller programming providers right out of […]
