FCC to require more shows be aired with video descriptions to aid the blind
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Money.CNN.com reports that
Broadcasters next year will have to offer customers an increased amount of video-described programming, making it possible for blind or visually impaired people to enjoy more live television.
Video descriptions on programming allow people with limited vision to hear a depiction of on-screen action along with the show’s dialogue, “providing a more fulsome entertainment experience,” the FCC said in a press release Wednesday.
Beginning July, 2018, broadcasters and pay-TV providers — such as Comcast (CCV), DirecTV, Dish (DISH), Verizon (VZ, Tech30) and AT&T (T, Tech30) — must offer 87.5 hours of described programming per calendar quarter, which averages out to roughly one hour per day. That’s a 75% increase over current requirements, the FCC said.
Video descriptions are provided to customers through their set-top box or TV via a feature called “secondary audio,” “SAP” or “secondary audio program,” according to the FCC. The networks create the descriptions, but it is the responsibility of broadcasters and TV providers to ensure the rules are followed.
Read more at http://money.cnn.com/2017/07/12/news/fcc-video-described-programming-blind-visually-impaired/index.html
