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UK regulator seeks to improve live TV captioning

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The UK communications regulator Ofcom has announced proposals aimed at improving the quality of live captioning on television, including asking broadcasters to report on the quality of their captions.

Ofcom notes that the quality of pre-prepared captions (which are called ‘subtitles’ in the UK) is generally very good, and the majority of complaints it receives are related to live captioning. As caption quotas have risen, so have the number of programs being captioned live. Most of this captioning is now undertaken using speech recognition technology, but this is imperfect and errors are common. 

Following consultation with viewers and representative groups, Ofcom has concluded that the four key dimensions that affect the quality of live captions are:


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Presentation: Web For All 2013

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Dr Scott Hollier and Associate Professor Denise Wood, co-lecturers of the Professional Certificate In Web Accessibility presented at the Web For All (W4A) Conference in Rio de Janeiro last week.

In the presentation, Hollier and Wood discuss how the course, the only one of its kind, enables the Australian government to comply with international web accessibility guidelines.

Their paper highlights the challenges faced by the Australian Government as it progresses towards WCAG 2.0 conformance, and how the course equips government web professionals to meet them.


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Federal budget fails to deliver on audio description

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The federal budget announced on Tuesday evening had disability reform as its cornerstone. While most Australians with disability cheered, the budget also held disappointment for those who are blind or vision impaired.

Along with funding for DisabilityCare and education reform, funding to the ABC was boosted by $109.4 million. This money is allocated to news and current affairs and digital delivery of programming. What is noticeably absent is funding for an audio description service. Audio description is essential for providing equal access to television for people who are blind and vision impaired.


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Blind taxpayers sue for inaccessible website

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The National Federation of the Blind (NFB) in the USA and two Massachusetts residents who are legally blind have filed a lawsuit against one of the largest tax preparation firms in the country for failing to make their online tax services accessible to people who are blind and vision impaired. Filed earlier in April, the lawsuit claims H&R Block violates the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and article 114 of the Massachusetts Constitution.

Mika Pyyhkala and Lindsay Yazzolino claim they could not get past the H&R Block log-in page when they attempted to file their tax returns in 2012. The complaint alleges H&R Block's website excludes blind taxpayers from accessing the same online service available to other taxpayers.

Article 114 of the Massachusetts Constitution states:


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