Research & Policy news

Error message

Deprecated function: Array and string offset access syntax with curly braces is deprecated in include_once() (line 14 of /home/mediacc/public_html/themes/engines/phptemplate/phptemplate.engine).

Government changes web accessibility plan

no
Show on home page

The Australian Government has released its progress report on the National Transition Strategy (NTS) – its schedule to make its websites conform to international accessibility standards. The report signals a change in the Government’s approach that could affect the timeframe for when people with disability are given equal access to government information and services.

First put in place in 2010, the NTS stated that all government websites must comply with Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.0 level A by the end of 2012 and level AA by the end of 2014. Now, the Australian Government Information Management Office (AGIMO) has said that this timeframe was unrealistic.

Chief Information Officer Glenn Archer said that “It is clear that some websites and some web applications will not meet the ambitious 2014 timeframe for WCAG 2.0 level AA conformance”, and that a framework will be put in place for continuous accessibility improvement next year.

Taxonomy: 
General
Web
News
Practical web accessibility
News alert taxonomy: 
Deaf/hearing impaired Digital Technology & Online Media news
Blind/vision impaired Digital Technology & Online Media news
Research & Policy news

Top of page

Highlights of 2013: television caption quality

no
Show on home page

In June, the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) released its long-awaited caption standard, setting out the criteria it will use when dealing with complaints from the public about poor captioning.

The Broadcasting Services (Television Captioning) Standard.2013 is a very important piece of legislation for Deaf and hearing impaired viewers. Prior to its release, there was no definition of captions in the Broadcasting Services Act (BSA) and no indication of what constituted adequate caption quality. This meant that the ACMA could only deal effectively with complaints about a program where the captions either did not appear, or were so bad that they were obviously useless for viewers.

Taxonomy: 
General
Australian policy and legislation
Captions
Television
Research & policy
News
News alert taxonomy: 
Deaf/hearing impaired TV, DVD, Cinema & the Arts news
Research & Policy news

Top of page

Highlights of 2013: access in the air

no
Show on home page

As many of our readers prepare to jet off on summer holidays, people will be curious about how their access needs will be accommodated by airlines. A number of developments this year are changing the way we travel as well as the enjoyment of our air travel experience. Most developments are taking place in the USA as a result of the Air Carrier Access Act, which impacts strongly on Australia and the rest of the world.

In March 2013, amendments to the Air Carrier Access Act were introduced to the US Senate, requiring domestic and foreign air carriers to ensure that all visually displayed entertainment is accessible, including by making available captioning and audio description for people who are Deaf, hearing impaired, blind, or vision impaired.

Taxonomy: 
General
International policy and legislation
Research & policy
News
News alert taxonomy: 
Deaf/hearing impaired TV, DVD, Cinema & the Arts news
Blind/vision impaired TV, DVD, Cinema & the Arts news
Research & Policy news

Top of page

Unscrambling caption quality control

no
Show on home page

In 2014 Media Access Australia will release the world’s first review of how the quality of closed captions and subtitles for the Deaf and hearing impaired is controlled internationally. The white paper is sponsored by Red Bee Media and will explore how a more consistent approach to captioning will benefit both viewers and caption providers internationally.

The report will draw on a range of approaches from across the world, both in English and other languages and will examine how various countries such as the UK, USA and Australia ensure the accuracy of closed captions on broadcast television.

Taxonomy: 
General
Australian policy and legislation
Captions
Television
Deaf or hearing impaired
Research & policy
News
News alert taxonomy: 
Deaf/hearing impaired TV, DVD, Cinema & the Arts news
Research & Policy news

Top of page

Pages

Subscribe to RSS - Research & Policy news