Deaf or hearing impaired

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Facebook is a popular social networking tool that allows users to create a personal profile, add other users as friends, exchange messages, and share information and media. Facebook also allows members to participate in interest groups, follow particular organisations and play simple online games.

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Free captioning and description editing tool launched

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The National Center for Accessible Media (NCAM) in the USA has just launched CADET (Caption and Description Editing Tool) which was previously only available as a Beta project. This official launch version of CADET was developed with partial funding from the Massachusetts Attorney General's Office with the rest coming from crowd-funding, and is available via a free download.

Dashboard of CADET being used

Dashboard of CADET being used

CADET has taken over two years to develop from the initial beta test, and is the result of a mix of grant funding and crowd-funding from an Indiegogo campaign launched in late 2015. It is a free, downloadable caption-authoring software tool that can also be used to generate audio-description scripts.


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4 leading Startups in the Deaf and hearing-impaired space

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1 in 6 Australians are affected by hearing loss including around 30,000 Deaf Auslan users with total hearing loss, according to the Australian Network on Disability (AND). On a global scale, the World Health Organization puts the total number of those with disabling hearing loss at about 360 million people, so it’s no wonder more Startups are springing up to help.

International Symbol for Deafness

International Symbol for Deafness

Around the world, dedicated research teams and tech experts working for Startups are striving to address hearing loss in a wide variety of ways. A few of the most prominent Startups that are making a real difference in the Deaf and hearing-impaired space are covered in this news piece.


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Ava app makes group conversations accessible

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For those with hearing disability, simple dinner table group conversations can be pretty painful to stay on top of. However, the Ava app aims to bring Deaf and hearing impaired people back into group conversations with each other plus people of all abilities – and the May 2017 update provides even more functionality.

Image of Ava being used on a smartphone

Ava being used on a smartphone

The Ava threaded speech-to-text application gives people with hearing disability an easy way to stay engaged in conversation with a group of friends, colleagues or family.

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New Australian app for A.T. users to better equip themselves

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A new consumer app is helping Australians with disabilities to identify the range of Assistive Technology (AT) equipment and technology options available, with the aim of improving their independence and wellbeing.

Image of Equip Myself

Image of Equip Myself

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Design-a-thon event showcased innovative thinking

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The recent Enabled Design-a-thon event was held in Sydney on 25-26 February 2017 with two Media Access Australia accessibility specialists taking part – Heidi Laidler and Monica Regalado. It attracted 16 teams of from 4-10 members who worked over the two days to design and develop prototypes of solutions to assist people with disability.

Image of four members of ‘team Post-It’

Image of four members of ‘team Post-It’

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High compliance in TV captioning during FY 2015–16… but more needs to be done.

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At last, some good news on the captioning front. The Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) reported in late December 2016 of a high level of compliance with captioning targets during the 2015-2016 financial year. However, their reporting period did not cover the back end of last year which saw multiple captioning issues emerge on the ABC and other networks, which proves more work needs to be done.

Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA)

Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA)

ACMA advised on 21 December 2016 that TV services reported increased captioning in 2015–16, with compliance results reflecting the continued efforts by television services to meet, and in some cases exceed, their captioning target obligations.


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Riverside Theatres present accessible movies

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Riverside Theatres in Parramatta are staging a large number of accessible screenings of a variety of popular films including the latest releases, over the Summer season.

Riverside Cinema

Riverside Cinema


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Disability is a mainstream issue

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Media Access Australia (MAA) advocates for all people living with disability. New CEO, Dr Manisha Amin, believes that disability is a mainstream issue that needs to be managed in a mainstream way.

Image of Dr Manisha Amin

Image of Dr Manisha Amin


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Submissions wanted for Government inquiry into hearing health and wellbeing

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The Australian Parliament’s House Standing Committee on Health, Aged Care and Sport is going to be considering the social and economic impacts of hearing impairment and ear or balance disorder, and seeks submissions from the public. You can have your say by 23 December.

Image of Parliament House, Canberra

Image of Parliament House, Canberra

Following a referral on 2 November 2016 from the Minister for Health, Aged Care and Sport, The Hon Sussan Ley MP, the Committee will inquire into and report on the Hearing Health and Wellbeing of Australia.


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