International policy and legislation

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Making access work in the New World

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Access to media through audio description and captioning is well established through most of Europe, North America and the English-speaking world. However, the situation in other parts of the globe is very mixed. Reporting in Australia is, not suprisingly, biased towards English language developments and advances. What is happening in other parts of the world, especially in Asia?

Globe of the world with Asia in focus

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U.S. Government makes captions compulsory in airports

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The Department of Transport has issued a ruling which will make it compulsory to turn on captions on all televisions and audio-visual displays in American airports.

People walking through an airport


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BBC paper looks at the future of online captioning

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As people increasingly watch TV programs online, the opportunity arises for captions to be made more responsive to the needs of individual users. A new BBC white paper looks at some of the possibilities, which include users being able to vary font size and colour, along with many other enhancements.

Man and woman smiling while viewing media on a smartphone together


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Ofcom consults on accessibility of on-screen TV guides

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The UK communications regulator Ofcom has issued a consultation paper outlining changes it is proposing to make electronic program guides (EPGs) more accessible for blind and vision impaired TV viewers.

TV remote resting on a flat wooden surface next to an open magazine


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Five tips to make the web work better in your language

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In late May, Dr Scott Hollier travelled to Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, to teach a web accessibility course to 22 students. As part of the assignment work, the students learnt how to use the basic functionality of screen readers and other Assistive Technology (AT). While the work went well, it quickly became apparent that there were a number of issues relating to the way in which Arabic was supported by the tools, and how those tools interacted with the web.

Translate button on a keyboard amidst keys labelled with multiple languages

There are several reasons why the web becomes more complicated for non-English speaking users, and it’s a combination of a number of factors:


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UK channels breach rules by not providing access in other countries

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The UK communications regulator Ofcom has found that a number of UK-based channels owned by AXN and MTG breached access regulations by not providing enough captioning or audio description on services broadcast to Italy, Denmark and Sweden in 2014.

Little girl pointing remote control at a cartoon on TV


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UK Labour MP supports VOD access campaign

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Labour MP Lillian Greenwood has submitted a private member’s bill to the House of Commons in support of Subtitle It!, a campaign to improve the accessibility of video-on-demand (VOD) services.

Lillian Greenwood holding a sign which reads 'Subtitle It! Whatever we watch, however we watch it #SubtitleIt'


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UK regulator releases access requirements for 2016

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The UK communications regulator Ofcom has released its list of TV channels which will be required to provide access services – captioning, audio description and signing – in 2015.

Remote control resting on a TV guide


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Egypt audio describes its first feature film

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On 11 June 2015, the 1963 epic drama Al Nasser Saladin became the first Egyptian feature film to be screened with audio description for blind and vision impaired people.

Poster of the film Al Nasser Saladin


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Access 2020 predicting the future – five experts, 20 ideas

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A highlight of the recent the Languages and the Media Conference in Berlin was a panel presentation speculating about what access might look like in the year 2020.

Media Access Australia CEO Alex Varley presenting at the Languages & The Media Conference 2014. Credit: ICWE GmbH / Mark Bollhorst

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