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Other News Highlights
By advocacy | May 12, 2008
“CaptionsON” Campaign and Viewer Relations Bureau
VITAC announced the launch of “CaptionsON” awareness campaign and “Viewer Relations Bureau” (VRB). At the online VRB, TV viewers can submit feedback about captioning to the appropriate network, local station/affiliate, and cable or satellite provider. The CaptionsON VRB provides an easy way to report great captions, missing captions, or garbled captions. The CaptionsON campaign is also an effort to heighten awareness of the benefits that closed captions offer to over 50 million Americans. The website contains an introductory video, user-friendly information, and resources. To mark the launch of this effort, VITAC will provide 150 hours of free captioning service to nonprofit organizations. Click here for more information.
AT&T’s Text Accessibility Plan for iPhone
AT&T announced a new Text Accessibility Plan (TAP) for iPhone. This new Text Accessibility Plan was developed for people who are deaf or hard of hearing or have a speech disability. Click here for more information.
Verizon Wireless Introduces Nationwide Messaging Plans
Verizon Wireless announced the availability of three new Nationwide Messaging plans that will allow customers to use unlimited messaging on their wireless handsets. The new plans do not require an accompanying voice plan and are designed to meet the needs of customers who primarily rely on messaging to communicate with others. Click here for more information.
Verizon Center for Customers with Disabilities Adds Videophone Service
Verizon’s Center for Customers with Disabilities celebrated its 15th anniversary by adding videophone service so sign language users can communicate directly with service representatives. Click here for more information.
AOL Instant Messaging Now Supports Real-Time Text
AOL Instant Messaging (AIM) has added a feature long requested by text users: showing each character as soon as it’s typed, rather than waiting for the other person to hit the “Enter” key. This AIM option is more natural, and works the way TTYs do. Click here for more information.
Captioned Radio: An Idea Whose Time has Come
Radio broadcasts in a text format for people who are deaf or hard of hearing is finally becoming far more real thanks to the public-private efforts of National Public Radio (NPR), Harris Corporation, and Towson University in Maryland. Plans are to develop home and car radios that will provide captioning on LCD displays. Click here for more information.
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