|
Closed
Captioning for The Hearing Impaired
((See bottom of this page for FCC Requirements regarding broadcast closed captioning)
WRS is a proven leader in closed captioning services. We offer one-stop captioning services. All you do is send us a video master; we do the rest. We have our own engineering facility, enabling us to create worktapes, write captions, AND digitally encode--all under one roof.
What is Offline Captioning?
Offline captioning is a complex, multi-step procedure involving transcription of the program dialogue, breaking text into logical blocks, placement and time stamping of caption blocks, and lastly,
encoding the caption data onto a captioned submaster. In addition, care must be taken to ensure captions are accurate, convey feeling (including musical lyrics, off-camera sounds, etc.) and are timed for readability. The entire process of captioning a one-hour program can take as long as 15 hours.
What You Do
Captioning with WRS is as easy as 1-2-3. All you have to do is send a copy of your video master. We will create an approval copy for you to screen. Then we make a closed captioned master and send it back to you. It's as easy as that.
What We Do
First, Captioners transcribe the audio portion of the program. The caption editor breaks the text into short phrases and times the phrases to appear in sync with the audio. Caption writers use placement, italics, and description of sounds so that the deaf viewer's experience is equal to that of a hearing viewer. The captions are
timed to meet the necessary reading rate, in accordance with standards set by the Captioned Media Program. Research is performed to ensure that every word is spelled correctly and every sentence is punctuated properly. After viewing, refining, and proofing the program, the caption file is uploaded to a digital encoding device which encodes this complex information onto a new videotape, which becomes the closed captioned master.
Why WRS
WRS combines the best equipment with a talented, friendly staff to ensure that you are completely satisfied on every job. Closed captioning takes experienced individuals who are up-to-date on all the current standards for making programs accessible to the deaf and hard of hearing audience. WRS is a group of highly skilled experts dedicated to absolute professionalism in closed captioning.
Foreign Language Subtitling WRS provides subtitles in a varity of
languages, including Spanish, Chinese (both traditional and simplified), Japanese, Arabic, Korean, and all the European languages.
FEDERAL
COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION
June 1999
As directed by Congress in the Telecommunications Act
of 1996, the Federal Communications Commission (Commission or FCC)
has adopted rules requiring closed captioning of most, though not
all, television programming. The rules became effective January 1,
1998. This fact sheet provides general answers to questions that may
arise about the implementation of the rules. The rules can be found
at the Commission's web site, www.fcc.gov/dtf/caption.html. For
further information, please contact the Commission toll-free at
1-888-CALL-FCC (1-888-225-5322); TTY 1-888-TELL-FCC (1-888-835-5322);
or (202) 418-7096; TTY (202) 418-7172.
Q:What is closed captioning?
A:Closed captioning is an
assistive technology designed to provide access to television for
persons who are deaf and hard of hearing. It is similar to subtitles
in that it displays the audio portion of a television signal as
printed words on the television screen. Unlike subtitles, however,
closed captioning is hidden as encoded data transmitted within the
television signal, and provides information about background noise
and sound effects. A viewer wishing to see closed captions must use a
set-top decoder or a television with built-in decoder circuitry.
Since July 1993, all television sets with screens thirteen inches or
larger have had built-in decoder circuitry.
Q:Who is required to provide closed captions under
the new rules?
A: The rules require
people or companies that distribute television programs directly to
home viewers ("video program distributors") to make sure
that those programs are captioned. Video program distributors include
local broadcast television stations, satellite television services
(such as DirecTV, Primestar, and the Dish Network), local cable
television operators, and other companies that distribute video
programming directly to the home. In some situations, video program
providers will be responsible for captioning programs. A video
program provider could be a television program network (for example,
ABC, NBC, UPN, Lifetime, A&E) or other company that makes a
particular television program.
Q:When will I be able to see more closed captioned programming?
A:The rules create
transition periods during which the amount of closed captioned
programming will gradually increase. Under the rules, there are two
categories of programming: new programming and pre-rule programming.
Certain exemptions from the captioning requirements apply to both
categories of programming.
-
New Programming: Programs
first shown on or after January 1, 1998, are considered
"new" programming. Under the rules, 100% of new, non-exempt
programs must be captioned over an eight year period. Compliance with
the captioning requirements will be determined on a quarterly basis.
In other words, the Commission will look at how much captioning is
provided in each of the four calendar quarters: January-March;
April-June; July-September; and October-December.
The rules set up the following schedule for new
programs: In 2000 and 2001, video program distributors must provide
at least 450 hours of captioned new programs per channel during each
calendar quarter. In 2002 and 2003, that number will increase to 900
hours per channel, per calendar quarter. In 2004 and 2005, that
number will increase to an average of 1,350 hours per channel, per
calendar quarter. As of January 1, 2006, 100% of the distributor's
new, nonexempt programs must be provided with captions.
-
Pre-rule Programming:
Programs first shown before January 1, 1998, are considered
"pre-rule" programming. Under the rules, 75% of pre-rule,
non-exempt programs must be captioned over a ten year period.
The rules set up the following schedule for pre-rule
programming: At least 30% of a channel's pre-rule programming during
each calendar quarter must be captioned beginning on January 1, 2003.
Beginning January 1, 2008, distributors must provide captions for 75%
of the pre-rule, non-exempt programs they distribute on each channel
during each calendar quarter.
Q:Do the rules require all television programs to
be closed captioned?
A:No. As noted above, the
rules provide certain exemptions from the captioning requirements.
First, the rules exempt all video program providers who have revenues
of less than $3,000,000 per year. This exemption is based on the
conclusion that it would be economically burdensome for some
programmers or providers to offer captioning. In addition, program
providers are permitted to limit their spending on captioning to 2%
of their annual gross revenues.
The following specific types of programs do not have
to be closed captioned:
In addition, a video program provider or distributor
may file a written request with the FCC for an individual undue
burden exemption from the captioning rules, if supplying captions
would cause the provider or distributor significant difficulty or
expense under its particular circumstances.
Q:Will these types of programs always be exempt, or
will they be required to be captioned in the future?
A:The FCC plans to review
the program exemptions at a later date to determine whether any
changes are necessary or appropriate.
Q:Will I see fewer captioned programs in the early
part of the transition period than I currently see?
A:No. The rules require
video program distributors to continue to provide captioned
programming at substantially the same level as the average level they
provided during the first six months of 1997, even it that amount of
captioning is more than the minimum number of hours required by the rules.
Q:Once a program appears on television with
captions, will it always be shown with captions?
A:In some cases, but not
always. Repeats of captioned programs must be shown with the captions
intact only if the program has not been edited before it is repeated.
Editing a captioned program can destroy the captions, and captioned
programs which are edited before re-airing often need to have the
captions reformatted. The FCC encourages providers to reformat
existing captions where possible but, because there is some expense
and difficulty associated with reformatting in some cases, and the
Commission decided to give distributors considerable discretion in
deciding which programs to caption during the transition periods, the
rules do not presently require providers to reformat captions. The
FCC plans to review this decision in the future.
Q:Will the video tapes or video games that I rent
or buy be closed captioned?
A:The closed captioning
rules only apply to television programs which are distributed
directly to viewers' homes. The rules do not require video tapes,
laser disks, digital video disks (DVDs) or video game cartridges to
be closed captioned.
Q:Will captions have to meet accuracy requirements,
such as having only so many spelling errors per program?
A:At present, the rules
do not require that captions meet any particular quality or accuracy
standards. The FCC concluded that program providers have incentives
to offer high quality captions, in keeping with the overall quality
of the programs they offer. The FCC also concluded that it would be
difficult to develop and monitor quality standards at this time.
However, viewers may let video providers know whether they are
satisfied with the captions through purchases of advertised products,
subscriptions to program services, or contacts with providers
concerning the programs.
Q:While I'm watching a captioned program, the
captions sometimes disappear during the program, especially during
the last few minutes right before our local news, or when the picture
is modified to provide other information, such as school closings. Is
this permissible?
A:No. The Commission has
received numerous reports of the loss of captioning during otherwise
captioned programs, particularly at the end of such programming. In
recognition of this problem and viewers' frustration when captions
are lost during a program, the Commission adopted rules require that
video program distributors to transmit the original closed captions
of a captioned program to viewers intact unless the program is edited
and the captions would have to be reformatted. Video distributors
also are responsible for making sure that their equipment is working
properly to ensure the accurate transmission of the closed captions.
This requirement that video distributors "pass
through" to viewers all captions they receive is intended to
ensure that captioned programs are distributed with captions from
beginning to end without exception. It also is meant to prevent video
distributors from unintentionally scrambling captions or making them
unreadable. Under this requirement, you should expect captions
throughout a captioned program. Any loss of captions prior to the end
of a program or scrambling of captions would be a violation of this
rule. In addition, when providing other information, such as school
closings or weather warnings, readable captions should continue to be provided.
Q:What is "real-time" captioning?
A:"Real-time"
captioning means any methodology that converts the entire audio
portion of a live program to captions.
Q:What is the electronic newsroom captioning technique?
A:The so-called
electronic newsroom captioning technique creates captions from a news
script computer or teleprompter and is commonly used for live
newscasts. Only material that is scripted can be captioned using this
technique. Therefore, live field reports, breaking news, and sports
and weather updates may not be captioned. Because of these
limitations, the Commission decided to restrict the use of electronic
newsroom captioning as a substitute for real-time captioning.
The Commission determined that, beginning January 1,
2000, the four major national broadcast networks (ABC, CBS, Fox and
NBC) and television stations in the top 25 television markets (as
defined by Nielsen) that are affiliated with these networks will not
be permitted to count electronic newsroom captioned programming
towards compliance with their captioning requirements. Essentially,
the top 25 television markets are the largest cities and their
surrounding areas. Please note that this list is subject to change,
particularly if the city is towards the bottom of the list.
Therefore, you may wish to contact the local network affiliate to
confirm that the station is within the top 25 market areas. These
markets are: New York, NY; Los Angeles, CA; Chicago, IL;
Philadelphia, PA; San Francisco-Oakland-San Jose, CA; Boston, MA;
Washington, DC; Dallas-Fort Worth, TX; Detroit, MI; Atlanta, GA;
Houston, TX; Seattle-Tacoma, WA; Cleveland, OH; Minneapolis-St. Paul,
MN; Tampa-St. Petersburg-Sarasota, FL; Miami-Fort Lauderdale, FL;
Phoenix, AZ; Denver, CO; Pittsburgh, PA; Sacramento-Stockton-Modesto,
CA; St. Louis, MO; Orlando-Daytona Beach-Melbourne, FL; Baltimore,
MD; Portland, OR; and Indianapolis, IN.
This rule restricting the use of electronic newsroom
captioning also applies to national nonbroadcast networks (such as
CNN, HBO and other networks transmitting programs over cable or
through satellite services) serving at least 50% of the total number
of households subscribing to video programming services. For example,
if the combined national subscribership of all multichannel video
programming providers (e.g., cable, satellite services, wireless
cable) were 80,000,000 households, then any nonbroadcast network that
serves 40,000,000 or more households would not be permitted to count
electronic newsroom captioned programming towards the captioning
requirements. During the transition period, the Commission expects to
consider how and when this rule should be extended to other video
program providers.
Q:How do I complain if my video program distributor
is not meeting its captioning obligations?
A:Under the rules, if
your video program distributor is not meeting its captioning
obligations, you must first file a written complaint with the video
program distributor (for example, the local television station,
satellite service, or your cable operator) before you may file any
complaint with the Commission. You may file a complaint with the
Commission if the video distributor fails to respond to your
complaint within the allotted time period or if you are not satisfied
with the response from the video distributor.
Q:When must I file my complaint with the video
program distributor?
A:A complaint must be
filed with the video program distributor no later than the end of the
calendar quarter after the calendar quarter in which the violation is
believed to have taken place. For example, if you believe the local
broadcast station did not meet its captioning requirements in the
first calendar quarter of the year (January-March), your complaint
must be filed no later than June 30 (the end of the second calendar quarter).
The video distributor must respond to your complaint
in writing no later than 45 days after the end of the calendar
quarter in which the alleged violation occurred, or 45 days after
receiving the complaint, whichever is later (see also below). If you
do not receive a response from the video distributor by the end of
this allotted time period or you are not satisfied with the response
you receive, then you may file a complaint with the Commission. You
must file your written complaint with the Commission within 30 days
after the end of the time period allotted for the video distributor's response.
Q:If I want to send a complaint to the video
program distributor, how do I know who to send it to:
A:If a local broadcast
station (e.g., a channel you can receive without subscribing to a
video program service, such as WXXX) allegedly violates the rules,
then the station is the video distributor you should contact. Its
address and telephone number should be listed in your local telephone
directory (e.g., WXXX, 100 Main Street, Anytown, CA, 123-555-0943) If
you subscribe to a video programming service (e.g., cable television,
wireless cable, a satellite service, or a local telephone company's
video service), then the owner or operator of that subscription
service is the video distributor responsible for ensuring compliance
with our rules for program services other than your local broadcast
stations. You should contact that video program distributor at the
address given on your bill (e.g., ABC Cable Company, 250 Maple
Avenue, Some City, NY 10001). For assistance, you can contact the
Commission toll-free at 1-888-CALL-FCC (1-888-225-5322); TTY
1-888-TELL-FCC (1-888-835-5322); or (202) 418-7096; TTY (202) 418-7172.
Q:Should I contact a network directly if I have a
complaint about its captioning?
A:We encourage you to
contact broadcast networks (e.g., ABC, CBS, NBC) or nonbroadcast
networks (e.g., CNN, ESPN, HBO) to let them know your thoughts on
their captioning, including the amount, quality, and accuracy of the
captioning. (However, as noted above, under the Commission's rules,
the network is not responsible for complying with the captioning
rules and it is not required to respond to your complaint; it is the
distributor of this programming that the Commission holds responsible.)
Q:What should I say in my complaint to the video
program distributor?
A: The Commission's rules
require that a complaint to a distributor must state with specificity
the alleged Commission rule violated and must include some evidence
of the alleged rule violated. This means that your complaint must
include enough detail about the problem to allow the distributor an
opportunity to correct the problem or explain why it believes it has
met its obligations under the rules. You should also include any
evidence that leads you to believe that the distributor is not
following the rules. In addition, you might include information about
the time and date(s) of the program(s) which contained the problem.
Since the rules require that any complaint filed with the Commission
include evidence that the complaint was first sent to the video
distributor, you should keep copies of written correspondence
(letters, e-mails, faxes) or records of telephone conversations about
your complaint.
Q:What must the distributor do in response to my complaint?
A:The video distributor
must respond to your complaint in writing no later than 45 days after
the end of the calendar quarter in which the alleged violation
occurred, or 45 days after receiving the complaint, whichever is
later. For example, if a video program distributor receives a
complaint regarding programming aired between January 1 and March 31
at any time between January 1 and March 31, it would have to respond
by May 15 (May 15 is 45 days after March 31, the end of the quarter
in which the alleged violation occurred). For a complaint received
after the end of the first quarter, the video distributor would have
45 days after receipt of the complaint to respond, which would be a
date later than May 15 (for example, July 16 for a complaint received
on June 1).
The distributor will not always be responsible for
making sure that programming is captioned. If you complain to a video
distributor about a program for which it is not responsible, it must
either: (a) return the complaint to you within seven days of
receiving it, along with the name and address of the person or
company to whom you should complain, or (b) forward the complaint to
the appropriate person or company within seven days of receiving it,
and let you know that it has done so. For example, as noted above, a
broadcast station (e.g., WXXX) is responsible for compliance with the
captioning rules for programming it airs regardless of whether you
receive that broadcast station over-the-air or through a subscription
service such as cable. If you are a cable subscriber and you complain
to your cable company (e.g., ABC Cable) about programming that was
shown by a local broadcast station (e.g., WXXX), the cable operator
will respond by either returning your complaint along with the
address of the broadcast station to which it should be sent, or
forwarding your complaint directly to the broadcast station and
informing you that it has done so.
Q:What if the distributor or the company
responsible for captioning does not correct the problem or does not
respond to my complaint?
A:If the distributor or
other responsible person or company does not respond to your
complaint within the time permitted under the rules, or if you are
dissatisfied with the response, you may file a written complaint with
the FCC, 445 12th Street, S.W., Washington, D.C., 20554. You must
file your complaint with the Commission within 30 days after the time
allotted for the video program distributor to respond to your
complaint has ended. Your complaint to the Commission must include a
statement that a written complaint and supporting evidence was first
sent to the person or company responsible for captioning the program.
Your complaint also should include a copy of any response you
received from that person or company. If you did not receive any
response at all, you should indicate this in your complaint to the
FCC. You also must: (1) send a copy of the complaint you send to the
FCC, including all supporting documentation submitted with your
complaint, to the video program distributor or other person or
company responsible for captioning the program; and (2) submit a
statement to the FCC that you have sent these copies to the video
distributor or responsible company.
Q:How does the FCC resolve the complaint after I
have filed?
A:After you file your
complaint with the FCC, the video distributor must respond to the FCC
regarding your complaint within 15 days of receiving it, and must
send a copy of its response to you. Based on the information in the
complaint and the response and any other information the FCC may
request from either party, the FCC will make its decision and take
appropriate action.
- FCC - |
