All of these requirements stem from the 21st Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act, a landmark piece of access legislation which was passed in 2010. It requires that TV programs which have been broadcast with captions must also be captioned when made available online, but the FCC has previously stated that this applies only to “full-length programming” and not short clips.
To access print media, blind and vision impaired people require such as large print or audio alternatives to be made. Copyright laws often restrict the production of accessible copies of published works (printed or otherwise) and sharing these across organisations overseas.
Each year, Ofcom reviews the audience share and revenue of television stations in the UK, and determines an appropriate level of access as set out in the ‘Ofcom Code on Television Access Services’. Most stations which have been broadcasting for ten years, and are required to provide the highest level of access, must broadcast 80% of their programs with captions (called subtitles in the UK), 10% with audio description and 5% with signing. However, some stations have voluntarily increased their levels.
Audio description was first broadcast on British television in 1994, and by 2009 most of the main channels were required to provide it on 10% of their programs. However, research commissioned by Ofcom in that year showed that awareness of it among the general public was low. Following a public awareness campaign initiated by Ofcom and carried out by broadcasters, awareness rose to 37%.
