Last week the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld a previous ruling, stating that song lyrics contributed to the general atmosphere of the games, therefore all people, including those who are Deaf or hearing impaired, must be able to access them.
According to the press release about the class action suit, the plaintiffs are claiming that the parks themselves are discriminatory against people who are blind and vision impaired by “refusing to reasonably accommodate the needs of guests with guide dogs, refusing to provide functional audio technology, refusing to provide Braille menus, schedules and maps, and more”.
The audio description, which is funded by NZ On Air, will be accessible to owners of Freeview HD and Freeview Satellite set-top boxes, and can be recorded by viewers.
The Australian Government’s Media Access Review has proposed a trial of audio description on ABC1 in the second half of 2011, subject to funding approval.
These are:
The 21st Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act, a comprehensive set of proposals to make electronic and online media accessible, was signed into law by President Obama on 8 October 2010.
