Video
What is media access?
Media access refers to how digital, web and broadcast content can be used, read or viewed by people with disabilities, particularly those who are blind, vision impaired, Deaf, hearing impaired, or who have a cognitive condition or mobility disability. This includes the provision of effective access to websites, online information, digital communications, streaming services and broadcast television, as well as access in the classroom, cinema and the arts.
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Policy and expectations
By the end of 2014 the major cinema chains of Hoyts, Village, Event, and Reading cinemas had rolled out around 240 accessible screens across 130 cinemas around the country. This was part of the Commonwealth Government’s Cinema Access Implementation Plan that saw every major chain cinema complex in the country have accessibility services on at least one screen per venue.
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Captioning, audio description and transcription suppliers
Media Access Australia does not provide captioning, transcribing or audio description services. However, there are a number of access suppliers that provide these services for video, TV, events, websites and online broadcasting in Australia.
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Progress with accessibility needed in New Zealand
Screenworks host CC and AD workshop to educate filmmakers
According to Ken Crouch, General Manager of this Northern Rivers NSW based not-for-profit organisation, the seminar aims to “raise the quality of closed captioning and audio description across the film industry.”
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Apple announces minor software accessibility improvements at WWDC 2016 conference
The conference, which focuses on supporting developers to create new products in the Apple software ecosystem, highlighted a number of improvements across its desktop, mobile, watch and TV set-top-box operating systems, some of which are likely to benefit people with disabilities.
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