[EAS] FCC proposed rulemaking issued on video acccessibility for emergency info

[Ed Czarnecki]

FYI - This may be worth some review.  Yesterday, the FCC released a Notice
of Proposed Rulemaking today on "Accessible Emergency Information, and
Apparatus Requirements for Emergency Information and Video Description:
Implementation of the Twenty-First Century Communications and Video
Accessibility Act (CVAA) of 2010".  

 

While the NPRM primarily covers "emergency information" (news, live
coverage, etc.), the NPRM also SPECIFICALLY asks a few questions about EAS
and accessibility.

 

See:
http://transition.fcc.gov/Daily_Releases/Daily_Business/2012/db1119/FCC-12-1
42A1.doc 

 

Note that this comes from the FCC Media Bureau, not the FCC Public Safety
and Homeland Security Bureau.

 

The Communications and Video Accessibility Act required the Commission to
complete a proceeding to "identify methods to convey emergency information
(as that term is defined in section 79.2 of title 47, Code of Federal
Regulations) in a manner accessible to individuals who are blind or visually
impaired."  This would impact cable and IPTV providers, as well as broadcast
TV, plus whatever IP streams they do over the Internet as well.

 

While the proceedings make note that EAS falls under Part 11 rules, it also
notes that the broader issue of ACCESSIBILITY falls under Part 79 rules.

 

Among other things, the FCC seeks comment "on the benefits of providing
accessible emergency information on a secondary audio stream and the
incremental costs of providing a secondary audio stream for this purpose ..
We seek comment on whether and how the proposals contained herein should
apply to EAS alerts.  For example, to what extent is emergency information
provided as visual-only EAS alerts?"

 

Also, "Assuming the Commission requires that visual emergency information be
made accessible by means of a secondary audio stream, to what extent should
the Commission permit the use of text-to-speech ("TTS") technologies?  . We
seek comment on the accuracy and reliability of current TTS technology and,
more specifically, whether it is sufficiently accurate and reliable for
rendering an aural translation of emergency information text on a secondary
audio stream, as proposed above."  

 

 

 

 

Description: Description: ME_logo_black.jpg

 

Edward Czarnecki, Ph.D.

  Senior Director - Strategy, Development & Regulatory Affairs

www.monroe-electronics.com

www.digitalalertsystems.com

 

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