Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission
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News release
July 21, 2009
CRTC takes steps to improve access to communications services for Canadians
OTTAWA-GATINEAU —The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) today announced new requirements to facilitate access to telecommunications and broadcasting services. The requirements build on existing initiatives and consist of concrete measures for the more than four million Canadians living with disabilities. While certain measures will be implemented immediately, others will be put into practice gradually given the current economic climate.
"We understand that Canadians living with disabilities have increasing needs as communications technologies become more prevalent in our daily lives," said Konrad von Finckenstein, Q.C., Chairman of the CRTC. "The measures announced today are an important step in making it easier for them to use the latest communications services."
Given the increasingly converged nature of the communications industry, the Commission examined accessibility issues as they relate to both broadcasting and telecommunications services.
Telecommunications services
Further to its review, the CRTC will:
- require that telephone companies offer a new service that will allow an operator to convert text messages sent over the Internet into voice calls, and vice versa (known as Internet Protocol relay, this service is used by persons who are deaf or hard of hearing to communicate)
- require that telecommunications companies, including cable and satellite companies, improve the accessibility of their customer service
- request that wireless companies offer at least one type of cellphone to serve the needs of people who are blind and/or have moderate-to-severe mobility or cognitive disabilities, and
- investigate possible improvements to 911 services for Canadians with hearing or speech disabilities.
Broadcasting services
During its next licence-renewal exercise, the CRTC will require that broadcasters:
- improve and monitor the quality of closed captioning, and develop standards for its delivery in digital and high-definition signals
- make available high-quality audio descriptions of programming, especially for news broadcasts (audio descriptions provide Canadians with visual impairments with voice-overs of the text or graphics that appear on-screen, such as weather updates, sports scores or financial data), and
- provide at least four hours per week of described-video programming (described video is added during pauses in dialogue to provide information on the settings, the actors’ costumes or body language, or other purely visual information).
For the first time, the CRTC’s requirements for described video will apply to French-language broadcasters, as well as the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation’s English- and French-language networks. This will result in the provision of described video by a minimum of 15 additional English-language and five additional French-language television services.
Today’s announcement follows a public process that included a public hearing, which was held from November 17 to 26, 2008.
Broadcasting and Telecom Regulatory Policy CRTC 2009-430
The CRTC
The CRTC is an independent public authority that regulates and supervises broadcasting and telecommunications in Canada.
Reference documents:
Fact Sheet, Access to TV for persons with visual impairments: Described video and audio description
Fact Sheet, Access to TV for people who are deaf or hearing impaired: Closed captioning
Fact Sheet, Access to wireless services for people with disabilities
Fact Sheet, Relay services for people with hearing or speech disabilities
Fact Sheet, Documents in alternative formats for people with disabilities
Broadcasting Notice of Public Hearing CRTC 2008-8
Telecom Public Notice CRTC 2008-8
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