FCC attorney explains DTV options to hearing impaired

Television broadcasts that are all digital are on the way to replacing standard analog transmissions. To prepare for the transition, an FCC attorney addressed the Yuma chapter of the Hearing Loss Association of America on Tuesday.

Michael Jacobs, Federal Communications Commission consumer affairs legal counselor, gave a presentation to help the hearing impaired make the change over from analog to digital broadcasts at RTA Hospice and Palliative Care.
 
"HLAA is an important partner of ours in getting word out about digital TV," Jacobs said.
 
But some hearing-impaired consumers rely on closed captioned broadcasts to get news and entertainment. Sherry Appleby, the owner of Hearing Aid Specialists Inc. Appleby, noted captioning is not required on all programing and there is a discrepancy between captions and audio.
 
"My biggest complaint, and I can still hear, is when I go into the remote menu and hit my caption button. I don't get the same information as the audio," Appleby said. "For the totally deaf, they're not getting the same information."
 
This may be because the caption transcription is not made by a person but voice recognition technology, she explained.
 
It is difficult to know if it is a question of technology or a matter of upholding the spirit of the law, Jacobs said. Rather than aiming for total caption accuracy, it is more realistic to expect 95 percent accuracy. And while some local newscasts are not captioned, all new analog programs since 1998 and new digital programs since 2002 are required to be captioned, he said.
 
Linda Gibbs, organizer of the Yuma HLAA, said she is totally dependent on captioning. Even though Gibbs uses a hearing aid, captions help her process information more clearly. Conversations on TV can often proceed at a blazing pace and captions help to fill in the gaps of information, she explained.
 
Captioning also serves as a fallback device for Jim Donahue, a Yuma resident who attended the presentation. He noted he does not use a hearing aid but is hard of hearing. Donahue said he relies on captioning mostly when watching TV in a sports bar or restaurant.
 
"I would like to see captioning on all broadcasts," Donahue said. "I could use it at home and then turn down the volume because other members of my family don't like it too well."
 
Jack Ward, another attendee, has a bone anchored hearing aid (BAHA) implant. Ward said, he would benefit from captions but he often forgets to turn on the caption switch. Despite the help of his BAHA device TV often has too much bass to hear clearly and he turns down the volume to hear better, he noted.
 
The switch from analog has been in the works since 1996 and 95 percent of all major broadcast providers are now transmitting their signal in analog and digital simultaneously. But by Feb. 17, 2009, all TV broadcasting will be digital. Digital will also provide a much higher quality signal, Jacobs said.
 
"Many think they have to get a flat screen high definition television to get reception after the transition but that's not true," Jacobs said.
 
Although many digital TVs are comparably priced to analog ones, notably standard definition sets, people have several options to choose when the transmission switch is made next February.
 
Consumers who wish to keep their analog sets will need to buy a digital converter box to receive a TV signal. They could also buy a digital TV instead or they can subscribe to a paid TV service such as cable or satellite. But even those who already have paid service need to check with providers about any needed equipment, Jacobs cautioned.
 
For more information about the transition to digital TV consumers can go online to: www.dtv.gov or e-mail: DTVinfo@fcc.gov or telephone: 1-888-DTV-2009.


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William Roller can be reached at
wroller@yumasun.com or 539-6858.