Now Offering Accurate and Affordable AI-powered Captioning & Transcription

Gogo Business Aviation, in its continuing efforts to be the leading provider of in-flight entertainment, has made an admirable step towards accessibility with an agreement with the US National Association of the Deaf (NAD) to add closed captioning to their on-demand streaming service, Gogo Vision. Despite the Department of Transportation’s directive on the presence of closed captioning on video monitors in airport terminals, this agreement is the first of its kind with an in-flight entertainment company.

“This is a monumental step in making in-flight entertainment accessible to the 48 million deaf and hard of hearing people in the United States alone. Personalized in-flight entertainment has made air travel exciting again. The ability to access and watch an extensive library of movies or television shows helps pass the time on long flights. The NAD is thus thrilled by Gogo’s decision to make the in-flight entertainment experience equally accessible to deaf and hard of hearing passengers.”

NAD CEO Howard Rosenblum

The first step of the deal between the two parties includes Gogo developing the technology that supports closed captioning on their media players accessed by passengers on their WiFi-enabled devices. Once that is effectively implemented, they will begin sourcing content from their library with captions with the entire venture finalized by June 30, 2017. This modest 18-month cushion should provide ample time for a successful roll-out.

Gogo Vision is currently on board (pun intended) with 2200 aircraft domestically. Although the agreement is focused only on US domestic flights initially, an international implementation should not be far behind. This is an exciting step in the right direction to ensure an equally accessible, and enjoyable, flying experience for all passengers.

All captions offered in the Gogo Vision library will be compliant with current FCC captioning standards.

The release from the NAD can be found here: NAD and Gogo LLC Agree to Make Closed Captions Available on In-Flight Entertainment Systems.

Not shortly after Portland became the first state to require enabled captions in all public establishments, Hawaii has just become the first state in the nation to recognize the importance of accommodating a positive movie-going experience for the deaf and hard of hearing. The bill, introduced by Kauai Representative and father of a hearing-impaired son, James Tokioka, was signed into law by Governor David Ige and is now in effect as of January 1, 2016.Read

It’s official. Starting today, the City of Portland, Oregon, will require all televisions visible in public establishments to activate the closed caption function. Prompted by a complaint from accessibility activists that they were often met with resistance when requesting closed captions in local restaurants and bars, the Portland City Council met and passed the ordinance on November 18^th, 2015 with a unanimous 5-0 decision.Read

On November 10, 2015, the FCC held a roundtable event concentrating on the accessibility of public, educational, and government (PEG) video programming. With the increasing number of local governments and educational institutions feeling the pressure to become compliant, this all-day event was focused on promoting a discussion on the benefits, best practices, current obligations, and solutions - both technical and financial - of adding closed captioning to PEG video programming. The event was comprised of local government professionals, policymakers, captioning vendors, consumer groups, engineers, and others working in applicable fields of video programming.Read

In September of 2011, the U.S. Department of Transportation issued a notice of proposed rule making in Docket OST 2011-0182 titled, “Nondiscrimination on the Basis of Disability in Programs or Activities Receiving Federal Financial Assistance (U.S. Airports).” The DOT issued this final rule to amend section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, which requires accessibility in airport terminal facilities.Read