It has been a year since the FCC published updated guidelines pertaining to the closed captioning requirements for online video clips. The notice specified that excerpts of full-length video programming captioned for broadcast in the U.S. and posted via the video programming provider or distributor's website or app would need to have captions present.
This only applied to single excerpts or single “straight-lift clips” from a full-length program.
In that announcement, the FCC also marked January 1, 2017, as the date that this law will extend to “montages,” or edits composed of multiple single excerpts (“straight-lift clips”). For example, an hour-long talk show that aired on television may appear as multiple segments on the web afterward – say, abridged interviews of each of the guests. Those clips, all stemming from the original full-length program, will now be expected to be captioned.
This also warrants a reminder that Internet closed captioning rules only apply if the video programming was shown on television in the U.S. with captions. Consumer-generated media (e.g., podcasts, home videos, or tutorials) shown on the Internet are not required to be captioned unless, of course, they were shown on TV with captions.
On Deck
Another deadline for Internet video clips will be stepping up to the plate in mid-2017. On July 1, 2017, video clips of live and near-live television programming (such as news or sporting events) will need to observe the following turnaround times for posting online with captions:
For clips of live programming, up to a 12-hour delay is permitted in posting a captioned clip after the programming has been shown on TV.
For clips of near-live programming, up to an 8-hour delay is permitted in posting a captioned clip after the programming has been shown on TV.
Currently, these are the only dates remaining on the FCC’s initial 2012 release of Internet video programming requirements. We wouldn’t bet on this being the last.
Repurposing a caption file for the web can be as simple as reformatting and a quick file conversion. After all, the videos have already been transcribed. It’s just a matter of matching your video player’s specifications for web play-out. To learn more about getting your Internet clips compliant, please contact us.
A few weeks ago, we announced that the FCC published their final ruling on the responsibilities related to the provision and quality of closed captions on pre-recorded programming (FCC: Captioning Assurance Now a Shared Responsibility) effective September 22, 2016. To producers and owners of content, you are now directly responsible for providing and confirming the compliance of captioning work for non-exempt programming.
The Commission’s on-going attention to closed captioning quality, along with the NAD’s persistent class action lawsuits against universities, Netflix, Hulu, movie theaters, and airlines, are further proof that captioning work still remains inconsistent throughout the industry.
As a captioning company, we passionately support any efforts put in place to ensure that the industry can support and enforce these standards.Read
On February 18, 2016, the FCC implemented amendments to its rules on closed captioning of televised video programming to help clarify which bodies are responsible for the quality and the technical aspects of the delivery of closed captions on television. In a publication posted to the Federal Register last week, the FCC has assigned September 22, 2016, as the effective date for these new responsibilities.
In short, the FCC will now be holding the individual Video Programmers (producer, ministry, etc.) responsible for meeting the closed captioning quality standards in addition to holding TV stations responsible for broadcasting closed captions correctly. Video Programmers will also be required to register directly with the FCC in the future. More on that to come in the following weeks.
Follow the law or be ready to face the FCC directly.Read
Today, the Federal Communications Commission has published its final ruling on the responsibilities related to the provision and quality of closed captions on television programming. The FCC will now be moving to a shared responsibility model that, while still imposing primary responsibility on video program distributors (VPDs), will now shift some of that responsibility directly to the video programmers (VPs) that produce the content. Each entity will be responsible for closed captioning issues that are primarily within its control.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
Although the FCC has recently improved its Help Center with a more simplified look and improved user experience, this is not your only avenue for filing captioning complaints. Since content producers are required to submit their certificate of closed captioning compliance with the airing station, the FCC will often be the middle-man for these complaints, forwarding them to the station or cable provider from which the complaint originated. It is advised to initially contact your Video Program Distributor (VPD) within 60 days of the error if you are looking for an immediate response. If the program has not been rectified within 30 days of your complaint, you should file the complaint with the FCC.
In September of 2012, the FCC announced the obligation for closed captioning on all full-length Internet video programming that was previously broadcast on television in the United States with captions. In accordance with further rulings, multiple deadlines are imminent in relation to “Internet video clips,” as well as timelines for the presence of captions on videos once repurposed for the Internet.
Due to the updated FCC guidelines and standards regarding the quality of captioning, video editors face challenges when it comes to graphic placement during their programs, particularly text-heavy programming such as infomercials.
The new law states the following: Captioning shall be view-able and shall not block other important visual content on the screen, including, but not limited to, character faces, featured text (e.g., weather or other news updates, graphics, and credits), and other information that is essential to understanding a program’s content when the closed captioning feature is activated.
In order to avoid potentially getting their show rejected by TV stations, editors have had to work hard and be extra creative so they can allow space for closed captions to be displayed without conflicting with any important visual content.
What happens if you are watching your favorite program and the closed captioning drops halfway through or the timing is so slow or fast that it doesn’t match the audio? Perhaps you also noticed a high number of errors in the closed captioning. Or maybe the closed captioning happened to be covering a speaker’s face or an important on-screen graphic? What can you do? The first thing to realize is that you as a consumer have the power to make a difference! If you are unsatisfied with the quality of captioning on a particular station or program, you can help remedy the problem.Read
We've all been there at one time in our life, certainly in our teenage years. Your teacher told you months ago that there would be a major exam at semester’s end and has given you ample time and resources to prepare. But we all just love to wait until the last minute. Maybe the week before, or sometimes the night before. We frantically thumb through stacks of articles, highlighter in hand, trying to absorb as much information as humanly possible in that 24-hour span and work through the night repeating the mantra, “I’ll sleep tomorrow.” If you’re having flashbacks of those days with the FCC’s proposed due date for the new closed captioning quality standards less than 24 hours away, then you can relax and breathe.
Prompted by the Public Notice put out by the FCC, we reached out and confirmed with Eliot Greenwald (Attorney-Advisor, Disability Rights Office) at the FCC that the new firm date for these new caption quality standards will be March 16, 2015. The decision to push the deadline back two months came down to a few uncertainties hanging out there. Moreover, they had found that there was a general lack of informed and prepared Video Programmers (VPs) and Video Program Distributors (VPDs) because the material hasn't been aggressively presented to everyone.Read
