Application for exemption under DDA section 55: Subscription television captioning

The Commission has received an application (attached, PDF format (145K) or Word format 1.26 MB) from the Australian Subscription Televison and Radio Association (ASTRA) on behalf of its members regarding captioning of television programs.

See also submissions in response

On 4 June 2004 the Commission decided to grant an exemption regarding captioning to ASTRA's members on condition that they implemented proposals submitted by ASTRA including

• 20 channels to be enabled for captioning .
• The Applicants to use "reasonable endeavours" to enable a further 20 channels within 24 months .
• Captioning per channel captioned to commence at 5% of total hours of applicable channel programming in the first year of captioning, increasing by an additional 5% each year thereafter for the duration (or part thereof) of the 5-year rollout plan for each enabled channel (measured over a full 24-hour broadcast period)
• ASTRA, on behalf of its members, to report annually on compliance with these targets.
• Before the conclusion of the 5-year period covered by this application, ASTRA to review compliance with the plan and prepare a further plan.

In the application now made ASTRA submits that the targets set in its 2004 proposal have not only been met but exceeded:

• 20 "phase one" channels were enabled for captioning in October 2004 as required. ASTRA reports these as having reached an average level of 44% captioning compared to a required level of 25%.
• A further 20 "phase 2" channels were enabled for captioning in October 2006 as required. ASTRA reports these as having reached an average level of 23% captioning compared to a required level of 15%.
• ASTRA also detail a number of additional channels on which its members have enabled captioning, beyond the 40 channels required by the 2004 exemption.

ASTRA now seek a second exemption for a period of five years, on conditions detailed in their application.

The proposed conditions include

• continued annual increases in captioning of a minimum of 40 channels. The applicants propose a dual measurement system for captioning levels. Phase 1 channels would be required in the first year to caption either 30% of programming measured by scheduled hours; or 40% measured by share of viewing. Phase 2 channels would be required in the first year to caption either 20% of programming measured by scheduled hours; or 30% measured by share of viewing. For each channel concerned the applicants then propose to increase the percentage of closed captioning required at a rate of 5% in each remaining year of the exemption.
• using reasonable endeavours to enable an additional 10 Channels for captioning over the course of the next five years. For these new channels a choice of targets for the first year of captioning is likewise proposed, being either 5% measured by scheduled program hours, or 15% measured by share of viewing in the first year. The applicants then propose to increase captioning targets by an additional 5% each year.

• using reasonable endeavours to enable at least one Australian news broadcasting channel with a captioning target of 5% measured by scheduled programming or 15% measured by share of viewing.
• using reasonable endeavours to enable at least one Australian sports broadcasting channel with a captioning target of 5% of scheduled hours or 15% measured by share of viewing
• reporting annually through ASTRA on compliance with these targets.
• preparing a further plan before the conclusion of the requested exemption, including consulting with organisations representing deaf and hearing impaired Australians and organisations specialising in providing closed captioning.

Request for submissions

In accordance with its policy on exemption applications, the Commission seeks to give interested parties an opportunity to participate in the process of considering this application.

The Commission seeks submissions by 17 July 2009 , by email to disabdis@humanrights.gov.au. The period for comments in this case has been reduced from the six weeks generally provided by the Commission to a five week period, in view of previous consideration of these issues by the Commission including consultation with interested parties.

To promote open public discussion and exchange of views, the Commission intends to posting submissions made electronically on its Internet site. Any requests for material to be treated as confidential should be clearly indicated.

David Mason

Director Disability Rights policy, HREOC

12 June 2009

Update: 27 November 2009

The Commission has received a request from ASTRA to delay making a final decision on the current Temporary Exemption application in order to consider a possible revision of the application in the light of recent industry developments and ongoing discussions with interested parties. The Commission expects a revised application by the middle of January 2010 after which interested parties will be asked to provide final comments.