NEWSReport No. MM 95-115     MASS MEDIA ACTION             December 4, 1995

             FCC LAUNCHES HISTORIC INQUIRY ON PROMOTING CLOSED
           CAPTIONING AND VIDEO DESCRIPTION OF VIDEO PROGRAMMING

       The FCC has issued a historic Notice of Inquiry regarding two services that benefit
millions of Americans with disabilities: closed captioning and video description of television
programming.  The Commission seeks comment on the current availability, cost, and uses of
these two services.  It also requests the public's views on the appropriate means of promoting
the wider use of closed captioning and video description in programming delivered by
television broadcasters, cable operators, and other video program providers.  Legislation
currently pending in Congress would, for the first time, generally mandate the closed
captioning of television video programming, and also would require the FCC to study the
uses of video description.  The record developed in this proceeding will enable the
Commission to expedite the implementation of this legislation if enacted into law.
       
       Closed captioning provides important benefits primarily for individuals with hearing
disabilities by displaying the audio portion of a television signal as printed words on the
television screen.  Video description is a more recent innovation that benefits individuals
with vision disabilities.  It provides audio descriptions of a program's key visual elements
that are inserted during the natural pauses in the program's dialogue.

       There are presently no Commission rules regarding video description.  As for closed
captioning, the Commission has adopted a number of rules to promote closed captioning
technology.  In 1976, it adopted rules reserving line 21 of the vertical blanking interval for
the transmission of closed captioning.  In 1991, it adopted rules implementing the Television
Decoder Circuitry Act, which generally requires television receivers that are 13 inches or
larger to be equipped with circuitry capable of receiving and displaying closed captioning.

       The Notice of Inquiry, which was initiated by and coordinated with the Commission's
Disabilities Issues Task Force and Mass Media Bureau, seeks comment on the following
general issues: 
       
       1. The public interest benefits of closed captioning and video description;

       2. The current availability of closed captioned and video described television
programming, including the degree to which availability varies by program source, program
type, market size and other factors;

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       3. The potential impact of advanced television and digital technologies on the
availability of closed captioning and video description;

       4.  The cost of closed captioning and video description, as well as the current sources
of supply and funding for these services;

       5. The market incentives for closed captioning and video description;

       6. What if any measures the Commission should take to promote closed captioning
and video description; and

       7.  In the event mandatory requirements are deemed necessary, the general form that
they should take.  The item seeks comment on which entities should be subject to such
requirements, appropriate exemptions from any requirements, technical and quality standards,
transition mechanisms, and strategies to improve competition and innovation in the provision
of these services.

       Action by the Commission December 1, 1995 by Notice of Inquiry (FCC 95-484). 
Chairman Hundt and Commissioners Quello, Barrett, Ness and Chong.

                                  - FCC -

News Media contact: Kara Palamaras at (202) 418-0500.
Mass Media Bureau contact: Charles W. Logan at (202) 776-1653.