Federal Communications Commission DA 22-287 DA 22-287 Released: March 17, 2022 FCC ANNOUNCES SECOND FORUM ON IMPROVING ACCESSIBILITY OF ONLINE VIDEO PROGRAMMING Forum Focusing on Audio Description will be held on March 28th GN Docket No. 21-140 By this Public Notice, the Federal Communications Commission (Commission) announces a virtual event, the Video Programming Accessibility Forum – Online Audio Description on March 28, 2022, from 1:00 pm to 3:45 pm ET. The FCC’s Media Bureau and Consumer and Governmental Affairs Bureau will co-host this second accessibility-related Forum focused on issues surrounding audio description. The term “audio description” references the insertion of audio-narrated descriptions of a television program’s key visual elements into natural pauses in a program’s dialogue. 47 CFR § 79.3(a)(3). Audio description makes television programming more accessible to individuals who are blind or visually impaired, and the Commission’s rules require certain television broadcast stations and multichannel video programming distributors (MVPDs) to provide audio description for a portion of the video programming they offer to consumers on television. Id. § 79.3(b). In 2020, the Commission updated its terminology to use the term “audio description” instead of the term “video description,” and the Commission’s rules make clear that these terms are synonymous. See Video Description: Implementation of the Twenty-First Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act of 2010, MB Docket No. 11-43, Report and Order, 35 FCC Rcd 12577 (2020); 47 CFR § 79.3(a)(3). Consumers currently watch a large volume of video programming online, but the availability of audio description online is inconsistent, even for video programming for which an audio description track already exists. The Video Programming Accessibility Forum – Online Audio Description will explore the state of audio description availability for online video programming, including current best practices and technical issues to overcome.  The Forum also will explore ways to enhance accessibility, such as voluntary actions to promote online audio description. The Forum will include two panels that will feature speakers such as television, cable, and online video programming distributors, as well as consumer advocates.  The full agenda for the Forum is attached. This is a public event and will be streamed live on fcc.gov/live and the FCC’s YouTube channel. We encourage the public and interested stakeholders to engage in this discussion by sending questions during the event to livequestions@fcc.gov. Up-to-date information regarding the Forum can be found on the event page: https://www.fcc.gov/news-events/events/2022/03/video-programming-accessibility-forum-online-audio-description. Commission staff will enter information about the panel, including all relevant public notices, the agenda, and a link to a video recording of the event, into the public record for this proceeding. The meeting will be webcast with open captioning and sign language interpreters at www.fcc.gov/live. Additional reasonable accommodations for people with disabilities are available upon request. Include a description of the accommodation you will need and tell us how to contact you if we need more information. Make your request as early as possible. Last minute requests will be accepted but may be impossible to fill. Send an e-mail to: FCC504@fcc.gov or call the Consumer and Governmental Affairs Bureau at 202-418-0530 (voice). For further information, contact Diana Sokolow, Diana.Sokolow@fcc.gov, of the Policy Division, Media Bureau, (202) 418-0588, or Joshua Mendelsohn, Joshua.Mendelsohn@fcc.gov, of the Disability Rights Office, Consumer and Governmental Affairs Bureau, (202) 559-7304. – FCC – VIDEO PROGRAMMING ACCESSIBILITY FORUM ONLINE AUDIO DESCRIPTION CO-SPONSORED BY THE MEDIA BUREAU AND THE CONSUMER AND GOVERNMENTAL AFFAIRS BUREAU March 28, 2022 1:00 pm ET FORUM AGENDA 1:00 pm: Introduction Holly Saurer, Chief, Media Bureau Agenda Introduction Hillary DeNigro, Deputy Chief, Media Bureau Overview of Relevant FCC Rules Maria Mullarkey, Chief, Policy Division, Media Bureau Featured Speaker Stephanae McCoy, Founder of Bold Blind Beauty and Abilities Crusader Audio Description Demonstration Satauna Howery, Award-winning Voice Actor and Audio Description Advocate 1:25 pm: PANEL A – Current Best Practices and Technical Issues for Online Audio Description Opening Remarks and Panel Moderator Will Schell, Deputy Chief, Disability Rights Office, Consumer and Governmental Affairs Bureau Panelists Martha Heller, Vice President, Government Relations and Regulatory Counsel, Paramount Global Sarah Herrlinger, Senior Director, Global Accessibility Policy & Initiatives, Apple Carl Richardson, Co-Chair, Audio Description Project, American Council of the Blind Lori Samuels, Senior Director of Accessibility, NBCUniversal Heather York, Vice President, Marketing and Government Affairs, VITAC 2:25 pm: Break 2:30 pm: PANEL B – Voluntary Actions to Promote Online Audio Description Opening Remarks and Panel Moderator Michael Scurato, Assistant Chief, Policy Division, Media Bureau Panelists Satauna Howery, Award-winning Voice Actor and Audio Description Advocate Karin Jue, Senior Director & Head, PBS KIDS Distribution Daniel Kocmarek, General Manager, Global Video Supply Chain and Content Operations, Prime Video Petr Kucheryavyy, Senior Manager, Accessibility Center of Excellence, Charter Communications Clark Rachfal, Director of Advocacy and Governmental Affairs, American Council of the Blind 3:30 pm: Closing Remarks Hillary DeNigro, Deputy Chief, Media Bureau