I passionately believe in equal access for every individual regardless of their abilities. Therefore, I was shocked to learn that over 80% of on demand services have no subtitles or audio assistance.
I am informed that the Government is working with the Authority for Television on Demand (ATVOD) and others to monitor the quality and the amount of subtitles and audio description delivered online via Catch-up and On Demand services. ATVOD published a report in 2014 on the level of subtitling, audio description, signing, and other services for people with disabilities relating to sight, hearing or both.
The findings of this report show that there is good progress being made, especially on websites such as 4oD, and the development of accessible services on apps such as Demand 5 and STV Player. However, ATVOD also said barriers remain and further work needs to take place between content providers, on-demand platform providers and broadcasters to overcome these barriers.
I know that the Government remains committed to seeing an improvement in the provision of accessible services for video-on-demand and will continue to monitor progress. Discussions are on-going to explore the recommendations of a joint paper publishes by sensory loss charities in April. The Government has been clear if these discussions and further surveys show that significant progress has not been made, then it will consider legislation in 2016.