ABC & SBS launch Audio Description

From Sunday 28 June, ABC & SBS will be providing around 14 hours each of audio described content every week, for blind and vision impaired Australians.

This follows the Federal Government’s provision of grant funding to SBS and ABC to implement audio description by 1 July 2020 and recent trials by both broadcasters.

ABC audio descriptions will feature across select titles on ABC, ABC ME, ABC Comedy, ABC KIDS and ABC News.

SBS audio descriptions will feature on select titles on SBS and SBS VICELAND.

This includes an audio chime and on-air notification alerting audiences to audio description being provided for a program about to be broadcast.

Minister for Communications, Cyber Safety and the Arts Paul Fletcher, said: “The Morrison Government’s additional funding of $4 million for the ABC and SBS to deliver this innovation provides blind and vision impaired Australians with greater access to television content.”

“I’m pleased our national broadcasters are embracing new ways to serve their audiences and broaden the variety of content available to blind and vision impaired Australians.”

The ABC’s Managing Director, David Anderson, welcomed the new service to the ABC, saying it would be a game-changer for the blind community. “Since we began our trial of the service earlier this month, we have had a huge response from users,” he said. “People who are blind or vision-impaired will now be able to enjoy many of their favourite ABC Television shows alongside their sighted friends and family.”

SBS Managing Director, James Taylor, said: “We’re thrilled to be making many of SBS’s distinctive and much-loved programs available for more Australians to enjoy with audio description. SBS’s documentaries, dramas and movies take audiences on journeys around the world, create national conversations about issues impacting our society, and provide unique opportunities to be entertained. The launch of audio description is an important step in continuing to improve the accessibility of our content, and ensure more Australians are included and able to engage with and experience our programming.

“I’d like to thank the groups and representatives who have been consulting with us and advocating for the many Australians who are blind or vision-impaired, as well as those who have taken part in our research and provided valuable insights as we have trialled the service. This has been vital in informing our approach.  We continue to seek feedback from audiences to ensure we’re best meeting their needs.”

Emma Bennison, CEO of Blind Citizens Australia (BCA), has welcomed the launch, saying: “The introduction of audio description is a landmark step and life-changing milestone in making TV more accessible for people Australians are blind or vision-impaired.

“BCA and other blindness organisations have worked closely with both SBS and the ABC to facilitate their roll-out, and we acknowledge their commitment to providing a quality service that truly meets the needs of our community. We look forward more Australians now being able to enjoy TV with their family and friends, and the continued development of these important services.”

Manisha Amin, CEO of the Centre for Inclusive Design, said: “We are so pleased that ABC and SBS involved users in the design and testing of the new system. Given the different television sets and ways that we watch TV these days it was important to gain real feedback on what worked and what didn’t.

“It was clear from our research that people were keen to have a quality audio description service. This is the first step on the journey. It’s heartening to see both broadcasters taking an inclusive design approach to their services with audience needs at the core of their offering.”

ABC

More than a dozen ABC programs will be audio described on ABC, ABC ME, ABC Comedy, ABC KIDS and ABC News. The ABC, as well as SBS, will broadcast around 14 hours of audio described content each week.

ABC shows that will be audio described include: Back Roads, Gardening Australia, The Heights and Compass on the ABC Main Channel; Little J and Big Cuz, Bluey and Play School on ABC Kids; and High Fidelity on ABC Comedy. Repeat episodes of Four Corners, Australian Story and Foreign Correspondent will also be audio described and broadcast on ABC Main Channel as well as on the ABC NEWS channel.

Coming up in July is the documentary In My Blood It Runs, the BBC series Les Miserables, Bran Nue Dae, Rosehaven and Monty Don’s Japanese Gardens.

To ensure the new service meets industry standards and the expectations of the blind or vision-impaired communities, ABC and SBS partnered with the Centre for Inclusive Design to undertake research with users from across Australia. The research has informed both broadcasters on the best design and functionality of the service to make it as accessible as possible.

A full list of ABC’s audio described content can be found on the ABC TV homepage at TV audio description.

More information on the service and how to access audio description on your television set can be found on the ABC Help page.

Audio Description
Audio description (AD) is the auditory narration of a TV program. It describes important visual elements of a television program, movie or performance between lines of dialogue. It is particularly beneficial to people who are blind and vision-impaired.   As with Closed Captions, it can be turned on or off as needed.

SBS

SBS is making its programming more accessible for audiences with the full launch of audio description (AD) across a range of SBS and SBS VICELAND content on TV.

Audio description – the narration of visual and non-verbal elements of a program during gaps in dialogue – offers people who are blind or vision-impaired an understanding of what is being shown on screen. Flagship documentaries, compelling dramas, world-class movies, and cult classics that SBS is known for will feature in the selection of programming available on the live broadcast of SBS and SBS VICELAND channels.

The range of upcoming audio described titles being shown in June and July include the new SBS-commissioned documentary series Who Gets to Stay in Australia? which reveals stories of people seeking to call Australia home; SBS’s iconic genealogy series Who Do You Think You Are?; inspiring stories of multicultural Australia in Where Are You Really From?, presented by Michael Hing; SBS favourite Great British Railway Journeys; the iconic Godfather film series and 90s cult phenomenon The X Files on SBS VICELAND – plus much more.

SBS has been running a successful trial of audio description across selected SBS and SBS VICELAND programming since early April. During that time, more than 135 hours of audio described content have been shown and SBS has been seeking feedback from audiences to help inform and improve how it delivers the service.

SBS is also outlining the content it has coming up across SBS and SBS VICELAND on a dedicated audio described program listing web page, which is accessible for blind or vision-impaired people with the use of a screen reader. There will also be on-air promotion informing all audiences of what audio description is, and the letters ‘AD’ will feature alongside scheduled audio described titles in electronic program guides available on TVs, and on the SBS program guide on its website, in the same way closed captioning is indicated for audiences.

SBS and the ABC engaged the Centre of Inclusive Design to help advise on the development of audio description services, and to undertake research to help in understanding the requirements and preferences of people who are blind or vision-impaired.

Audio description can be enabled by changing the audio settings on a TV or set top box. Instructions for a range of tested models, and further guidance to assist people in setting up or disabling the service, is available online on the SBS website at sbs.com.au/audiodescription, where audiences can also access SBS’s dedicated audio described program listing web page.