Communication Access

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Ensuring communication access means every person is able to communicate and be communicated with fully and equally. Wherever communication is taking place, all parties must be able to participate--no matter what accommodation is needed to make that happen. 

What constitutes an accessible communication experience? What does it mean to ensure that communication access is provided? These and other related topics are open for discussion in the Communication Access group.

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Group Content

Discussion

#MakeYourVoiceHeard: Tell the FCC your experiences with the loudness of commercials on TV and streaming platforms

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is considering whether to update the Commercial Advertisement Loudness Mitigation (CALM) Act . The CALM Act requires commercials to have the same average volume as the programs they accompany. These rules apply to television broadcasters and other multichannel video programming providers. However, broadcast providers, unlike streaming platforms, must…

Recorded Events/Videos

Hearing Loop or Auracast? – Why Not Both?

“Hearing Loop or Auracast? – Why Not Both?” is a follow-up session to a series of "Hearing Access" webinars held by the European Federation of Hard of Hearing People (EFHOH). This recorded session brought together members of the hearing loss community, industry leaders, and accessibility advocates to discuss the coexistence of telecoil-based hearing loops and Auracast™ (Bluetooth® LE Audio).…

Recorded Events/Videos

Assistive Listening Systems and the Future of Hearing Access

The European Federation of Hard of Hearing People (EFHOH) and the International Hearing Loops Manufacturers Association (IHLMA) hosted a webinar series examining the role of Assistive Listening Systems (ALS) in improving accessibility for individuals with hearing loss. In this recorded session, a panel of speakers was invited to present the benefits, challenges, and future potential of ALS,…

Event

ETSI STQ Conference - Communications for All

ETSI STQ Conference: Communications for All, Supporting Diversity and Accessibility through Quality of End-to-end Network Transmission and Devices in Human-to-human and Human-to-machine Communication 13-14 May 2025 ETSI, Sophia Antipolis France The ETSI Technical Committee on S peech and multimedia T ransmission Q uality ( TC STQ ) is pleased to announce our conference on Communications for All.…

Discussion

Hearing Aid Battery Packaging

In response to the death of a young child, Reese, who swallowed a "button battery", the U.S. Congress passed Reese's Law in 2022 to improve the safety of button battery packaging, including hearing aid batteries. Subsequent "improvements" in battery packaging has added additional barriers to users of battery powered hearing aids, cochlear implants, and BAHAs. The Hearing Loss Association of…