Misplaced Pages

Revision as of 21:53, 5 October 2006

A Video Relay Service (VRS) is a telecommunication service for deaf, hard of hearing and speech-disabled individuals that enables real-time two-way communication with telephone users. In America, the service is funded and regulated by the FCC.

How It Works

When an individual that uses American Sign Language, or some other mode of manual communication (such as Signing Exact English, Pidgin Signed English, Linguistics of Visual English, etc.,) to communicate wishes to place a phone call to a Hearing person (or vice versa) they use either a videophone or a camera-enabled device (such as a webcam connected to a broadband Internet-equipped computer) to connect to a Video Relay Service (VRS). The caller is routed to a sign language interpreter (known in this context as a Video Interpreter ) who is also in front of a camera or videophone. Once connected, the VRS user can give the VI the number to dial, as well as any special dialing instructions, if needed. The VI places the call and interprets in normal mode as a neutral, non-participating third-party. Put simply, anything that the phone user speaks is signed to the video user, and anything signed by the video user is spoken to the phone user. Once the call is over, the caller can make another call(s) or hang up with the interpreter.

As mentioned above, VRS calls are not only initiated by persons who communicate manually. Hearing people wishing to contact a Deaf, Hard-of-Hearing, or Speech-Disabled person can use their telephones to call the video interpreter, who will in turn contact the videophone user.

Some VRS services also offer:

• Voice Carry Over: Using their own voice instead of the interpreter's voice
• Hearing Carry Over: Using their own hearing instead of the interpreter's hearing
• Language Preference: Informing the interpreter to use either American Sign Language or Signed English
• Connecting to a sign language interpreter that can interpret into other languages, such as Spanish.

The History of VRS

Ed Bosson of the Texas Public Utility Commission (PUC) envisioned Deaf people communicating with videophones more than 10 years before the FCC mandated it nationwide. In 19?? Ed contacted Mark Seeger of Sprint and discussed the possibilities. Mark contacted Sprint technicians to see if Ed’s vision was feasible. They reported that it was, so Ed brought the idea to the Texas PUC. However, it took Ed a long time to convince PUC of ???. One by one, Ed’s supervisor, followed by the Commissioners became convinced that video relay should become a part of statewide Telecom Relay Service offerings. They authorized Ed to manage the first video relay service trials. Sprint was the first service provider to conduct the Texas video relay tests.

In 1995, the first trial was in Austin and was limited to four public call centers. The second trial occurred in 1997 and served ten cities in Texas. At that point, both Sprint and Hanwave Interpreting provided the relay service. And in those days the service was called "Video Relay Interpreting" or VRI. (Now VRI refers to Video Remote Interpreting which involves a remote interpreter relaying messages between parties who are in the same location.) Linda Nelson is credited with changing the term from VRI to VRS. Jon Hodson of Sorenson Communications worked with Ed Bosson during early stages and provided video conferencing software during the VRS trial in Texas.

In of 2000, VRS officially became available throughout the state of Texas. By of 20?? the FCC started reimbursing interstate VRS providers, so the Texas PUC no longer had to fund VRS. Hanwave Interpreting Service was bought out by CSD (Communication Service for the Deaf) so Sprint subcontracted with them. Sorenson Communications developed the D-Link i2eye videophone, which paved the way for Sorenson's customized videophones for the deaf -- VP-100 and VP-200. Because of Bosson’s work in VRS, Smithsonian Computerworld and TDI gave national awards to him.

The FCC's Role in VRS

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is the regulatory body for Video Relay Services (VRS). The FCC makes changes that directly impact VRS customers. The FCC oversees both Telecommunications Relay Services (TRS) and VRS in their effort to comply with the Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA) in providing equal access to individuals with disabilities. The FCC created the Interstate Telecommunications Relay Fund, currently overseen by NECA (National Exchange Carriers Association), to fund TRS and VRS services.

In addition to funding VRS, the FCC regulates how VRS companies and their employees handle calls. These regulations help to ensure that VRS calls are handled appropriately and ethically.

On July 14, 2005, the FCC issued rulings that include: 1) speed of answer requirements; 2) hours of service requirements; and 3) the funding of VRS video mail. First, speed of answer refers to the time it takes an interpreter to answer an incoming VRS call. The FCC has established a speed of answer requirement. As of January 1, 2006, VRS providers must answer 80% of their calls within three minutes. This decreases to two and a half minutes on July 1, 2006 and decreases again to two minutes on January 1, 2007. Second, hours of service refers to the hours of operation that a VRS provider is open. As of January 1, 2006, all VRS providers are required to stay open 24 hours a day - seven days a week. Finally, up until the FCC’s announcement, VRS providers were not reimbursed for providing VRS Video Mail. If a Hearing person called a Sign Language user, but there was no answer, the VI could sign a message and deliver it to the Sign Language user's e-mail, similar to an answering machine, but the VRS provider absorbed the cost. The FCC is now reimbursing providers for VRS Video Mail. On July 19, 2005, the FCC announced that as of January 1, 2006, all VRS providers must stop “calling back” when a customer hangs up before a VRS call is placed. In addition, the FCC indicates that VRS providers must only process calls that either originate or terminate in the US or its territories. For example, a person in Canada may use American VRS to call a person in America, but not another person Canada. Only Americans pay into the Interstate TRS Fund.

VRS outside the USA

Sweden was the first country to implement a public VRS fully subsidized by the government. 

The British Deaf Association (BDA) allows people who use British Sign Language (BSL) to communicate with Hearing people and vice-versa through this VRS: BDA-CSD VRS or SIGN VRS. To launch this service, BDA entered into a partnership with CSD, Inc. The service was initally operated as a free trial. Personal calls will be charged per minute and the cost will be approximately 30p per minute. A special discounted price will be available for consumers whose local council has set up a service level agreement with SIGNVRS. For users the payment can be arranged as subscriptions (similar to ‘top-up’ service with a mobile).

VRS trivia

• In 1998 Washington and Texas were the first states to test VRS statewide.
• Texas provided VRS through the Internet to Washington state.
• In North Carolina was the first state to provide a public site for state-subsidized VRS calls initiated by the deaf.
• America was the second country to federally subsidize VRS for all states after Sweden.
• Sprint/CSD were the first to provide trials and introduced the first VRS model at Deaf Way II in 2002.

Major Video Relay Service Providers

• AT&T VRS
• Hands On VRS
• Sprint VRS
• CSD VRS
• Nordia VRS
• CAC (Communication Access Center) VRS
• Hamilton VRS
• MCI IP-Relay VRS
• Sorenson VRS
• Lifelinks VRS
• Sign VRS

• Assistive technology