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1) Objectives
2) Background - state of the art
3) European dimension
4) Achievements so far
5) Work to be carried out
6) Possible follow-up actions
A) Annex: work-plan and details of activities

In these first weeks of year 2002, the introduction of the Euro draws the attention of all the citizens, who feel that EU begins to be a reality. Next step of this path towards integration is helping overcoming the language barriers.
A powerful means is subtitling, less expensive and more effective than dubbing. Subtitling of films, at cinema or at TV or on DVD, in the original or other languages, lets the attention on the original source and allows better understanding of words and phrases used in their context. Subtitling of conferences or TV news, even only in the original language, helps in getting larger pieces of information.

These aspects are of the greatest importance for all the EU citizens and are vital for those with hearing impairment. The disability approach, on which the VOICE Project funded by DG-INFSO was based, was chosen in 2001 also for the Exploratory Research Project Development and harmonisation of subtitling in European television broadcasting, in view of collaboration with DG-EMPL in preparing the European Year of People with Disabilities 2003. Also DG-ENTR joined the proposal, with CEN/CENELEC, for a deeper overview and possible standardisation.
Both DG-EMPL and DG-ENTR look for IPSC collaboration on this project and DG-INFSO is also asking us to extend it to other forms of disabilities as well as to design for all approach. Even if all are convinced that the problem is more organisational and political than technical, all agree that technical solutions and harmonisation of approaches are the basis for future steps.

1) Objectives

The research proposes the development and the harmonisation of new multimedia applications for television broadcasters and DVD producers. More particularly, it will underline the importance of subtitling and suggest solutions that may help in increasing its use. Different actions will be taken in order to overcome a lack of information. In the first half of 2002, meetings with DG-ENTR, CEN/CENELEC and the European Broadcasting Union will prepare the floor for a Conference in Spain in June with all the European broadcasters. In the second half of 2002, the results of the Conference will be spread, while preparing with DG-EMPL the activities for the European Year of People with Disabilities 2003. Our role will concentrate on the technical aspects, in finding user needs and shortcomings of present systems and translating them into technical specifications.

The experience gained by the VOICE Project, the contacts and collaboration established with the European broadcasters, the workshops and meetings organised in some European countries and in Canada, confirmed the need of harmonisation in this area. Experiences started earlier, thanks also to groups lobbying and Government's help, obliged the Canadian broadcasters to define and follow common rules and extend subtitles to a target of 100% of the broadcasts. Also BBC and other television broadcasters are increasing their target's rate.

The aim of the proposed project will be to facilitate the access to information, offering citizens additional means to participate fully in the Information Society and improving the quality of life. The multilingual and supra-national aspects of such objectives correspond to JRC's role. Regular contacts with the broadcasters will also provide JRC with opportunities for spreading information on its activities.

2) Background - State of the Art

Speech is the most important, most complex and most human tool for communication and interaction. We build our understanding of the world and of each other on verbal language based interaction and communication. The Information Society is a fundamental theme for UE and the access to television, multimedia and the Internet should be facilitated for all users, by overcoming, at some extent, the language knowledge difficulties.

Subtitling is one of the most powerful learning and training tools of any language. By reinforcing what is being learnt by hearing, it offers a unique opportunity to enrich the vocabulary, getting familiar with words used in their context. For many citizens this applies for a second language, while for others it even applies for the first language. Subtitling is beneficial for the hearing people and for people with hearing impairment, at least for the large percentage of them non using sing language.

The number of people with hearing impairment is between 1% and 5% of the population (according to the degree of the hearing loss), which represents millions of people in Europe. Moreover, an important lack of communication also affects the disadvantaged, the people living in foreign environments and the elderly. When united this group consists of more than 30% of the total population.

Analogic and digital television, digital radio and communication via the Internet, as well as video-cassettes, CD-ROM and DVD, have an enormous potential for spreading information, news, amusement, self training, distance learning, tele-working. The impact of these means would be even greater if the multilingual aspects could be overcome by subtitling. (How easier would it be to follow a lesson or the news, if subtitled at least in the speaker's original language!)

One of the difficulties encountered by the producers is a lack of standardisation of subtitling and captioning and a limited knowledge of the final users' needs. Different national rules limit collaboration and files exchanging. Identical or similar formats and a common approach would contribute reducing the subtitles' translating costs and improving the quality. The final users would more easily switch between different channels, all presenting the same subtitling colours coding, positions and permanence time on the screen. The same aspects concern also CD-ROM and DVD, with additional possibilities of active learning and easier updating of lessons. (A list of some technical aspects is presented in the Annexe).

3) European dimension

• there are technical solutions, in use in some countries, often non considering similar or different solutions in other countries;
  
• an effort is required to promote common solutions at EU level, thus benefiting of large scale factor and taking care of multilingual aspects;
• this is even more urgent in view of the preparatory works for the EU Enlargement;
• IPSC can contribute in this field, by providing know-how independent of the language and support on EU Policy; as an impartial European R&D centre, it is in an ideal position to facilitate the dissemination of information and understanding of user-requirements; it may, at the same time, improve its visibility via several television broadcasters;
• the project would help European producers and EC Services to discuss with overseas countries and provide support, in order either to improve collaboration or to defend our points, in a world-wide market of high economic and social value.

4) Achievements so far

The VOICE Exploratory Research Project was followed by an Accompanying Measure, funded by DG-INFSO, giving ISIS the task of developing awareness among users, systems producers and services providers. We organised and presented VOICE at a large number of international workshops and congresses to approximately 6000 participants. The prototype demonstrator has been used for live subtitling the speeches, this being an important means of validation on the field. Workshops and meetings demonstrated the possibilities of the system to several European broadcasters, some of which broadcast information on the project. RAI started subtitling the evening news as an answer to the hearing impaired users' requests, supported also by means of the project. Contacts in Montreal provided additional valuable information, as the role of the Regroupement Québecquois pour le Sous-Titrage (RQST) and their political influence and lobbying.

The proposal for the Exploratory Research Project Development and harmonisation of subtitling in European television broadcasting was accepted in June 2001 and the funding was made available in October. Nevertheless the main steps foreseen for the first year have been reached in a shorter period (even if they have to be consolidated and extended):

• presentation in June to the InterService Group on Disability (ISGD) and collaboration with DG-EMPL in the redaction of the drafts of the Council Decision for the European Year of People with Disabilities 2003;
• meeting in June in Brussels with RAI and DG-EMPL for discussing of the activities that RAI could organise in Year 2003, particularly for the official closing of the Year under the Italian Presidency;
• presentation in July to the CEN/CENELEC standardisation meeting at ETSI in Nice;
• presentation in October to the RAI Workshop in Rome on television subtitling;
• short presentation in November at the ISDG meeting;
• short presentation at the 3/12/2001 European Day of people with Disabilities in Brussels; the same day the Council adopted the Decision on Year 2003;
• detailed presentation and discussion at a special meeting in December in Brussels with CEN/CENELEC and DG-ENTR, which asked IPSC collaboration in organising a conference with all the European television broadcasters to be held in Spain in June 2002, under the Spanish Presidency;
• interview on the project and broadcast by Espansione TV in Como in December;
• all along 2001, regular contacts with associations of people with disabilities, discussing their needs in the field of subtitling, helping them in spreading information and in obtaining funding (30000 Euro for AFA by Como Local Administration for the project La Voce che scrive for subtitling conferences by the VOICE prototype, plus a similar amount available from the Gallarate Lions Club).

5) Work to be carried out (Ref. also to the Work-plan in the Annexe)

• Find user needs and shortcomings of present systems and translate them into technical specifications, by:

• reinforcing the present contacts and collaboration with television broadcasters, subtitling firms, associations of users, lobbying groups, schools, universities, education and training centres, tele-working in several countries;
• preparing a few videocassettes with extracts from different subtitled broadcasts, comparing their approaches; exempla of best practice would help in this phase; collect information from USA, Canada and Far East in order to give a push to the collaboration in Europe, in underlining the common positives points, more than the differences;
• extending these contacts to other countries in view of the EU Enlargement;
• establishing new contacts with producers of CD-ROM and DVD.

• Organise, with DG-ENTR and CEN/CENELEC, a Workshop in Spain in June, under the Spain Presidency, with the participation of the European broadcasters and high level representatives of EC and EP. Previous contacts with the European Broadcasting Union in Geneva, discussing of the on-going activities in the different countries, rules and standards, enlarging the points of view, encouraging the transfer of information from countries which have considerable experience in the field to countries which are approaching it now.
• Disseminate the results, to EC Services, broadcasters, producers and to a wider public, by:

• workshops and television broadcasts by contacts via the EC InterService Group on Disability, promoting subtitling for the television presentations foreseen for European Year of Disability 2003; enhance the contacts with EP Disability InterGroup;
• the VOICE Forum on the Internet (which follows the current recommendations for creating Internet contents accessible by people with visual impairment or reduced mobility).

6) Possible follow-up actions

• larger diffusion of television and DVD subtitling;
• enlarging the market for new multimedia, improving the quality;
• education and training, distance learning, tele-working;
• defining new professional skills and creating new job opportunities;
• improvements for digital television, radio, multimedia, for all people with communication difficulties;
• series of television interviews and broadcasts on JRC activities in this and other fields.

A) ANNEXE: work-plan and details of activities

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