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http://www.news1130.com/news/local/article/304760--pilot-project-for-deaf-loses-its-funding
Video Relay Services (VRS) have been helping deaf people communicate in the US for the last decade, but a pilot project which first brought the technology to BC in July 2010 will end January 15th.
VRS use videophones to allow an interpreter to see someone using sign language, and then translate the message to a person who can hear on the other end of the phone line.
BC VRS Commitee member Lisa Anderson-Kellett feels says the service works quicker than TTY systems where deaf people type what they want read over the phone. She adds the interpreters can also translate emotion.
"They can see my facial expressions, they can see how I'm signing; If I'm signing really quickly, if I'm excited. It's very clear," she explains.
Money from a Telus deferral account being used to pay for the pilot project will run out in early 2012. It's then up to the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) to decide if a funding model should be developed to return the service.
Shawn Hall with Telus, which partnered with Sorenson VRS on the project, says the company will recommend that the CRTC consider a long term funding strategy for VRS.
"The service is a lot more expensive to operate than existing relay services, so we're going to have to take a look at what the funding model is and figure out if there's way to make it work," says Hall, adding the pilot project cost several million dollars.
Anderson-Kellett sees the service withdrawal, creating a worrisome access issue. "We're not getting equal access for communication. It's just being taken away."
She suggests a surcharge on phone bills may be the best way to pay for the program in the future. "For example [the] 911 surcharge, they have it on top of your phone bill. That's just an example of what, maybe they can figure out to do something about cost recovery that way."
The pilot project has allowed more than 300 deaf people from BC and Alberta to access VRS.
Video Relay Services (VRS) have been helping deaf people communicate in the US for the last decade, but a pilot project which first brought the technology to BC in July 2010 will end January 15th.
VRS use videophones to allow an interpreter to see someone using sign language, and then translate the message to a person who can hear on the other end of the phone line.
BC VRS Commitee member Lisa Anderson-Kellett feels says the service works quicker than TTY systems where deaf people type what they want read over the phone. She adds the interpreters can also translate emotion.
"They can see my facial expressions, they can see how I'm signing; If I'm signing really quickly, if I'm excited. It's very clear," she explains.
Money from a Telus deferral account being used to pay for the pilot project will run out in early 2012. It's then up to the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) to decide if a funding model should be developed to return the service.
Shawn Hall with Telus, which partnered with Sorenson VRS on the project, says the company will recommend that the CRTC consider a long term funding strategy for VRS.
"The service is a lot more expensive to operate than existing relay services, so we're going to have to take a look at what the funding model is and figure out if there's way to make it work," says Hall, adding the pilot project cost several million dollars.
Anderson-Kellett sees the service withdrawal, creating a worrisome access issue. "We're not getting equal access for communication. It's just being taken away."
She suggests a surcharge on phone bills may be the best way to pay for the program in the future. "For example [the] 911 surcharge, they have it on top of your phone bill. That's just an example of what, maybe they can figure out to do something about cost recovery that way."
The pilot project has allowed more than 300 deaf people from BC and Alberta to access VRS.