Waivers of Accessibility Rules Granted by FCC

October 15, 2012—In October, petitions filed by the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA), the National Cable & Telecommunications Association (NCTA) and the Entertainment Software Association (ESA) were addressed by the Consumer and Governmental Affairs Bureau of the Federal Communications Commission [CG Docket No. 10-213]. The petitions were for class waivers of sections 716 and 717 of the Communications Act of 1934, as enacted by the Twenty-First Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act of 2010 (CVAA), and Part 14 of the Commission’s rules that require advanced communications services (ACS) and equipment be accessible to people with disabilities. Specifically, CEA requested a waiver until July 1, 2012 for Internet protocol-enabled television sets (IP-TVs) and video players (IP-DVPs) manufactured before July 1, 2016. Similarly, NCTA requested a waiver until July 1, 2016 for set-top boxes leased to customers and manufactured before July 1, 2016. ESA requested a waiver until October 8, 2021 for new or updated Class I, Class II, and Class III gaming equipment and software. Each waiver was granted in part with an expiration date of October 8, 2015.