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Omneon is a leading provider of media server and active
storage solutions used to support the acquisition,
production, management and distribution of digital media
content. The company's products allow broadcasters and media
production facilities to streamline their workflows and
capitalize on the transition to a file-based environment.
With a proven track record of integrating IT and broadcast
best practices with advanced system architectures, Omneon
has established a leadership position in the market for
providing customers with infrastructure solutions that are
flexible, scalable, reliable and highly cost-effective.
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Free White Papers
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A Better Way to Closed Caption Compliance
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May 23, 2006
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Abstract
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After an eight-year transition, and much industry debate, the era of
television closed captioning has fully arrived. As of the beginning of
2006, due to a government mandate, most new English language broadcast
programming must include text captions for the deaf and hard of
hearing. It's the right thing to do.
Video program distributors--including all broadcast television
stations, direct-to-home satellite services, local cable operators, and
others that distribute video programming to the home--are responsible
by law for delivering captioned programs. In many cases, the production
of accurate captions will be the responsibility of program producers
and television networks.
Omneon Video Networks, with its history of helping content providers
meet the challenges of the digital television transition through its
flexible Spectrum™ video server architecture and peripheral
software, has developed an innovative approach that satisfies the new
mandate by adding new functionality to exiting Omneon servers for the
creation and handling of closed captioning data.
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After an eight-year transition, and much industry debate, the era of television closed captioning has fully arrived. As of the beginning of 2006, due to a government mandate, most new English language broadcast programming must include text captions for the deaf and hard of hearing. It's the right thing to do.
Video program distributors--including all broadcast television stations, direct-to-home satellite services, local cable operators, and others that distribute video programming to the home--are responsible by law for delivering captioned programs. In many cases, the production of accurate captions will be the responsibility of program producers and television networks.
Omneon Video Networks, with its history of helping content providers meet the challenges of the digital television transition through its flexible Spectrum™ video server architecture and peripheral software, has developed an innovative approach that satisfies the new mandate by adding new functionality to exiting Omneon servers for the creation and handling of closed captioning data.
The Mandate
In accordance with the Telecommunications Act of 1996, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) adopted rules in 1997 for the closed captioning of video programming. Those rules created an eightyear transition period that gradually increased the amount of available captioned programming. As of January 1, 2006, the transition reached the threshold where 100 percent of new English language programming must be captioned, subject to certain exceptions.
The FCC rules also created a transition period for the captioning of older "pre-rule" English language programming first broadcast prior to Jan. 1, 1998. In this case, captions must be provided for 75 percent of all nonexempt programming distributed during or after the first quarter of 2008.
Spanish language programming has its own schedule. As of January 1, 2010, 100 percent of non-exempt new Spanish language programming must be captioned. As of January 1, 2012, 75 percent of non-exempt Spanish language pre-rule programming must have captions.
The Basics
Closed captions resemble burned-in subtitles, in that the audio portion of a video signal is displayed as printed words on the television screen. Unllke subtitles, however, closed captioning is hidden as encoded data transmitted within the television signal, and provides descriptive information about sound effects, background noise, and other program elements that help contribute to understanding the story.
Viewers wishing to see closed captions must use a set-top decoder or a television with built-in decoder circuitry. Since July 1993, the FCC has required that all television sets with screens 13 inches or larger have built-in decoder circuitry. For the most part, this rule placed upon TV set manufacturers, has been satisfied in the marketplace
However, not all television programming is required to have captions. FCC exemptions extend to small program providers (with less than $3 million per year revenues); programs in a language other than English or Spanish; programs consisting mostly of music; and non-federally funded public service and promotional announcements less than 10 minutes in length. Additional exemptions apply to instructional programming; short commercials; certain non-news local special events; and programs shown between 2 and 6 a.m.
Pending issues range from the quality of captioning, the availability of trained captioners, the cost and monitoring responsibilities of broadcasters, web-based complaint procedures, and whether the less accurate technique known "electronic newsroom captioning" should be abolished in smaller broadcast markets. An example of a typical closed captioning set up found in broadcast operations today can be seen in the diagram below.
Unresolved Issues
Although the transition has moved to a mature phase, there are still unresolved policy issues involving closed captioning. When it adopted the initial rules in 1997, the FCC indicated that it would review those rules after closed captioning was implemented to determine whether its expectations were being met. The commission is now doing just that.
In response to a petition filed by Telecommunications for the Deaf, Inc. (TDI), the FCC is investigating a host of unresolved issues that could have a major operational and financial impact on broadcasters and content creators.
Electronic newsroom captioning creates captions from a news script computer or teleprompter and is commonly used for live newscasts in small broadcast stations. Only material that is scripted can be captioned using this technique. Therefore, live field reports, breaking news, sports, and weather updates may not be captioned.
Because of these limitations, the FCC decided to restrict the use of electronic newsroom captioning as a substitute for real-time captioning. Beginning January 1, 2000, the four major national broadcast networks (ABC, CBS, Fox and NBC) and television stations in the top 25 television markets (as defined by Nielsen) that are affiliated with these networks were no longer permitted to count electronic newsroom captioned programming towards compliance with their captioning requirements.
Now, the FCC is considering how and when this rule should be extended to other video program providers. Finally, the FCC's "pass through" rule requires video programming providers to "pass through any captioning they receive that is included with the video programming they distribute as long as the captions do not need to be reformatted."
However, the TDI has complained that the pass through rule is insufficient to ensure that captions are delivered in a complete manner. Complaints include the unfortunate fact that captions sometimes turn off before the end of national network programming; are often illegible; are frequently missing from reruns; and may appear on a national program in one locality but not another.
The FCC is examining whether it should adopt new mechanisms and procedures to prevent technical problems from occurring and to remedy quickly any problems that do arise.
Solutions for Full Compliance
The current FCC rules, coupled with pending initiatives that seek to ensure the quality and reliability of closed captioning, means that television broadcasters and program distributors must find better ways of streamlining the captioning workflow.
Although closed captioning can be a real-time process achieved via live translation, by far the most common implementation is an off-line process for later distribution. Even though program creators may provide distributors the actual captioning data, it is up to the individual broadcaster to ensure that captions are properly transmitted to the home viewer. Unless implemented properly, this can be a cumbersome and costly process.
Until recent years, this off-line captioning process was achieved using video tape machines. The typical workflow consisted of first generating the closed captioning data with time code reference and then inserting it on line 21 of the vertical blanking interval (VBI) with downstream equipment. The output video with closed captioning was then broadcast directly or recorded to video tape for later broadcast.
This same basic workflow is still used today. However, there's been a key change: in the modern television plant, video servers have replaced the video tape machine. The server has, of course, has enabled the workflow to be accomplished faster due its random access capabilities and the use of non-linear editing.
Omneon Meets the Challenge
With the importance of captioning now elevated by federal policy, better methods that won't break the bank are needed. Omneon Video Networks has developed a unique, cost-effective approach for dealing with closed captioning. It involves decoding incoming closed caption information and storing it as metadata in the media file. Then, through a set of simple application program interfaces (APIs), this metadata can be easily manipulated.
The scheme makes it possible to either add closed captions to a video clip, edit existing closed caption data, or replace closed caption data altogether.
Because the process involves only dealing with metadata, adding or replacing closed captions on a one hour video segment takes less than five minutes.
This elegant solution, which works with any Omneon server, allows closed caption data to be added to video content literally minutes before going to air. Changes can be made easily and quickly. For example, a language change could be made in seconds, avoiding the need to maintain multiple copies of the same video asset. This saves precious time and money.
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A respresentation of how the Omneon MediaPorts handle video, closed caption and audio data on a clip can be seen in the diagram above.
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In addition to the captions themselves, the metadata can be extended to carry such information as time of day, program name, program rating under parental guidelines, and transmission signal identifier.
Omneon's closed captioning solution stems from an ambitious internal engineering project to develop media APIs in order that third-party devices can gain direct control of all operational aspects of media servers. These APIs allowed automation systems to speak directly with Omneon servers, avoiding the need for gateways or translators. The adoption of the APIs, announced by Omneon in 2004, represented a dramatic departure from the protocol-based controls that were traditionally used to interface with early generation video servers. The result has been dramatically improved workflow and flexibility.
Many of the advanced capabilities of Omneon Spectrum systems are made available to broadcast applications via these APIs. These include clip manipulation after ingest--such as adding, replacing, labeling, or routing audio tracks; edit-in-place functionality that can create new clips from existing essence; and reading or writing metadata used by multiple applications. Add to these, of course, inserting or replacing closed captioning.
Captioning high-definition (HD) material is as easy as up-converting a file. Omneon's servers automatically upconvert and translate SD captioned material that adheres to the Electronic Industries Association (EIA)'s 608 closed captioning standard to HD (EIA 708) as it transcodes the video clip. The reverse process, going from HD to SD, is also true. That's because Omneon's MultiPort 4100 Series products facilitate both the 608 and 708 up- and down-conversion of captions, reducing the need for external encoders/decoders.
An overview diagram depicting this process can be seen on page 4 of this document. The Omneon white paper "Tackling the HD Challenge" at: www.omneon.com/resource_center/white_papers/index.html has additional in-depth detail.
Closed Captioning HD With Omneon
The Omneon's MultiPort 4100 Series products support both 608 and 708 up and down caption conversion. This reduces the need to inte grate additional external encoders/decoders to handle this function. An example of this functionality can be seen in the diagram below.
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Closed Captioning HD with the Omneon Spectrum and the Omneon MultiPort 4100 Series
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The benefits of this simplified and optimized workflow are enormous. No longer is it necessary to play out video material in order to insert closed caption data for a second time. Changes in metadata can be made in seconds.
For DTV, it is important to be able to use existing closed caption data in archived content. The ability to easily access previously encoded closed captioning as data simplifies this process. This data can also be adapted to support new services and even batch processing as needs develop.
Server-based captioning is also more robust and reliable. If captions become corrupted along the way, it becomes much easier to clean up the errors. In many cases, even completely corrupted captioning data can be fully recovered. That's a level of assurance only Omneon servers can provide.
Conclusion
Omneon's Spectrum broadcast media servers have long provided to broadcasters worldwide an important basic functionality, enabling program distributors the ability to record, store, and playback video, again and again, 24 x 7, without any dropped frames, failed drives, or dead air.
However, it's clear that the functionality of the broadcast server is rapidly expanding as the television industry transitions into the IT-centric era. Omneon's Spectrum media servers not only maximize the benefits of the IT workflow, but are built upon an open architecture that leverages a broad variety of third-party applications for automated ingest and playout, device control, media management, and archiving.
Now, add to the list a better way to cope with the challenges of closed captioning. Omneon's advanced solution helps broadcasters meet stringent new FCC rules by providing unparalleled flexibility in handling the closed captioning process while significantly reducing the potential for error. The powerful capabilities of the Omneon Spectrum broadcast server, combined with advanced captioning software offers a flexibility not available to broadcasters in the past with added assurance that captioning is present.
Omneon Contact Information
www.omneon.com | US Headquarters:
965 Stewart Drive
Sunnyvale, CA 94085
ph +1 866.861.5690
ph +1 408.585.5000
fx +1 408.585.5099 | Europe:
20 Campbell Court
Bramley, Basingstoke
Hampshire RG26 5EG UK
ph +44 (0) 1256.884.450
fx +44 (0) 1256.880.900 | Japan:
1-21-3 Ebisu, Suite #101,
Shibuya-ku, Tokyo, 150-001
ph +81 03.5488.7425
fx +81 03.5488.7433 | Asia/Pacific:
20 Loyang Crescent
Singapore 508984
ph +65 6548.0500
fx +65 6548.0504 | | Omneon, Omneon Video Networks, and the Omneon logo are registered trademarks of Omneon Video Networks, Inc. All other trademarks or registered trademarks are the property of the respective companies. Copyright ©2005 Omneon Video Networks, Inc. All rights reserved Printed in USA | November 2005. The information contained in this document is subject to change without notice or obligation. WPHD-051107 |
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