Every country in Cullen International’s eight-nation survey of the Americas region requires some form of accessibility measures on TV. However, the national requirements and their applicability vary.
The benchmark shows that sign language for some TV programming is the norm in Latin America, except in Colombia (but Colombia required sign language for some news broadcasts during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic). Neither the US nor Canada have sign language requirements for TV.
Subtitled content is required on over-the-air (OTA) TV in all eight countries, while the US has imposed subtitling requirements on both OTA TV and all forms of pay TV.
Argentina and Brazil have imposed audio description requirements on OTA TV. The US requires audio description on both OTA TV and all forms of pay TV. In contrast, Chile, Mexico and Peru have no audio description obligations for TV at all.
Neither Brazil, nor Mexico, nor Peru require any accessibility measures whatsoever over pay TV.
For more information & to access the full benchmark, please click on “Access the full content” - or on “Request Access”, in case you are not subscribed to our Americas Media Service.
more news
06 February 23
Global trends to watch in 2023
A challenging 2023 seems inevitable, with multiple policy and regulatory issues expected to significantly impact telecoms operators, digital service providers and media companies. Cullen International research identified global issues affecting digital policy, regulation and law worth monitoring in 2023.
01 February 23
American countries work towards the adoption of 5G
The January 2023 update of Cullen International’s Americas spectrum regulatory benchmarks includes details of how eleven countries in the Americas are preparing for the implementation of 5G services. The research covers general spectrum policy, the specific regulation of spectrum bands and licences, spectrum awards and fees, and rules to promote the efficient use of spectrum.
20 January 23
EU Timeline: regulatory milestones for the first half of 2023
This edition of Cullen International’s EU Timeline highlights key regulatory developments foreseen at EU level until mid-2023.
latest tweets
follow usStay in touch
Subscribe to our newsletter for a free weekly summary of the latest regulatory news and analysis from the communications world.