Video relay service platform vendors Video Relay Services is based on three main factors: sign language interpreters, call center management (customer service, call center management), and platform provider (mobile app, servers).
Canada Canada's regulatory
Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) issued a policy order on July 21, 2009, requiring
Canadian telecommunication,
wireless service, and
VoIP providers to implement
IP-based text relay services by July 21, 2010, and also delaying a decision on the national provision of video relay services in both official languages (ASL &
LSQ) for three years. According to deaf-community organizations Canada is lagging far behind its neighbour, the United States, with respect to video relay service for the deaf, hard-of-hearing, deaf-blind, and speech-impaired. The Video Relay Service Trial Project, managed by Telus with Sorenson as the provider, ended on January 15, 2012. The trial project, which lasted for 18 months, was accessible for approximately 300 participants in BC and Alberta, and cost over $3 million (
CAD). The CRTC issued a policy order on April 22, 2014, deciding that VRS should be offered in Canada, starting as early as the fall of 2015, overseen and implemented by an independent VRS administrator (now the Canadian Administrator of Video Relay Service - CAV). The CAV opened Video Relay Service in Canada - named SRV Canada VRS - for registration on September 28, 2016 At first, SRV Canada VRS offered 12 hour weekday service (6 am to 6 pm Pacific Time, and accordingly for subsequent time zones) and 8 hour weekend service (8 am to 4 pm Pacific Time). Hours of service were progressively increased, first on April 3, 2017 and then on July 3, 2017. On October 2, 24/7/365 service started.
Denmark Denmark's video relay service is currently provided by TegnKom and 12K Studio (12K A/S). TegnKom was created in 2005 as project in cooperation with AMC Nord (Aarhus Municipality), and only offered to deaf people at their workplace. The service can only be used on Windows-based units with use-license for the preinstalled software (MMX). 12K Studio was created and financed in 2011 by the nationwide sign language interpreter company, 12K A/S. The service can be used on Windows-, OS X/iOS-, Linux- and Android-based units (pc, mac and smartphones) with Skype and/or FaceTime app. 12K Studio service is primary offered to deaf people at their workplace, but can also be used in private for free.
France There are five companies that provide VRS in France. On October 7, 2016, the Law for a Digital Republic (
Loi pour une République numérique) required telephone services to be accessible to deaf, hard-of-hearing, deafblind and speech-impaired persons, through the provision of VRS for sign language and cued speech, Text-relay and Speech-relay. The law splits the requirement among three key sectors: telecom carriers, large corporations, and public services. These companies cover the cost of service, making it free for end-users. The major carriers under the French Telecom Federation (
FFTélécoms) begin providing services in October 2018 through the
Rogervoice app. Large corporations and public services do not comply uniformly to the requirement, and those that do only provide partial compliance, usually relying on one of the 5 existing third-party providers (Sourdline, Deafi, Elioz, Acceo and Rogervoice). Legal compliance remains a challenge in France, with all parties being globally dissatisfied. In November 2021 a report mandated by the government and carried out by civil parties including NGOs and associations, drafts a list of proposals to improve services. With the focus being on end-users choosing which provider they'd like to make calls with (rather than carriers or call centers imposing a provider). The recommendations carry similar traits to the United States'
TRS program. As of 2024 the reform is still underway and is expected to be enacted by 2025.
Germany Currently, Germany has two providers of VRS and VRI: they are TeSS and TeleSign. TeSS was created in 2005 by the consortium of Deutsche Gesellschaft der Hörgeschädigten (German Society of Hearing Impaired), Deutsche Telekom, Bundesnetzagenteur (federal infrastructure regulatory agency), and several other associations. Deutsche Telekom provided the initial funding for feasibility project that started in 2006. The deaf and hard-of-hearing clients who use the VRS for private calls must enrol with TeSS and arrange the payment method. They pay 14 eurocents per minute for text relay and 14 eurocents for video relay. TeSS operates around the clock (24/7). TeleSign provides the combined video relay and video remote interpreting service for the deaf and hard-of-hearing clients at work. The clients must apply to the integration agency for videophones and funds. The subscription is 220 euros per month with one point seven euro per minute of video relay service. The integration agency restricts the monthly call volume to 100 minutes per client. TeleSign operates from eight in the morning to six in the afternoon. TeSS has added the work-related VRS/VRI as to countereffect the demand of integration agency to switch from TeleSign to "cheaper" TeSS service. Despite the availability of VRS providers in Germany since 2006, the VRS usage is very extremely low as compared to other countries (no more than 3000 clients out of 80,000 deaf people). The integration agency is notorious for rejecting the applications many times on "cost benefit" factor: the agency claims that some deaf clients do not make sufficient VRS calls per month to justify the cost or that the nature of employment does not warrant the need for VRS and videophones. The deaf and hard-of-hearing callers who use VRS for private calls do not receive any form of reimbursement for the VRS calls. The grassroot movement is gaining momentum in pushing for the free VRS in Germany to be subsidised by the government through the contribution from the telecom companies.
Norway NAV, or the Norwegian Labour and Welfare Administration provides the national relay service for Norway. The service started in 2008, and its usage is increasing.
Spain Video relay service exists in Spain since September 2009. The platform that provides this service is called Svisual. It allows Deaf people and Hard of Hearing people to communicate with hearing people. The service is provided in
Spanish Sign Language and in
Catalan Sign Language. Customers may download a free video software application to their phone or tablet, or access the Svisual web on their computer. The service works 24 hours a day, every day of the year.
Sweden Sweden was the first country in the world to implement a public VRS fully subsidized by the government. The service started as a pilot project in 1996 for ISDN videophones, but started to offer SIP-based services in 2003. Currently the Swedish video relay service is the largest in Europe with an average of 110,000 minutes every month. There is one national service for the country, which is procured by bids to the National Telecom and Postal Agency (PTS) every four years. The service is provided by Evantia Oy, with call centers in Örebro, Uppsala and Gotland. Customers may download a video software application from the service provider, use a web-based application or access the service using Skype and third-party SIP software.
United Kingdom Significan't (UK) Ltd, a deaf and sign language led social enterprise, was the first to establish an IP video relay service in 2004 in London. The SignVideo Contact Centre utilizes qualified and registered sign language interpreters and processed its 10,000th video call in 2006. In 2010 Significan't introduced the iSignVideo range of videophones and a web-based video calling service, the SignVideo SV2. This service is compliant with the concept of
Total Conversation. contactSCOTLAND BSL is the national VRS service for Scotland and it is free-of-charge for its users. The service was procured by the Scottish Government and it complies with standards for Total Conversation. In 2015, the Association of Sign Language Interpreters in the UK published a Best Practice Document on Video Interpreting.
United States In the United States, VRS services have been regulated by the
U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) since 2002.
Support for initial trials in Texas Ed Bosson of the
Texas Public Utility Commission (PUC) envisioned deaf people communicating with videophones more than 10 years before the FCC began reimbursing for it. Bosson contacted Mark Seeger of
Sprint Relay and discussed the possibilities. Seeger then contacted Sprint technicians to see if the proposal was feasible, and then suggested that Bosson bring the idea to Texas' PUC. It took Bosson considerable time to convince the Texas PUC and to enlist help from a lawyer in interpreting. He first convinced his supervisor and then, one-by-one, the PUC Commissioners that video relay should become a part of statewide
Telecom Relay Service offering. Bosson was authorized to manage the first video relay service trials, and Sprint became the first service provider to conduct the Texas Video Relay Service tests. Bosson would later receive national awards from
Smithsonian Computerworld and
TDI for his work with VRS.
Initial Texas trials In 1995, the first trial was run by Sprint in
Austin and was limited to four public call centers. The second trial occurred in 1997 and served ten cities in
Texas. At that point, Sprint and Hanwave Interpreting partnered to provide service. Jon Hodson of Sorenson Communications worked with Ed Bosson during the early stages and provided video conferencing software during the VRS trial in Texas. (At this point the service was called "Video Relay Interpreting" or VRI, which a name that now refers to
Video Remote Interpreting. Linda Nelson has been credited with changing the term from VRI to VRS.) Later, Hanwave Interpreting Service was bought by
Communication Service for the Deaf, and Sprint expanded their relay subcontract to include VRS services in addition to the established
TRS services. The tax on revenue is set by the FCC yearly and has been steadily increasing as the number of VRS minutes continues to climb. For 2007 the tax is 7.2/100ths of a penny per dollar of revenue, up from 3.8/100th of a penny in 2000. The current revenue tax of .0072 is expected to generate $553 million against telecommunications industry revenue of $76.8 billion. The fund is managed by an administrator who publishes the reimbursement rates paid to all relay providers. In addition to regulating the funding of VRS, the FCC regulates the standards that VRS companies and their employees must follow in handling calls. These regulations ensure that VRS calls are handled appropriately and ethically. The U.S. FCC-issued rulings include: • The time it takes an interpreter to answer an incoming VRS call. As of July 1, 2006, VRS providers must answer 80% of calls within two and a half minutes. Starting on January 1, 2007, VRS providers must answer 80% of calls within two minutes; • as of January 1, 2006, all VRS providers are required to provide service 24 hours a day, seven days a week; • reimbursement of VRS Video Mail: if a Hearing person calls a sign language user, but there is no answer, the VI signs a message and delivers it to the sign language user's e-mail, similar to an answering machine. Previously this service was not reimbursed and the cost was absorbed by the VRS provider; • VRS providers are not permitted to "call back" when a customer hangs up before a VRS call is placed; • VRS providers must only process calls that either originate or terminate in the US or its territories. For example, a person in Canada may use a VRS service in the United States to call a person in the United States, but not another person in Canada.
2005 U.S. FCC "Certification Program" On December 12, 2005, the Commission released an order adopting new rules permitting carriers desiring to offer IP Relay and VRS services and receive payment from the Fund to seek certification as a provider eligible for compensation from the Fund. The record reflects that other entities that desire to offer VRS have been unable to join a certified state program. (i) a description of the forms of TRS to be provided (i.e., VRS, IP Relay and/or IP CTS); (ii) a description of how the provider will meet all non-waived mandatory minimum standards applicable to each form of TRS offered; (iii) a description of the provider's procedures for ensuring compliance with all applicable TRS rules; (iv) a description of the provider's complaint procedures; (v) a narrative describing any areas in which the provider's service will differ from the applicable mandatory minimum standards; (vi) a narrative establishing that services that differ from the mandatory minimum standards do not violate applicable mandatory minimum standards; (vii) demonstration of status as a common carrier; and (viii) a statement that the provider will file annual compliance reports demonstrating continued compliance with these rules. The rules further provide that after review of the submitted documentation, the Commission shall certify that the provider of IP Relay, VRS and IP CTS is eligible for compensation from the Fund if the Commission determines that the certification documentation:
Issues in United States VRS administration • Numbering standardization competing VRS providers have incompatible numbering schemes. • Interconnection between the IP-based videophone network and the worldwide telephone network. • VRS providers encounter difficulties routing 911 calls to the appropriate
Public Safety Answering Point (PSAP). When a VRS user dials 911, the call is first delivered to the VRS, as with any other call placed. However, when the VRS interpreter attempts to connect with the user's local PSAP, the call is instead connected to the PSAP that services the VRS provider's location. Additionally, the information displayed at the PSAP will be that of the VRS provider, not the VRS user. In order to route emergency calls and accurate information to the appropriate PSAP, VRS providers can send the call information to a national call-routing service. This service determines the appropriate local PSAP for the VRS user and delivers the VRS interpreter's 911 call accordingly. The VRS user can then communicate with the PSAP dispatcher via the VRS interpreter, in order to receive the appropriate emergency services. The European Union improves access to emergency services 112 for people with disabilities. The REACH112 project intends to implement a 12-month pilot in Sweden, UK, The Netherlands, France and Spain allowing disabled users to communicate at a distance with each other and directly with the emergency services. • On November 19, 2009, the FBI unsealed indictments against 26 people charged with engaging in a scheme to steal millions of dollars from the Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) Video Relay Service (VRS) program. Arrests were made the same day by FBI agents and Postal Inspectors in New York, New Jersey, Florida, Texas, Pennsylvania, Arizona, Nevada, Oregon, and Maryland and were the result of a joint FBI, U.S. Postal Inspection Service (USPIS), and FCC Office of Inspector General (FCC-OIG) investigation into a nationwide scheme to defraud the FCC's VRS program.The indictments charged the owners, employees and contractors of several companies with engaging in a scheme to defraud the FCC's VRS program: • Viable Communications Inc., of Rockville, Maryland • Master Communications LLC, of Las Vegas • KL Communications LLC, of Phoenix • Mascom LLC of Austin, Texas • Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing Interpreting Services Inc. (DHIS), of New York and New Jersey • Innovative Communication Services for the Deaf • Tamara Frankel, Robert Rubeck, Benjamin Pena of Arizona • There have been no further reports of VRS fraud, waste and abuse from the FCC Office of Inspector General since 2011. == Technical details ==