Broadcasting Accessibility Fund 2022 Annual Report | Broadcasting Accessibility Fund

Table of Contents

1. Message from the Chair

2. Board of Directors

3. Highlights from 2022

4. Looking Ahead to 2023

5. Audited Financial Statements of the Fund

1. Message from the Chair

I am delighted to present our ninth Annual Report, highlighting the achievements of the Fund over the past year, and looking ahead to what promises to be a critical 2023.

The Fund was created as part of the tangible benefits package associated with Bell Canada’s acquisition of CTV. The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) approved its creation together with initial funding of $5.7M.

Our mandate (CRTC Broadcasting Regulatory Policy 2012-430) states that the Broadcasting Accessibility Fund:

“(a) Acts as an independent and impartial funding body to support and fund innovative projects that provide platform-neutral solutions to promote accessibility of all broadcasting content in Canada;

(b) Funds only projects that are incremental to the existing regulatory obligations of the broadcasting industry in Canada;

(c) Funds projects which provide practical solutions that tangibly increase accessibility in broadcasting and which, whenever possible, make use of inclusive design principles to promote accessibility at the earliest stages and in the most cost-effective manner for new technologies and applications in Canada; and

(d) Provides efficient and accessible service in English and French and provides documentation for grant applicants in the official language of their choice.”

This past year was the Fund’s ninth year of full operation. The Board of Directors met on four occasions, all by Zoom. The effects of the two-year pandemic continued to delay a number of projects, resulting in some rescheduling – particularly for those in academic settings which were for the most part closed in 2021 and into 2022. Nonetheless, six additional projects were completed in 2022, bringing the total number of completed projects to 36. Approximately three additional projects will be completed in by mid-2023.

The eighth round of applications to the Fund was launched and finalized, with grants awarded to three more worthy applicants. This brings the total number of approved initiatives to 41, representing $4.4M in grant commitments for projects addressing a wide range of gaps and challenges in accessibility to broadcasting content across a number of platforms.

The Fund is fortunate to have in place a group of nine experienced, dedicated Directors and a CEO/Funding Officer with exceptional expertise in the worlds of accessibility and communications. As he continues to report to and work closely with the Board of Directors and especially with our Grant and Governance Committees, Richard Cavanagh continues to demonstrate the leadership skills to take the Fund forward in overseeing projects that meet our mandate and to chart our course forward as we address on-going challenges in seeking a permanent place within the Canadian accessibility landscape.

With Richard’s increased focus on bringing new capital to the organization, the Fund is fortunate to have the skills of our Director – Projects, Research and External Relations Alena Wickware-Guay to oversee a wide range of projects, coordinate our presence on social media, and support Richard with Fund’s lobbying and communications activities. Alena’s growing responsibilities have enabled us to undertake more internal research, legislative and regulatory tracking, and background briefings. Alena is a true asset to our organization, and our future.

This is my fourth term as Chair of the Board. I am honoured to serve in this capacity, working with our dedicated Directors and staff to continue our progress in meeting the challenges of advancing accessible broadcasting content. I am confident that the leadership, skill, and commitment are in place to continue this valuable work.

Marcia Yale, Chair

2. Board of Directors

The Board of Directors governs and oversees the Broadcasting Accessibility Fund and approves all key decisions. The CRTC mandated that the Fund have nine Directors:

Four Accessibility Group Directors (one elected by each category of the Sight, Hearing, Mobility and Cognitive Groups);

Two Independent Accessibility Directors (elected collectively by all categories of accessibility groups); and,

Three Broadcasting Industry Directors (two elected by broadcasting industry business stakeholders, and one elected by broadcasting distribution undertaking stakeholders)

Stakeholders play a key role in the Fund, and will continue to do so going forward, as accessibility groups and the broadcasting industry have the opportunity to nominate and elect the Fund’s Board of Directors.

The Board met on four occasions in 2022: March 23; June 22; September 28; and December 45. The Board will continue to meet on a quarterly basis through 2022, by Zoom call.

Directors and Officers of the Fund for 2022:

Marcia Yale, Chair and Accessibility Director – Sight

Jerry Lucas, Treasurer and Accessibility Director – Mobility

Lisa Anderson Accessibility Director – Hearing

Gordon Fletcher, Accessibility Director – Cognitive Group

Rajesh Malik, Accessibility Director – Independent

Charlene Caines, Accessibility Director – Independent

Soo Kim, Broadcasting Industry Director - Business

Brian Perdue, Broadcasting Industry Director – Business

David Bennett, Broadcasting Industry Director – Distribution Undertaking

Richard Cavanagh – CEO/ Funding Officer / ex-officio

3. Highlights from 2022

The following six projects were completed in 2022, on schedule (based on revised timelines) and on or under budget:

NAIT Captioning and Court Reporting Diploma Online – Northern Alberta Institute of Technology - $100,000 - The NAIT Captioning and Court Reporting Program has upgraded its existing diploma program to an online format, delivering a web-based curriculum training in English-language steno captioning. Transitioning to an online format will increase the number of students able to enroll in the Captioning and Court Reporting Program and will result in greater captioning support for the broadcasting industry.

CapScribe 3.0 - Inclusive Media & Design and IDRC - $160.000. This project was built upon previous work undertaken in CapScribe 2.0, creating a more efficient workflow, an upgraded interface design addressing a wide range of accessibility needs, and integration with Learning Management Systems. Captioning and description modules are enhanced and also support for ASL/LSQ video along with new features promoting ease of use, French and Spanish language support, automation and team collaboration. This project is designed as a platform-neutral solution that is available online to support academic institutions free of charge in Ontario, as well as the first steps taken to market the product to broadcasters and other industries by providing software and training materials at cost.

Development of a method of automatic closed captioning quality subjective assessment using an AI Technology - Ryerson University - $79,984. This project saw the development of an artificial intelligence system to automate the assessment of live closed captioning by consumers, and to reflect the perspectives of Deaf and Hard of Hearing consumers of captioning was developed.

Continuing Education Course Series for Inclusive Media for Broadcast Production - Ryerson University - $119,636 - Five 8-21 hour courses were developed and delivered in various formats, with a key focus on live closed captioning, audio description, inclusive design, and the regulatory framework in Canada. The course series is now on the OSAP approved list for micro credentials, enabling a wider audience reach. The NER quality assessment process is being integrated into the advanced captioning course so that students are not only familiar with the process but also receive some practice assessing live captions according to NER. Students can then proceed to full NER training and certification after completing the advanced captioning course.

Producing Accessible Podcasts - Seneca College - $115,750. Seneca College has developed and is currently offering an accessible podcast production micro-credential course. This online course offers content creators the skills and resources needed to produce accessible podcasts (including topics that address a range of accessibility issues) and would offer students who are deaf and hard of hearing the tools to produce their own podcast content and alleviates a growing gap in online content accessibility. The curriculum was developed using Inclusive Design principles, ensuring that content is flexible and adaptable for all learners. This project included partnership with the Canadian Hard of Hearing Association.

Advancing the current state of accessibility to content in Canada by increasing the volume and breadth of sports content offered with American Sign Language – Canadian Broadcasting Corporation - $83,505. This project has greatly advanced the volume and breadth of content offered with American Sign Language (“ASL”). Research on best practices of signed content development, via review of current approaches and regulatory requirements, initiatives undertaken by other broadcasters, and focus groups with Deaf Canadians, have informed the innovative strategies incorporated during the 2022 Beijing Olympics and Paralympics in signed recap shows. New CBC production facilities, designed especially for ASL interpretation were used to record sign language interpretation and overcome several hurdles in ensuring a smooth and efficient production workflow, in a fast-paced environment with tight broadcasting deadlines.

The following projects remained in progress from previous rounds of funding:

Improving live captioning delivery quality with Artificial Intelligence – PAVO Digital Inc. - $131,216. This project will consolidate several captioning software tools into a single deliverable product, building on two previous projects funded by BAF. The final phase would complete the AI elements needed to bring a product to a Minimum Viable Product (MVP); an interface to support the captioning supervision role; development of a real time sentence prediction engine; full integration of the software into the PAVO captioning offerings; performance benchmarking; and system evaluation. The final step of this project is completing preliminary user testing Completion – Summer 2023

Accessible Infrared Remote Control App – Komodo OpenLab - $37,370. This project proposes a fully accessible mobile app that would allow users to add infrared remote control functions to a simple accessible interface that could be controlled by touch, voice or assistive technologies like switch access or screen readers. This app would work in combination with a commercially available infrared transmitter hardware and would allow users with limited mobility to control media devices (e.g., TVs, cable boxes, radios, stereo systems, etc.). – Fall 2023

Understanding User Experiences of Play-by-Play Captioning in Fast-Paced Live Sports - Canadian Association of the Deaf - $191,570 - Fast paced live sports continues to be one of the most difficult genres of programming to accurately caption with minimal loss of information. This project will examine how the presence and nature of play-by-play captioning of fast-paced live sports programming contributes to or detracts from the user experience and satisfaction of live sports programs. Completion – Summer 2023

Certificate Pilot Project (30 credits) in Inclusive Media with a focus on developing captioning and audio description skills - Université de Montréal (French-language) - $75,000. This project will see the development of the first inclusive-media certificate program in French offered by a Canadian university, to provide professionals with advanced training in closed captioning, sign language videography, audio description and scriptwriting techniques, and to support the broadcasting industry’s training needs. The certificate program would consist of 10 courses to be developed by Labo CinéMédias and offered by the University of Montreal’s Department of Art History and Film Studies for a one-year trial period. This project fills a gap in the broadcasting industry for the training and education of French-language captionists and descriptors available to the public. The University of Montreal has previously worked with Ryerson University on the latter’s inclusive media course series. Completion – Fall 2023

VD-Qual – English and French Described Video Writing Assistant - Centre de Recherche Informatique de Montréal (French-Language) - $134,405. The VD-Qual project aims to build a suite of diagnostic and correction tools for described video texts in order to improve their quality in both English and French. CRIM intends to deploy a demo version of VD-Qual on an accessible website, allowing users to submit a video description, either in plain text or in a “Timed text” format, and to view a highlighted video description and download the results for personal use. – Fall 2023

Under the direction of the Grant Committee and with guidance from the CEO, the eighth round of applications was completed, and three new projects were selected for grants. Our established process requires applicants to submit a Letter of Intent and complete a detailed application to the Fund if invited to do so on the basis of their Letter.

All applications were reviewed and evaluated by the Grant Committee. A total of $398,016 was committed to the following three new projects – most of which build on previous work undertaken with the support of the Fund – as approved by the Board of Directors in September 2022:

Optimization of Closed Captioning for Children with Disabilities - CBC - $107,467. With research partner CanChild at McMaster University, this project aims to advance the current state of accessibility to content for children with disabilities across three age groups: 2-6; 6-10; and 10-13. The results will inform the CBC’s accessibility strategy and help determine what solutions and opportunities are available and create a more inclusive audience experience. All results will be shared with the CRTC and other organizations that provide content for children with disabilities, via a report of the research findings, a policy brief, and a web project page of all materials to be shared with others.

Accessible Sign Language Animation Prototype with Technical and Pedagogical Guidelines designed to Benefit Animation Companies and Broadcasters – Canadian Cultural Society of the Deaf - $120,000. This initiative will research and deliver an animated sign language character prototype model and publicly available best practices Technical and Pedagogical Guide for Accessible Broadcast Sign Language Animation. Partnership with expertise from Deaf community leaders and sign language linguists, paired with technical animation experts will lead to the first best practice guide for accessible sign language animation for animation companies and broadcasters. The technical focus is to apply motion capture technology in order to explore ways to animate ASL movements. Research findings will be shared with the animation industry and would be presented at key animation creator events (e.g., the Toronto Animation Arts Festival, Toronto Comic Arts Festival, Ottawa International Animation Festival, Youth Media Alliance / Alliance Médias Jeunesse, SIGGRAPH and Kidscreen). The best practice guide will be made available on the CCSD website.

Measuring Caption Quality for Automatically Generated Captions: NER and CAIS Comparative Evaluation, Enhancement and Integration – PAVO Digital Inc. - $123,251. Building upon previously funded projects – specifically, the NER Evaluator Project (Keeble Media, Round 4) and Caption Quality Assessment Intelligent System or CAIS (Ryerson University, Round 6) – this project seeks to compare and integrate these two captioning assessment tools. These tools would be advanced to reflect quantitative errors in addition to subjective Deaf/Hard of Hearing viewer perspectives, particularly for auto-generated captions. This project would ensure that the Canadian NER, the CRTC-mandated method of live caption evaluation, presents accurate and fair results regardless of caption method.

With the assistance of legal counsel, the Fund developed a series of Project Funding Agreements, one with each recipient, setting out project obligations contractually, and tying grant payments to project milestones. Projects were launched in late 2022 and early 2023.

It is anticipated that the ninth round of grants will be delayed beyond the traditional February 1, 2023, launch as the Fund seeks additional capital.

With respect to the Committees of the Board, the Governance Committee continued to meet with the CEO monthly to discuss progress and overall direction of the Fund. The Grant Committee met frequently in 2022 to guide the overall grant application process, conducting significant work in the detailed planning required to launch and complete the eighth round of applications. The Audit Committee met to review audited financial statements and make recommendations about the financial operations of the Fund.

The 2022 Board Nominations and Election process commenced early in the year. Two Directors are eligible for renomination at the 2023 AGM.

With respect to our strategy for Capital Growth, 2022 was a pivotal year for the Fund.

Bill C-11, The Online Streaming Act was introduced in February 2022, as the successor legislation to Bill C-10, which died on the order paper with the 2021 federal election. The goals of Bill C-11 remained intact, to better reflect and increase diversity in the broadcasting system – including programming that is accessible “without barriers” to Canadians with disabilities – and to bring new funding to the system by capturing online undertakings such as Netflix and Amazon.

The Bill also advanced the regulatory powers of the CRTC to enforce the new financial obligations of online streaming services.

Throughout the course of 2022, the Fund was extremely active as the legislation moved through various phases of review in both the House and the Senate. The CEO and Director – Projects, Research and External Relations met with senior staff from a number of federal departments and agencies; met with elected officials from the House and Senate Committees examining the Bill; delivered submissions on the Bill to both Committees; and, to enhance our strategy retained the professional services of Montcalm Management Inc. as advisors to our lobbying efforts.

The Bill ultimately received Royal Assent in April 2023 and the CRTC launched its first round of consultations on implementing the legislation shortly after. Importantly, the language supporting accessibility without barriers remained intact throughout the entire legislative process.

The Fund was also very active in advocating for a contribution from the federal government through the 2023 Federal Budget. Our efforts throughout both the C-11 and budget processes significantly elevated the visibility of the Fund, enhancing our reputation as a key player within the Canadian accessibility and diversity landscape.

As part of the Fund’s efforts, we developed a new document summarizing our achievements to date and the work required to eliminate barriers to content accessibility.

The Fund was also active – and exercised maximum diplomacy – throughout the process guiding the acquisition of Shaw Communications by Rogers Communications.

The Fund successfully ensured that the tangible benefits flowing from the transaction would increase from a proposed $350,000 over seven years to $726,000 over three years.

Although the acquisition of Shaw’s broadcasting assets by Rogers was concluded in June 2022, the wireless side of the deal was delayed by several months – effectively delaying the approval by government of the entire transaction. The federal government ultimately gave its approval in the first quarter of 2023, guaranteeing the flow of $242,000 to the Fund for each of 2023, 2024 and 2025.

With respect to personnel, Ms. Catherine Morisset was retained as the Fund’s bookkeeper in 2017 and continues to provide stellar service to the Fund. As noted, Ms. Alena Wickware-Guay served as our Project Manager 2022 (promoted to Director in January 2023) and has provided significant skill and expertise in other areas of our organization, including an expanded presence in social media and wider promotion of our work, our accomplishments and our continuing goals.

4. Looking ahead to 2023

The Broadcasting Accessibility Fund anticipates that 2023 will be a pivotal year for establishing the future of the organization.

At present, the Fund’s Grant Program has been placed on hold, pending the influx of sufficient funding to re-start the cycle. While the Fund has sufficient resources to maintain operations and complete all projects that are currently in the field, the ninth round of funding will commence when finances permit.

Working with the Board of Directors and particularly with the Governance Committee, the CEO will spearhead efforts to attract additional financial resources to the Fund. While funding from Rogers is guaranteed for three years, it is critical that an adequate flow of capital emerges from the CRTC implementation of Bill C-11. This process will involve considerable effort throughout 2023.

The Board of Directors will continue to meet quarterly to oversee the Fund’s direction and fulfilment of its mandate. The Governance Committee will meet with the CEO/Funding Officer each month to discuss the needs and direction of his office.

The Grant Committee will reconvene once a new round of funding is underway.

A focus on results and the impact of the Fund on addressing gaps in content accessibility will remain a pivotal part of our efforts in seeking additional capital for the Fund.

The Nominating Committee will oversee the process of nominations and elections of Directors to the Board where members’ terms are expiring. The process for 2024 will begin later in 2023, as five Directors (three Accessibility Directors and two Broadcasting Directors) will leave the Board as of June 2024.

The Audit Committee will continue to guide the financial health of the Fund. The Fund is required to limit administrative expenses to no more than 5 percent of the total fund, with Directors’ expenses limited to 1 percent of the total fund. The Fund will remain fiscally responsible in adhering to the established limits on spending.

5. Financial Statements

Final Financial Statements - BAF 2023.06.01

6. Contact Information

Richard Cavanagh

CEO/Funding Officer

Broadcasting Accessibility Fund/Fonds pour

l'accessibilité de la radiodiffusion

(613) 915-5575

richard@baf-far.ca

www.baf-far.ca

Broadcasting Accessibility Fund 2021 Annual Report

Table of Contents

1. Message from the Chair

2. Board of Directors

3. Highlights from 2021

4. Looking Ahead to 2022

5. Audited Financial Statements of the Fund

1. Message from the Chair

I am delighted to present our ninth Annual Report, highlighting the achievements of the Fund over the past year, and looking ahead to what promises to be a critical 2022.

Our mandate (CRTC Broadcasting Regulatory Policy 2012-430) states that the Broadcasting Accessibility Fund:

(b) Funds only projects that are incremental to the existing regulatory obligations of the broadcasting industry in Canada;

(d) Provides efficient and accessible service in English and French and provides documentation for grant applicants in the official language of their choice.”

This past year was the Fund’s eighth year of full operation, and the global coronavirus pandemic continued to present a number of challenges to our organization. The Board of Directors met on four occasions, all by conference call as COVID-19 did not permit travel for a face-to-face meeting. The pandemic continued to delay a number of projects, resulting in some rescheduling – particularly for those in academic settings which were for the most part closed in 2021. Nonetheless, six additional projects were completed in 2021, bringing the total number of completed projects to 30. Approximately three additional projects will be completed in the first quarter of 2022.

The seventh round of applications to the Fund was launched and finalized, with grants awarded to four more worthy applicants. This brings the total number of approved initiatives to 40, representing $4.1M in grant commitments for projects addressing a wide range of gaps and challenges in accessibility to broadcasting content across a number of platforms.

With Richard’s increased focus on bringing new capital to the organization, the Fund is fortunate to have the skills of Project Manager Alena Wickware-Guay to oversee a wide range of projects, coordinate our presence on social media, and support Richard with Fund’s lobbying and communications activities. Alena’s growing responsibilities have enabled us to undertake more internal research, legislative and regulatory tracking, and background briefings. Alena is a true asset to our organization, and our future.

This is my third term as Chair of the Board. I am honoured to serve in this capacity, working with our dedicated Directors and staff to continue our progress in meeting the challenges of advancing accessible broadcasting content. I am confident that the leadership, skill, and commitment are in place to continue this valuable work.

Marcia Yale, Chair

2. Board of Directors

The Board of Directors governs and oversees the Broadcasting Accessibility Fund and approves all key decisions. The CRTC mandated that the Fund have nine Directors:

Four Accessibility Group Directors (one elected by each category of the Sight, Hearing, Mobility and Cognitive Groups);
Two Independent Accessibility Directors (elected collectively by all categories of accessibility groups); and,
Three Broadcasting Industry Directors (two elected by broadcasting industry business stakeholders, and one elected by broadcasting distribution undertaking stakeholders)

The Board met on four occasions in 2021: March 31; June 16; September 29; and December 15. The Board will continue to meet on a quarterly basis through 2022, by Zoom call.

Directors and Officers of the Fund for 2021:

Marcia Yale, Chair and Accessibility Director – Sight

Jerry Lucas, Treasurer and Accessibility Director – Mobility

Lisa Anderson Accessibility Director – Hearing

Gordon Fletcher, Accessibility Director – Cognitive Group

Rajesh Malik, Accessibility Director – Independent

Charlene Caines, Accessibility Director – Independent

Soo Kim, Broadcasting Industry Director - Business

Brian Perdue, Broadcasting Industry Director – Business

David Bennett, Broadcasting Industry Director – Distribution Undertaking

Richard Cavanagh – CEO/ Funding Officer / ex-officio

3. Highlights from 2021

The following six projects were completed in 2021, on schedule (based on revised timelines) and on or under budget:
- Universal Intelligent Assistive Devices for Media Content Accessibility - Carleton University - $67,000 – Will design and develop a generic, modular class of systems called Intelligent Assistive Devices focused on improving accessibility to content for people with mobility disabilities. Technical objectives include the developing of sensing modules; a core platform interface between different input devices and media systems like Apple TV; and intelligent tuning systems to adapt to specific user needs. Designs consider the rapid technology changes in media devices.
- French-language Video and Video Description - Centre de Recherche Informatique de Montreal (CRIM) (French language project) $137,894 - This project utilizes a machine learning method known as Deep Learning to the automatic production of French-language Described Video. The project would compile a French-language video description dataset and compare it with the dataset already produced in English. The objective of the project is to compile a set of annotated French-language videos called VVD (video and VD).
- Providing transcription for Radio-Canada content: a forward-looking project for Francophone Canadians living with hearing impairments - Radio Canada (French language project) $103,550 - A functional prototype will be developed for generating automated transcripts for audio programming. A key focus will be to find solutions to the challenges of transcribing audio into French text and integrate audio transcripts into the production flow of radio programming. The trial program for transcription will be Aujourd’hui l’histoire (Today in History), a half-hour series that runs Monday to Friday on Radio-Canada’s main radio network.
- Evaluation and testing of Langue des Signes Québéquoise content: A first step towards developing signed content at Radio-Canada - Radio-Canada (French language) - $31,800. This initiative will explore promising opportunities for signed content in Langue des Signes Québéquoise (LSQ). It involves conducting research to determine the status of LSQ users and identify: (1) their content needs, (2) initiatives that have led to signed content at the national and international levels and (3) current approaches to signing audio and video content. This research will offer a better understanding of the role that LSQ can play for consumers by researching the current level of LSQ content availability, the interests and needs of consumers and current solutions for integrating LSQ into audio and video media. These results are intended to serve as the basis for Radio-Canada’s future development of a relevant, useful and financially sustainable LSQ content strategy, and results will be openly shared with other broadcasters and organizations interested in LSQ content development.
- Development of a method of automatic closed captioning quality subjective assessment using an AI Technology – Ryerson University -$79,984 - Development of an artificial intelligence system to automate the assessment of live closed captioning by consumers, and to reflect the perspectives of Deaf and Hard of Hearing consumers of captioning. This system will allow broadcasters access to a cost-effective way to include the perspectives of Deaf and Hard of Hearing audiences in the assessment of captioning quality, as a compliment to human assessment.
- Accessibility as Aesthetic in Broadcast Media: Three Disability-Led Films – Humber College - $131,481 - Three fully accessible films led by filmmakers with disabilities, will inform the Canadian broadcasting industry of the importance and value of inclusive design. The project will raise the profile of inclusion through the perspectives offered in the three films. The project stems from the Making Accessible Media course that was originally funded by BAF and became a permanent part of Humber’s course offerings in the School of Media Studies and Information Technology.

The following projects remained in progress from previous rounds of funding:
- Continuing Education Course Series for Inclusive Media for Broadcast Production - Ryerson University - $119,636 - A continuing education course series focused on inclusive design for broadcast production, with a key focus on the instruction of re-speaking techniques for live closed captioning, and audio description techniques including scripting will be developed. Completion – Spring 2022
- CapScribe 3.0 - Inclusive Media & Design and IDRC - $160.000. This project will build upon previous work undertaken in CapScribe 2.0 by creating a more efficient workflow, an upgraded interface design addressing a wide range of accessibility needs, and pilot integration with Learning Management Systems. Captioning and description modules will be enhanced and support for ASL/LSQ video will be provided along with new features promoting ease of use, automation and team collaboration. This project is designed as a platform-neutral solution that would support academic institutions, as well as broadcasters and other industries by providing software and training materials freely. Completion – Summer 2022
- NAIT Captioning and Court Reporting Diploma Online – Northern Alberta Institute of Technology - $100,000 - The NAIT Captioning and Court Reporting Program will convert the existing diploma program to an online format, to deliver a web-based curriculum training in English-language steno captioning. Transitioning to an online format will increase the number of students able to enroll in the Captioning and Court Reporting Program and will result in greater captioning support for the broadcasting industry. Completion: Early 2022
- Improving live captioning delivery quality with Artificial Intelligence – PAVO Digital Inc. - $131,216. This project will consolidate several captioning software tools into a single deliverable product, building on two previous projects funded by BAF. The final phase would complete the AI elements needed to bring a product to market, including the role of captioners as supervisors of AI-based speech to text outputs; an interface to support the captioning supervision role; development of a real time sentence prediction engine; full integration of the software into the PAVO captioning offerings; performance benchmarking; and system evaluation. Completion – Fall 2022
- Understanding User Experiences of Play-by-Play Captioning in Fast-Paced Live Sports - Canadian Association of the Deaf - $191,570 - Fast paced live sports continues to be one of the most difficult genres of programming to accurately caption with minimal loss of information. This project will examine how the presence and nature of play-by-play captioning of fast-paced live sports programming contributes to or detracts from the user experience and satisfaction of live sports programs. Completion – Spring 2023
- Certificate Pilot Project (30 credits) in Inclusive Media with a focus on developing captioning and audio description skills - Université de Montréal (French-language) - $75,000. This project will see the development of the first inclusive-media certificate program in French offered by a Canadian university, to provide professionals with advanced training in closed captioning, sign language videography, audio description and scriptwriting techniques, and to support the broadcasting industry’s training needs. The certificate program would consist of 10 courses to be developed by Labo CinéMédias and offered by the University of Montreal’s Department of Art History and Film Studies for a one-year trial period. This project fills a gap in the broadcasting industry for the training and education of French-language captionists and descriptors available to the public. The University of Montreal has previously worked with Ryerson University on the latter’s inclusive media course series. Completion – Spring 2023

Under the direction of the Grant Committee and with guidance from the CEO, the eighth round of applications was completed, and four new projects were selected for grants. Our established process requires applicants to submit a Letter of Intent and complete a detailed application to the Fund if invited to do so on the basis of their Letter.

All applications were reviewed and evaluated by the Grant Committee. A total of $371,000 was committed to the following four new projects – most of which build on previous work undertaken with the support of the Fund – as approved by the Board of Directors in September 2021:
- Advancing the current state of accessibility to content in Canada by increasing the volume and breadth of sports content offered with American Sign Language – Canadian Broadcasting Corporation - $83,505. This project aims to advance the current state of accessibility of the CBC’s broadcasting content by increasing the volume and breadth of content offered with American Sign Language (“ASL”). Research on best practices of signed content development, via review of current approaches and regulatory requirements, initiatives undertaken by other broadcasters, and focus groups with Deaf Canadians, will inform new strategies incorporated during the 2022 Beijing Olympics and Paralympics in signed recap shows. New CBC production facilities, designed especially for ASL interpretation, will be used to record sign language interpretation.
- VD-Qual – English and French Described Video Writing Assistant - Centre de Recherche Informatique de Montréal (French-Language) - $134,405. The VD-Qual project aims to build a suite of diagnostic and correction tools for described video texts in order to improve their quality in both English and French. CRIM intends to deploy a demo version of VD-Qual on an accessible website, allowing users to submit a video description, either in plain text or in a “Timed text” format, and to view a highlighted video description and download the results for personal use.
- Accessible Infrared Remote Control App – Komodo OpenLab - $37,370. This project proposes a fully accessible mobile app that would allow users to add infrared remote control functions to a simple accessible interface that could be controlled by touch, voice or assistive technologies like switch access or screen readers. This app would work in combination with a commercially available infrared transmitter hardware and would allow users with limited mobility to control media devices (e.g., TVs, cable boxes, radios, stereo systems, etc.).
- Producing Accessible Podcasts - Seneca College - $115,750. Seneca College proposes the development of an accessible podcast production micro-credential course. This online course would offer content creators the skills and resources needed to produce accessible podcasts (including topics that address a range of accessibility issues) and would offer students who are deaf and hard of hearing the tools to produce their own podcast content and would alleviate a growing gap in online content accessibility. The curriculum will be developed using Inclusive Design principles, ensuring that content is flexible and adaptable for all learners. This project will include partnership with the Canadian Hard of Hearing Association.

With the assistance of legal counsel, the Fund developed a series of Project Funding Agreements, one with each recipient, setting out project obligations contractually, and tying grant payments to project milestones. Projects were launched in late 2021 and early 2022.

Continuing the Grant Committee’s recommendation for a predictable, annual cycle of funding, the eighth round of funding will begin with a Call for Letters of Intent on February 1, 2022.

With respect to the Committees of the Board, the Governance Committee continued to meet with the CEO monthly to discuss progress and overall direction of the Fund. The Grant Committee met frequently to guide the overall grant application process, conducting significant work in the detailed planning required to launch and complete the sixth round of applications. The Audit Committee met to review audited financial statements and make recommendations about the financial operations of the Fund.

To ensure a smooth and timely process, the 2021 Board Nominations and Election process was launched in late 2020. All nominations were reviewed by the Nominating Committee prior to their formal appointment to the Board at the June 2021 AGM.

The 2022 Board Nominations and Election process commenced early in the year. Five Directors are eligible for renomination at the 2022 AGM.

With respect to our strategy for Capital Growth, two core documents were updated regularly and delivered to a range of audiences. “Meeting the Challenges of Content Accessibility” and “Projects and their Impact” were drafted by staff and widely promoted to multiple audiences, including consumer groups, broadcasters, other stakeholder groups, the CRTC and government agencies. A combined Project Showcase document was posted to our website.

While the pandemic continued to slow government’s legislative agenda – where priorities continued to be squarely focused on economic, social and public health measures to address COVID-19 – the federal government introduced new legislation in 2021 (Bill C-10) proposing a series of amendments to the Broadcasting Act that would require online broadcasters such as Netflix and Amazon to make significant contributions to the Canadian broadcasting system.

The Act would be updated to better reflect Canadian diversity and (as an element of this) would mandate that programming be accessible without barriers to persons with disabilities. The legislation would mandate that the system as a whole should serve the needs and interests of Canadians with diverse abilities and disabilities.

The Act would be updated to capture “online undertakings”, i.e. online content services operating in Canada such as Netflix, Amazon Prime, Gem, Crave and others. Although they would not require licensing, they would be required to make contributions to the Canadian broadcasting system and elements of support for that system. The summary notes that if online broadcasters are required to make contributions at the same rate as traditional broadcasters, amounts could reach $830 million annually by 2023.

Under the proposed legislation, Cabinet can issue direction to the CRTC on a range of key priorities, including which online broadcasters should make contributions, the level of contribution required and support mechanisms for diversity and inclusion. This includes measures to support content accessibility for persons with disabilities.

The CRTC would be directed to develop the appropriate regulatory framework for online broadcasters and will have the additional power to impose “conditions of service” for online broadcasters.

While the Bill died on the order paper with the Fall 2021 federal election call, the new Liberal government committed to similar legislation with the first 100 days it is mandate.

In addition, the Fund is a likely recipient of tangible benefits flowing from the proposed acquisition of the broadcasting assets of Shaw Communications by Rogers Communications. The amount will be finalized in early 2022.

With respect to personnel, Ms. Catherine Morisset was retained as the Fund’s bookkeeper in 2017 and continues to provide stellar service to the Fund. As noted, Ms. Alena Wickware-Guay serves as our Project Manager and has provided significant skill and expertise in other areas of our organization, including an expanded presence in social media and wider promotion of our work, our accomplishments and our continuing goals.

4. Looking ahead to 2022

The Broadcasting Accessibility Fund anticipates that 2022 will be a year that will mark several key events and achievements.

The eighth Call for Letters of Intent will be issued in February 2022. The Letters will be reviewed by the Grant Committee and those that meet the standards of the Fund will be invited to submit a full application. It is anticipated that a set of new projects will be approved with a new set of initiatives on the ground in the fall of 2022.

The Grant Committee will remain extremely busy in working through the challenges of reviewing and adjudicating applications to the Fund.

This focus on results and the impact of the Fund on addressing gaps in content accessibility is a pivotal part of a foundation for additional capitalization that was refined in 2021. Working with the Board of Directors and particularly with the Governance Committee, the CEO will spearhead efforts to attract additional financial resources to the Fund from both the public and private sectors, with a special focus on legislative and regulatory change – including support for the passage of the successor to Bill C-10 – that may bring new capital to the Fund.

The Nominating Committee will oversee the process of nominations and elections of Directors to the Board where members’ terms are expiring. The process for 2023 will begin in late 2022 to allow ample time for stakeholder nominations.

5. Financial Statements

Appended: Final Financial Statements - BAF 12.31.2021.pdf

6. Contact Information

Richard Cavanagh

CEO/Funding Officer

Broadcasting Accessibility Fund/Fonds pour l'accessibilité de la radiodiffusion

(613) 915-5575

richard@baf-far.ca

www.baf-far.ca

Broadcasting Accessibility Fund 2020 Annual Report

Table of Contents

1. Message from the Chair

2. Board of Directors

3. Highlights from 2020

4. Looking Ahead to 2021

5. Audited Financial Statements of the Fund

1. Message from the Chair

I am delighted to present our eighth Annual Report, highlighting the achievements of the Fund over the past year, and looking ahead to what promises to be a critical 2021.

Our mandate (CRTC Broadcasting Regulatory Policy 2012-430) states that the Broadcasting Accessibility Fund:

“ (a) Acts as an independent and impartial funding body to support and fund innovative projects that provide platform-neutral solutions to promote accessibility of all broadcasting content in Canada;

(b) Funds only projects that are incremental to the existing regulatory obligations of the broadcasting industry in Canada;

(d) Provides efficient and accessible service in English and French, and provides documentation for grant applicants in the official language of their choice.”

This past year was the Fund’s seventh year of full operation, and the unprecedented global coronavirus pandemic presented a number of challenges to our organization. The Board of Directors met on four occasions, all by conference call as COVID-19 did not permit travel for a face-to-face meeting. The pandemic resulted in a rescheduling of several projects, but four additional projects were nonetheless completed in 2020. This brings the total number of completed projects to 24 with an additional project scheduled for completion in the first quarter of 2021.

The sixth round of applications to the Fund was launched and finalized, with grants awarded to four more worthy applicants. This brings the total number of approved initiatives to 34, representing $3.7M in grant commitments for projects addressing a wide range of gaps and challenges in accessibility to broadcasting content across a number of platforms.

The Fund is fortunate to have in place a group of nine experienced, dedicated Directors and a CEO/Funding Officer with exceptional expertise in the worlds of accessibility and communications. As he continues to report to and work closely with the Board of Directors and especially with our Grant and Governance Committees, Richard Cavanagh has the demonstrated leadership skills to take the Fund forward in overseeing projects that meet our mandate and to chart our course forward as we address on-going challenges in seeking a permanent place within the Canadian accessibility landscape.

With Richard’s focus on bringing new capital to the organization, the Fund hired its first full time Project Manager in January 2020 to work with Richard on the challenging array of projects and our expanding presence on social media. Alena Wickware-Guay had previously worked as the Fund’s part time Project Coordinator for two years and has proven to be an invaluable member of our team. Alena’s skills have enabled us to undertake more internal research, legislative and regulatory tracking, and background briefings. Alena is a true asset to our organization, and our future.

This is my second term as Chair of the Board. I am honoured to serve in this capacity, working with our dedicated Directors and staff to continue our progress in meeting the challenges of advancing accessible broadcasting content. I am confident that the leadership, skill, and commitment are in place to continue this valuable work.

Marcia Yale, Chair

2. Board of Directors

The Board of Directors governs and oversees the Broadcasting Accessibility Fund and approves all key decisions. The CRTC mandated that the Fund have nine Directors:

Four Accessibility Group Directors (one elected by each category of the Sight, Hearing, Mobility and Cognitive Groups);
Two Independent Accessibility Directors (elected collectively by all categories of accessibility groups); and,
Three Broadcasting Industry Directors (two elected by broadcasting industry business stakeholders, and one elected by broadcasting distribution undertaking stakeholders)

The Board met on four occasions in 2020: March 25; June 17; September 23; and December 16. The Board will continue to meet on a quarterly basis through 2021, by Zoom call.

Directors and Officers of the Fund for 2020:

Marcia Yale, Chair and Accessibility Director – Sight

Jerry Lucas, Treasurer and Accessibility Director – Mobility

Lisa Anderson Accessibility Director – Hearing

Gordon Fletcher, Accessibility Director – Cognitive Group

Rajesh Malik, Accessibility Director – Independent

Charlene Caines, Accessibility Director – Independent

Soo Kim, Broadcasting Industry Director - Business

Brian Perdue, Broadcasting Industry Director – Business

David Bennett, Broadcasting Industry Director – Distribution Undertaking

Richard Cavanagh – CEO/ Funding Officer / ex-officio

3. Highlights from 2020

The following four projects were completed in 2020, on schedule and on or under budget:
- CapScribe 2.0 - Mohawk College and Inclusive Media & Design Inc. -$163,029 - CapScribe 2.0 will give greater access to broadcast content for persons with disabilities, predominantly those with hearing or vision loss, and this application will be modernized to ensure compatibility to existing operating systems and devices and provide compatibility with alternative access systems used by captioners and describers with disabilities.
- NER Consumer Evaluator Project - Keeble Media - $156,000 - Using the NER tool for measuring captioning accuracy, nine deaf and hard of hearing consumers have been trained to assess English language live captioning. Training consumers with hearing loss will generate feedback to improve NER implementation and raise awareness of NER testing among broadcasters. The NER Evaluators certified through this program will have postings on the Canadian Broadcast Standards Council website, indicating the evaluators who are prepared to undertake freelance evaluations. The work these evaluators do will tangibly increase accessibility in broadcasting by improving the accuracy of live captioning.
- Web DV - Centre de Recherche Informatique de Montréal (French language project) $65,290 - Testing the feasibility of video insertion technology designed for advertising, this project tested two extended Web Described Video (DV) production approaches. This project builds upon existing production technologies previously developed by CRIM and was tested by users with low or no vision. The results of this research encourage Broadcasters to continue to seek out and test novel DV broadcasting solutions to meet the needs of individuals living with low or no vision, in both official languages in Canada.
- Developing Artificial Intelligence Post Processing Methods for Improving Speaker-Independent Voice Recognition - PAVO - $111,375 - Research into the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) to increase the accuracy of closed captioning using speech recognition technology. This type of post-processing software, called Cognitive AI for Realtime Linguistics (CARL) has the potential to optimize voice recognition as a captioning method by focusing on patterns of context in a text format, ultimately enabling the development of an AI text correction system that would ideally reduce the rate of errors in captioning to less than 1%. While a great deal of functionality was achieved with CARL, there is still more work to be done to develop a marketable software.

The following projects remained in progress from previous rounds of funding:
- Universal Intelligent Assistive Devices for Media Content Accessibility - Carleton University - $67,000 – Will design and develop a generic, modular class of systems called Intelligent Assistive Devices focused on improving accessibility to content for people with mobility disabilities. Technical objectives include the developing of sensing modules; a core platform interface between different input devices and media systems like Apple TV; and intelligent tuning systems to adapt to specific user needs. Designs consider the rapid technology changes in media devices. Completion – Summer 2021
- Continuing Education Course Series for Inclusive Media for Broadcast Production - Ryerson University - $119,636 - A continuing education course series focused on inclusive design for broadcast production, with a key focus on the instruction of re-speaking techniques for live closed captioning, and audio description techniques including scripting will be developed. Completion – Summer 2021
- Understanding User Experiences of Play-by-Play Captioning in Fast-Paced Live Sports - Canadian Association of the Deaf - $191,570 - Fast paced live sports continues to be one of the most difficult genres of programming to accurately caption with minimal loss of information. This project will examine how the presence and nature of play-by-play captioning of fast-paced live sports programming contributes to or detracts from the user experience and satisfaction of live sports programs. Completion – Winter 2021
- Development of a method of automatic closed captioning quality subjective assessment using an AI Technology – Ryerson University -$79,984 - Development of an artificial intelligence system to automate the assessment of live closed captioning by consumers, and to reflect the perspectives of Deaf and Hard of Hearing consumers of captioning. This system will allow broadcasters access to a cost-effective way to include the perspectives of Deaf and Hard of Hearing audiences in the assessment of captioning quality, as a compliment to human assessment. Completion – Summer 2021
- Accessibility as Aesthetic in Broadcast Media: Three Disability-Led Films – Humber College - $131,481 - Three fully accessible films led by filmmakers with disabilities, will inform the Canadian broadcasting industry of the importance and value of inclusive design. The project will raise the profile of inclusion through the perspectives offered in the three films. The project stems from the Making Accessible Media course that was originally funded by BAF and became a permanent part of Humber’s course offerings in the School of Media Studies and Information Technology. Completion – Fall 2021
- Providing transcription for Radio-Canada content: a forward-looking project for Francophone Canadians living with hearing impairments - Radio Canada (French language project) $103,550 - A functional prototype will be developed for generating automated transcripts for audio programming. A key focus will be to find solutions to the challenges of transcribing audio into French text and integrate audio transcripts into the production flow of radio programming. The trial program for transcription will be Aujourd’hui l’histoire (Today in History), a half-hour series that runs Monday to Friday on Radio-Canada’s main radio network. Completion – Summer 2021
- French-language Video and Video Description - Centre de Recherche Informatique de Montréal (CRIM) (French language project) $137,894 - This project utilizes a machine learning method known as Deep Learning to the automatic production of French-language Described Video. The project would compile a French-language video description dataset and compare it with the dataset already produced in English. The objective of the project is to compile a set of annotated French-language videos called VVD (video and VD). Completion – Summer 2021
- NAIT Captioning and Court Reporting Diploma Online – Northern Alberta Institute of Technology - $100,000 - The NAIT Captioning and Court Reporting Program will convert the existing diploma program to an online format, to deliver a web-based curriculum training in English-language steno captioning. Transitioning to an online format will increase the number of students able to enroll in the Captioning and Court Reporting Program and will result in greater captioning support for the broadcasting industry. Completion – Winter 2023

Under the direction of the Grant Committee and with guidance from the CEO, the sixth round of applications was completed, and four new projects were selected for grants. Our established process requires applicants to submit a Letter of Intent and complete a detailed application to the Fund if invited to do so on the basis of their Letter.
All applications were reviewed and evaluated by the Grant Committee. A total of $398,016 was committed to the following four new projects – most of which build on previous work undertaken with the support of the Fund – as approved by the Board of Directors in September 2020:
- CapScribe 3.0 - Inclusive Media & Design and IDRC - $160.000. This project will build upon previous work undertaken in CapScribe 2.0 by creating a more efficient workflow, an upgraded interface design addressing a wide range of accessibility needs, and pilot integration with Learning Management Systems. Captioning and description modules will be enhanced and support for ASL/LSQ video will be provided along with new features promoting ease of use, automation and team collaboration. This project is designed as a platform-neutral solution that would support academic institutions, as well as broadcasters and other industries by providing software and training materials freely.
- Improving live captioning delivery quality with Artificial Intelligence – PAVO Digital Inc. - $131,216. This project will consolidate several captioning software tools into a single deliverable product, building on two previous projects funded by BAF. The final phase would complete the AI elements needed to bring a product to market, including the role of captioners as supervisors of AI-based speech to text outputs; an interface to support the captioning supervision role; development of a real time sentence prediction engine; full integration of the software into the PAVO captioning offerings; performance benchmarking; and system evaluation.
- Evaluation and testing of Langue des Signes Québécoise content: A first step towards developing signed content at Radio-Canada - Radio-Canada (French language) - $31,800. This initiative will explore promising opportunities for signed content in Langue des Signes Québécoise (LSQ). It involves conducting research to determine the status of LSQ users and identify: (1) their content needs, (2) initiatives that have led to signed content at the national and international levels and (3) current approaches to signing audio and video content. This research will offer a better understanding of the role that LSQ can play for consumers by researching the current level of LSQ content availability, the interests and needs of consumers and current solutions for integrating LSQ into audio and video media. These results are intended to serve as the basis for Radio-Canada’s future development of a relevant, useful and financially sustainable LSQ content strategy, and results will be openly shared with other broadcasters and organizations interested in LSQ content development.
- Certificate Pilot Project (30 credits) in Inclusive Media with a focus on developing captioning and audio description skills - Université de Montréal (French-language) - $75,000. This project will see the development of the first inclusive-media certificate program in French offered by a Canadian university, to provide professionals with advanced training in closed captioning, sign language videography, audio description and scriptwriting techniques, and to support the broadcasting industry’s training needs. The certificate program would consist of 10 courses to be developed by Labo CinéMédias and offered by the University of Montreal’s Department of Art History and Film Studies for a one-year trial period. This project fills a gap in the broadcasting industry for the training and education of French-language captionists and describers available to the public. The University of Montreal has previously worked with Ryerson University on the latter’s inclusive media course series.

With the assistance of legal counsel, the Fund developed a series of Project Funding Agreements, one with each recipient, setting out project obligations contractually, and tying grant payments to project milestones. Projects were launched in late 2020 and early 2021.

Continuing the Grant Committee’s recommendation for a predictable, annual cycle of funding, the seventh round of funding will begin with a Call for Letters of Intent on February 1, 2021.

With respect to the Committees of the Board, the Governance Committee continued to meet with the CEO monthly to discuss progress and overall direction of the Fund. The Grant Committee met frequently to guide the overall grant application process, conducting significant work in the detailed planning required to launch and complete the sixth round of applications. The Audit Committee met to review audited financial statements and make recommendations about the financial operations of the Fund.

To ensure a smooth and timely process, the 2020 Board Nominations and Election process was launched in late 2019. All nominations were reviewed by the Nominating Committee prior to their formal appointment to the Board at the June 2020 AGM.

The 2021 Board Nominations and Election process commenced in late 2020. Three Directors are eligible for renomination at the 2021 AGM.

With respect to our strategy for Capital Growth, two core documents were updated regularly and delivered to a range of audiences. “Meeting the Challenges of Content Accessibility” and “Projects and their Impact” were drafted by staff and widely promoted to multiple audiences, including consumer groups, broadcasters, other stakeholder groups, the CRTC and government agencies. A combined Project Showcase document was posted to our website.

While the pandemic significantly slowed government’s legislative agenda – where priorities became squarely focused on economic, social and public health measures to address COVID-19 – the Parliamentary Session which began in September 2020 saw the introduction of new legislation (Bill C-10) proposing a series of amendments to the Broadcasting Act that would require online broadcasters such as Netflix and Amazon to make significant contributions to the Canadian broadcasting system.

The Act would be updated to better reflect Canadian diversity and (as an element of this) would mandate that programming be accessible without barriers to persons with disabilities. The legislation would mandate that the system as a whole should serve the needs and interests of Canadians with diverse abilities and disabilities.

The Act would be updated to capture “online undertakings”, i.e. online content services operating in Canada such as Netflix, Amazon Prime, Gem, Crave and others. Although they would not require licensing, they would be required to make contributions to the Canadian broadcasting system and elements of support for that system. The summary notes that if online broadcasters are required to make contributions at the same rate as traditional broadcasters, amounts could reach $830 million annually by 2023.

Under the proposed legislation, Cabinet can issue direction to the CRTC on a range of key priorities, including which online broadcasters should make contributions, the level of contribution required and support mechanisms for diversity and inclusion. This includes measures to support content accessibility for persons with disabilities.

The CRTC would be directed to develop the appropriate regulatory framework for online broadcasters and will have the additional power to impose “conditions of service” for online broadcasters.

Many of these measures were proposed by the Broadcasting and Telecommunications Legislative Review Panel and echoed the Fund’s position in its submission to the Panel in 2019. The legislation was referred to the Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage in late 2020, and the Fund will continue to monitor its progress and support its passage.

With respect to personnel, Ms. Catherine Morisset was retained as the Fund’s bookkeeper in 2017 and continues to provide stellar service to the Fund. As noted, Ms. Alena Wickware-Guay serves as our Project Manager and has provided significant skill and expertise in other areas of our organization, including an expanded presence in social media and wider promotion of our work, our accomplishments and our continuing goals.

4. Looking ahead to 2021

The Broadcasting Accessibility Fund anticipates that 2021 will be a year that will mark several key events and achievements.

The seventh Call for Letters of Intent will be issued in February 2021. The Letters will be reviewed by the Grant Committee and those that meet the standards of the Fund will be invited to submit a full application. It is anticipated that a set of new projects will be approved with a new set of initiatives on the ground in the fall of 2021.

The Grant Committee will remain extremely busy in working through the challenges of reviewing and adjudicating applications to the Fund.

This focus on results and the impact of the Fund on addressing gaps in content accessibility is a pivotal part of a foundation for additional capitalization that was refined in 2020. Working with the Board of Directors and particularly with the Governance Committee, the CEO will spearhead efforts to attract additional financial resources to the Fund from both the public and private sectors, with a special focus on legislative and regulatory change – including support for the passage of Bill C-10 – that may bring new capital to the Fund.

The Nominating Committee will oversee the process of nominations and elections of Directors to the Board where members’ terms are expiring. The process for 2022 will begin in late 2021 to allow ample time for stakeholder nominations.

5. Financial Statements

Appended: Final Financial Statements - BAF 12.31.2020.pdf

6. Contact Information

Richard Cavanagh

CEO/Funding Officer

Broadcasting Accessibility Fund/Fonds pour l'accessibilité de la radiodiffusion

(613) 915-5575

richard@baf-far.ca

www.baf-far.ca

Broadcasting Accessibility Fund 2019 Annual Report

Table of Contents

1. Message from the Chair

2. Board of Directors

3. Highlights from 2019

4. Looking Ahead to 2020

5. Audited Financial Statements of the Fund

1. Message from the Chair

As the newly appointed Chair of the Board of Directors of the Broadcasting Accessibility Fund (the Fund), I am delighted to present our seventh Annual Report, highlighting the achievements of the Fund over the past year and looking ahead to what promises to be a critical 2020.

Our mandate states that the Broadcasting Accessibility Fund:

(a) Acts as an independent and impartial funding body to support and fund innovative projects that provide platform-neutral solutions to promote accessibility of all broadcasting content in Canada;

(b) Funds only projects that are incremental to the existing regulatory obligations of the broadcasting industry in Canada;

(d) Provides efficient and accessible service in English and French, and provides documentation for grant applicants in the official language of their choice.

This past year was the Fund’s sixth year of full operation. The Board of Directors met on four occasions, three by conference call and one face to face meeting. Two more complex projects were completed in 2019, bringing the total number of finished projects to 18, delivering results that support and advance our mandate. Three more projects were scheduled for completion in the first quarter of 2020.

The fifth round of applications to the Fund was launched and finalized, with grants awarded to six more worthy applicants. This brings the total number of approved initiatives to 30, representing $3.3M in grant commitments for projects addressing a wide range of gaps in accessibility to broadcasting content across a number of platforms.

The Fund is fortunate to have in place a group of nine experienced, dedicated Directors and a CEO/Funding Officer with exceptional expertise in the worlds of accessibility and communications. As he continues to report to and work closely with the Board of Directors and especially with our Grant and Governance Committees, Richard Cavanagh has the demonstrated leadership skills to take the Fund forward in developing and completing a number of projects that meet our mandate and to chart our course forward as we address on-going challenges in seeking a permanent place within the Canadian accessibility landscape.

With Richard’s increasing focus on bringing new capital to the organization, the Fund hired its first full time Project Manager to work with Richard on the challenging array of projects and our expanding presence on social media. Alena Wickware-Guay had previously worked as the Fund’s part time Project Coordinator for two years, and proved to be an invaluable member of our team. Alena’s skills have enabled us to undertake more internal research, legislative and regulatory tracking and background briefings. Alena is a true asset to our organization, and our future.

This is my first term as Chair of the Board. I am honoured to serve in this capacity, working with our dedicated Directors and staff to continue our progress in meeting the challenges of accessible broadcasting content. I am confident that the leadership, skill and commitment are in place to continue this valuable work.

2. Board of Directors

The Board of Directors governs and oversees the Broadcasting Accessibility Fund and approves all key decisions. The CRTC mandated that the Fund have nine Directors:

Four Accessibility Group Directors (one elected by each category of the Sight, Hearing, Mobility and Cognitive Groups);
Two Independent Accessibility Directors (elected collectively by all categories of accessibility groups); and,
Three Broadcasting Industry Directors (two elected by broadcasting industry business stakeholders, and one elected by broadcasting distribution undertaking stakeholders)

The Board met on four occasions in 2019: February 13; June 12; August 21; and December 18. The Board will continue to meet on a quarterly basis through 2020.

Directors and Officers of the Fund for 2019:

Allister Byrne, Chair and Accessibility Director – Independent (January to June)

Marcia Yale, Chair (June to December) and Accessibility Director – Sight

Max Beck, Treasurer and Accessibility Director – Mobility (January to June)

Jerry Lucas, Treasurer and Accessibility Director – Mobility (June to December)

Jim Hardman, Accessibility Director – Hearing (January to June)

Lisa Anderson Accessibility Director – Hearing (June to December)

Gordon Fletcher, Accessibility Director – Cognitive Group

Rajesh Malik, Accessibility Director – Independent (June to December)

Charlene Caines, Accessibility Director – Independent

Soo Kim, Broadcasting Industry Director - Business

David Errington, Broadcasting Industry Director – Business (January to June)

Chris O’Brien, Broadcasting Industry Director – Business (June to November)

David Bennett, Broadcasting Industry Director – Distribution Undertaking

Richard Cavanagh – CEO/ Funding Officer

The Board experienced considerable turnover in 2019. The terms of Mr. Byrne, Mr. Beck and Mr. Errington came to a conclusion. Mr. O’Brien joined the Board in June but departed in November after moving on to another industry. Their service to the organization was invaluable, and the new Directors bring a deep commitment and broad experience to our operation.

3. Highlights from 2019

The following two projects were completed in 2019. Both were completed on time and on or under budget and are now self-sufficient, so that each is now a part of the accessibility profile of the organization/ institution, going forward.
- Mapping Physical Access Solutions to Broadcast Television - Neil Squire - $169,208 - This project researched accessibility barriers and solutions for people with limited or no use of their hands, compiling information about using existing and emerging assistive technologies to access broadcasting content through set-top boxes and broadcaster smartphone-based applications. This online app offers a simplified compatibility checking tool for commonly used Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC) and Assistive Technology (AT) devices for three major broadcasting services in British Columbia.
- Barrier-Free Emergency Communication Access and Alerting System - CHS - $135,000 - This project involved intensive research to develop practical recommendations to make emergency broadcasting accessible to Canadians who are Deaf, Deafblind or live with hearing loss. The recommendations are being used to inform members of the national public alerting system and associated broadcasting agencies and update best practices. This will result in expanded services offered through multiple platforms and improved accessibility to emergency broadcasting systems for people living with hearing loss, identify as Deaf or are Deafblind.

The following projects remained in progress from previous rounds of funding:
- Developing Artificial Intelligence Post Processing Methods for Improving Speaker-Independent Voice Recognition - PAVO - $111,375 - Research into the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) to increase the accuracy of closed captioning using speech recognition technology. This type of post-processing software, called Cognitive AI for Realtime Linguistics (CARL) has the potential to optimize voice recognition as a captioning method by focusing on patterns of context in a text format, ultimately enabling the development of an AI text correction system that would ideally reduce the rate of errors in captioning to less than 1%. While a great deal of functionality was achieved with CARL, there is still more work to be done to develop a marketable software. Completion – March 2020
- Web DV - Centre de Recherche Informatique de Montréal (French language project) $65,290 - Testing the feasibility of video insertion technology designed for advertising, this project tested two extended Web Described Video (DV) production approaches. This project builds upon existing production technologies previously developed by CRIM, and was tested by users with low or no vision. The results of this research encourage Broadcasters to continue to seek out and test novel DV broadcasting solutions to meet the needs of individuals living with low or no-vision, in both official languages in Canada. Completion - March 2020.
- NER Consumer Evaluator Project - Keeble Media - $156,000 - Using the NER tool for measuring captioning accuracy, nine deaf and hard of hearing consumers have been trained to assess English language live captioning. Training consumers with hearing loss will generate feedback to improve NER implementation and raise awareness of NER testing among broadcasters. The NER Evaluators certified through this program will have postings on the Canadian Broadcast Standards Council website, indicating the evaluators who are prepared to undertake freelance evaluations. The work these evaluators do will tangibly increase accessibility in broadcasting by improving the accuracy of live captioning. Completion - March 2020.
- CapScribe 2.0 - Mohawk College and Inclusive Media & Design Inc. -$163,029 - CapScribe 2.0 will give greater access to broadcast content for persons with disabilities, predominantly those with hearing or vision loss, and this application will be modernized to ensure compatibility to existing operating systems and devices and provide compatibility with alternative access systems used by captioners and describers with disabilities. Completion – Summer 2020
- Universal Intelligent Assistive Devices for Media Content Accessibility - Carleton University - $67,000 – Will design and develop a generic, modular class of systems called Intelligent Assistive Devices focused on improving accessibility to content for people with mobility disabilities. Technical objectives include the developing of sensing modules; a core platform interface between different input devices and media systems like Apple TV; and intelligent tuning systems to adapt to specific user needs. Designs take into account the rapid technology changes in media devices. Completion – Fall 2020
- Continuing Education Course Series for Inclusive Media for Broadcast Production - Ryerson University - $119,636 - A continuing education course series focused on inclusive design for broadcast production, with a key focus on the instruction of re-speaking techniques for live closed captioning, and audio description techniques including scripting will be developed. Completion – Fall 2020

Under the direction of the Grant Committee and with guidance from the CEO, the fifth round of applications was completed and six new projects were selected for grants. Our established process requires applicants to submit a Letter of Intent and complete a detailed application to the Fund if invited to do so on the basis of their Letter.
All applications were reviewed and evaluated by the Grant Committee, which met in person in Toronto to finalize its recommendations to the Board. A total of $744,479 was committed to the following six new projects – most of which build on previous work undertaken with the support of the Fund – as approved by the Board of Directors in August 2019:
- Understanding User Experiences of Play-by-Play Captioning in Fast-Paced Live Sports - Canadian Association of the Deaf - $191,570 - Fast paced live sports continues to be one of the most difficult genres of programming to accurately caption with minimal loss of information. This project will examine how the presence and nature of play-by-play captioning of fast-paced live sports programming contributes to or detracts from the user experience and satisfaction of live sports programs.
- Development of a method of automatic closed captioning quality subjective assessment using an AI Technology – Ryerson University -$79,984 - Development of an artificial intelligence system to automate the assessment of live closed captioning by consumers, and to reflect the perspectives of Deaf and Hard of Hearing consumers of captioning. This system will allow broadcasters access to a cost-effective way to include the perspectives of Deaf and Hard of Hearing audiences in the assessment of captioning quality, as a compliment to human assessment.
- Accessibility as Aesthetic in Broadcast Media: Three Disability-Led Films – Humber College - $131,481 - Three fully accessible films led by filmmakers with disabilities, will inform the Canadian broadcasting industry of the importance and value of inclusive design. The project will raise the profile of inclusion through the perspectives offered in the three films. The project stems from the Making Accessible Media course that was originally funded by BAF and became a permanent part of Humber’s course offerings in the School of Media Studies and Information Technology.
- Providing transcription for Radio-Canada content: a forward-looking project for Francophone Canadians living with hearing impairments - Radio Canada (French language project) $103,550 - A functional prototype will be developed for generating automated transcripts for audio programming. A key focus will be to find solutions to the challenges of transcribing audio into French text, and integrate audio transcripts into the production flow of radio programming. The trial program for transcription will be Aujourd’hui l’histoire (Today in History), a half-hour series that runs Monday to Friday on Radio-Canada’s main radio network.
- French-language Video and Video Description - Centre de Recherche Informatique de Montréal (CRIM) (French language project) $137,894 - This project utilizes a machine learning method known as Deep Learning to the automatic production of French-language Described Video. The project would compile a French-language video description dataset and compare it with the dataset already produced in English. The objective of the project is to compile a set of annotated French-language videos called VVD (video and VD).
- NAIT Captioning and Court Reporting Diploma Online – Northern Alberta Institute of Technology - $100,000 - The NAIT Captioning and Court Reporting Program will convert the existing diploma program to an online format, to deliver a web-based curriculum training in English-language steno captioning. Transitioning to an online format will increase the number of students able to enroll in the Captioning and Court Reporting Program, and will result in greater captioning support for the broadcasting industry.

With the assistance of legal counsel, the Fund developed a series of Project Funding Agreements, one with each recipient, setting out project obligations contractually, and tying grant payments to project milestones. Projects were launched in late 2019.
Continuing the Grant Committee’s recommendation for a predictable, annual cycle of funding, the sixth round of funding will begin with a Call for Letters of Intent on February 1, 2020.
With respect to the Committees of the Board, the Governance Committee continued to meet with the CEO on a monthly basis to discuss progress and overall direction of the Fund. The Grant Committee met frequently to guide the overall grant application process, conducting significant work in the detailed planning required to launch and complete the fifth round of applications. The Audit Committee met to review audited financial statements and make recommendations about the financial operations of the Fund.
To ensure a smooth and timely process, the 2019 Board Nominations and Election process was launched in late 2018. The Directorships of Mr. Allister Byrne (Independent), Mr. Max Beck (Mobility) and Mr. David Errington (Broadcasting Industry Director – Business) concluded. All nominations were reviewed by the Nominating Committee prior to their formal appointment to the Board at the June 2019 AGM.
With respect to our strategy for Capital Growth, two core documents were updated regularly, posted to our website and delivered to a range of audiences. “Meeting the Challenges of Content Accessibility” and “Projects and their Impact” were drafted by staff and widely promoted to multiple audiences, including consumer groups, broadcasters, other stakeholder groups, the CRTC and government agencies.
The CRTC was updated regularly on the progress of the Fund. In addition, staff completed a submission to the Broadcasting and Telecommunications Legislative Review Panel in January 2019. The Panel conducted an extensive review of existing communications legislation and will be making recommendations for legislative reform sometime in 2020.
With respect to personnel, Ms. Catherine Morisset was retained as the Fund’s bookkeeper in 2017 and continues to provide stellar service to the Fund. As noted, Ms. Alena Wickware-Guay continues to fill the contract position of part time Project Co-ordinator, and has provided significant skill and expertise in other areas of our organization, including an expanded presence in social media and wider promotion of our work, our accomplishments and our continuing goals. Alena was offered and accepted a new role as full time Project Manager in December and will begin her expanded duties in January 2020.

4. Looking ahead to 2020

The Broadcasting Accessibility Fund anticipates that 2020 will be a year that will mark a number of key events and achievements.

The sixth Call for Letters of Intent will be issued in February 2020. The Letters will be reviewed by the Grant Committee and those that meet the standards of the Fund will be invited to submit a full application. It is anticipated that a set of new projects will be approved with a brand new set of initiatives on the ground in the fall of 2020.

The Grant Committee will remain extremely busy in working through the challenges of reviewing and adjudicating applications to the Fund.

This focus on results and the impact of the Fund on addressing gaps in content accessibility is a pivotal part of a foundation for additional capitalization that was refined in 2018. Working with the Board of Directors and particularly with the Governance Committee, the CEO will spearhead efforts to attract additional financial resources to the Fund from both the public and private sectors, with a special focus on legislative and regulatory change that may bring new capital to the Fund.

The Nominating Committee will oversee the process of nominations and elections of Directors to the Board where member’s terms are expiring. The process for 2021 will begin in late 2020 to allow ample time for stakeholder nominations.

The Audit Committee will continue to guide the financial health of the Fund, and oversee the development of a plan to seek further capitalization for the Fund. The Fund is required to limit administrative expenses to no more than 5 percent of the total fund, with Directors’ expenses limited to 1 percent of the total fund. The Fund will remain fiscally responsible in adhering to the established limits on spending. As noted above, additional sources of capital will be explored in 2020.

5. Financial Statements

Appended: Final Financial Statements - BAF 12.31.2019.pdf

6. Contact Information

Richard Cavanagh

CEO/Funding Officer

Broadcasting Accessibility Fund/Fonds pour

l'accessibilité

(613) 729-1891

(613) 915-5575

richard@baf-far.ca

Broadcasting Accessibility Fund 2018 Annual Report

Table of Contents

1. Message from the Chair

2. Board of Directors

3. Highlights from 2018

4. Looking Ahead to 2019

5. Financial Statements of the Fund

1. Message from the Chair

As Chair of the Board of Directors of the Broadcasting Accessibility Fund (the Fund), I am delighted to present our sixth Annual Report, highlighting the achievements of the Fund over the past year and looking ahead to what promises to be a critical 2019.

Our mandate states that the Broadcasting Accessibility Fund:

(a) Acts as an independent and impartial funding body to support and fund innovative projects that provide platform-neutral solutions to promote accessibility of all broadcasting content in Canada;

(b) Funds only projects that are incremental to the existing regulatory obligations of the broadcasting industry in Canada;

(d) Provides efficient and accessible service in English and French, and provides documentation for grant applicants in the official language of their choice.

This past year was the Fund’s fifth year of full operation. The Board of Directors met on four occasions, three by conference call and one face to face meeting; an additional six projects were completed bringing the total number of finished projects to 15, delivering results that support and advance our mandate; and the third round of applications to the Fund was launched and finalized, with grants awarded to five more worthy applicants. This brings the total number of approved initiatives to 24, representing $2.5M in grant commitments for projects addressing a wide range of gaps in accessibility to broadcasting content across a number of platforms.

The Fund is fortunate to have in place a group of nine experienced, dedicated Directors and a CEO/Funding Officer with an exceptional expertise in the worlds of accessibility and communications. As he continues to report to and work closely with the Board of Directors and especially with our Grant and Governance Committees, Richard Cavanagh has the demonstrated leadership skills to take the Fund forward in developing and completing a number of projects that meet our mandate and to chart our course forward as we address on-going challenges in seeking a permanent place within the Canadian accessibility landscape.

With increasing focus on marketing, promotion and capital growth, the Fund renewed the contract of an additional resource to assist Richard with project management and related activities in 2018. We are fortunate that Alena Wickware-Guay accepted the challenging role of Project Coordinator in 2017, to track the numerous initiatives and deliverables throughout the year. Alena was also responsible for elevating the Fund’s profile on social media, and took on additional duties of tracking Bill C-81, the Accessible Canada Act while providing support on seeking potential funding opportunities in the public and private sectors. Alena has proven to be an invaluable member of our team.

Finally, this is my final term as Independent Accessibility Director and Chair of the Board. I have been honoured to serve in this capacity for six years, and depart knowing that considerable progress has been made in addressing the accessibility challenges of broadcasting content, and confident that the leadership, skill and commitment are in place to continue this valuable work.

2. Board of Directors

The Board of Directors governs and oversees the Broadcasting Accessibility Fund and approves all key decisions. The CRTC mandated that the Fund have nine Directors:

Four Accessibility Group Directors (one elected by each category of the Sight, Hearing, Mobility and Cognitive Groups);
Two Independent Accessibility Directors (elected collectively by all categories of accessibility groups); and,
Three Broadcasting Industry Directors (two elected by broadcasting industry business stakeholders, and one elected by broadcasting distribution undertaking stakeholders)

The Board met on four occasions in 2018: February 15; June 15; October 23; and December 19. The Board will continue to meet on a quarterly basis through 2019.

Directors and Officers of the Fund for 2018:

Allister Byrne, Chair and Accessibility Director – Independent

Max Beck, Treasurer and Accessibility Director – Mobility

Chris Stark, Accessibility Director – Sight (January to June)

Marcia Yale, Accessibility Director – Sight (June to December)

Jim Hardman, Accessibility Director – Hearing

Bill Roberts, Accessibility Director – Cognitive Group (January to June)

Gordon Fletcher, Accessibility Director – Cognitive Group (June to December)

Dr. Charles A Laszlo, Accessibility Director – Independent (January to June)

Charlene Caines – Accessibility Director – Independent (June to December)

Soo Kim, Broadcasting Industry Director - Business

David Errington, Broadcasting Industry Director – Business

Carl MacQuarrie, Broadcasting Industry Director – Distribution Undertaking (January to October)

David Bennett, Broadcasting Industry Director – Distribution Undertaking (October to December)

Richard Cavanagh – CEO/ Funding Officer

The Board experienced considerable turnover in 2018. Mr. MacQuarrie moved on from Bell Canada and resigned his seat on the Board in late 2018. The terms of Mr. Stark, Mr. Roberts and Dr. Laszlo came to a conclusion. Their service to the organization was invaluable, and the new Directors bring a deep commitment and broad experience to our operation.

As noted below, a number of Directors will reach their full term in 2019, thus a process to nominate and elect new Directors was undertaken in late 2018.

3. Highlights from 2018

The following six projects were completed in 2018. All were completed on time and on or under budget and are now self-sufficient, so that each is now a part of the accessibility profile of the organization/ institution, going forward.
- Video-description Accessible Audio-Video Player – Radio-Canada (French language Project) $96,200. This project updated Radio-Canada’s website to include a video-description accessible audio-video player, while integrating other accessibility features such as captioning, screen reader compatibility, enhanced visibility of website features and keyboard accessibility among other additions. This project furthered the development of online accessibility technology well beyond minimum standards for those who rely on DV. The additional updates that increase web accessibility across platforms, screen reader compliance and keyboard navigation also enhance access for users of all abilities.
- Understanding Consumer Responses to Live Closed Captioning in Canada, Captioning Consumers Advocacy Alliance - $141,250. Issues with Live Captioning include delays, missed information and difficulty for viewers to differentiate speakers. This research project has established a validated baseline for how consumers evaluate captioning, and the results will help inform broadcasters, captioning providers and consumer organizations to advocate for and implement improvements to this essential service.
- Integrated Described Video Instructional Series – Accessible Media Inc.- $82,500. Sighted users can find traditional Video Description (DV) narration off-putting, and in the case of mixed viewing audiences (such as a family with members both sighted and blind), the blind viewer may opt out of watching television with family members. AMI’s bilingual web video series outlines the concept and benefits of Integrated Described Video (IDV). Inclusive media can be seamlessly consumed by mixed viewing audiences by integrating the description of visual elements into the script (instead of having additional voice-over narration, as is done with traditional DV). This creates an optimal viewing experience.
- Market Feasibility and Analysis to determine interest in a Continuing Education Course Series for Inclusive Media for Broadcast Production among adult learners – Ryerson University - $11,995. The project was undertaken to determine the need and interest in a continuing education course for Inclusive Media in Broadcast Production, designed for adult learners. Two studies were conducted, via online forums and face to face interviews. The results were very positive, prompting Ryerson to continue its work in developing a course series.
- Enhanced real-time and post-production captioning for VoiceWriter captioning software – PAVO Digital Inc - $81,440. Deaf viewers may have difficulties identifying the speaker and sound effects in a way that makes sense to them. Previous captioning systems have been unable to resolve these issues, but this project develops and implements new solutions by including animated captions and speaker identification. PAVO Digital Inc. has developed software called PAVO using a CEA-708 digitally compatible system for captioning. Several modules were developed: PAVO-Cap (for post-production captioning), PAVO-Quick (for real-time transcription or CART), and PAVO-Cat (for stenographic court reporting).
- SmartTones Powered Radio App for Increased Accessibility & Enhanced Audience Engagement – Ryerson Radio - $64,655. Addressing barriers to access specific radio content via SmartTones. SmartTones uses 100 percent silent audio tones to deliver context-driven experiences from broadcast media to mobile devices. The mobile app triggers contextual content related to the broadcast that is accessible so that all listeners will be able to participate, share and take action in response to what they see or hear, regardless of ability. For example, deaf audiences being able to receive audio emergency alerts, and the app will enable accessible second screen content for blind and low vision audiences, such as promotions that might otherwise be in text only.
The following projects remained in progress from previous rounds of funding:
- Barrier-Free Emergency Communication Access and Alerting System, Canadian Hearing Society - $135,000. CHS will perform the research required to develop practical recommendations to make emergency broadcasting accessible for Deaf and hard of hearing consumers. The recommendations will be used to inform members of the National Public Alerting System and associated broadcasting agencies. Completion – Spring 2019.
- Universal Intelligent Assistive Devices for Media Content Accessibility (Carleton University), $67,000 – Will design and develop a generic, modular class of systems called Intelligent Assistive Devices focused on improving accessibility to content for people with mobility disabilities. Technical objectives include the developing of sensing modules; a core platform interface between different input devices and media systems like Apple TV; and intelligent tuning systems to adapt to specific user needs. Designs take into account the rapid technology changes in media devices. Completion – Spring 2020
- Mapping Physical Access Solutions to Broadcast Television (Neil Squire Society), $169,208 – A project focusing on how people with mobility disabilities can use existing and emerging assistive technologies to access a range of set top boxes, remotes controls, infrared hubs and broadcaster smartphone applications. Four phases are proposed, including definition of the problem, design of procedures, observation, analysis/interpretation and a communications matrix. Completion – Spring 2020
Under the direction of the Grant Committee and with guidance from the CEO, the fourth round of applications was completed and five projects were selected for grants. Our established process requires applicants to submit a Letter of Intent and complete a detailed application to the Fund if invited to do so on the basis of their Letter.
All applications were reviewed and evaluated by the Grant Committee, which met in person in Toronto to finalize its recommendations to the Board. A total of $615,330 was committed to the following five new projects – most of which build on previous work undertaken with the support of the Fund – as approved by the Board of Directors in October 2018:
- Keeble Media – NER Consumer Evaluator Project ($156,000) Using the NER tool for measuring captioning accuracy, deaf and hard of hearing consumers will be trained to assess English language live captioning. Training consumers with hearing loss will generate feedback that will improve NER implementation and raise awareness of NER testing among broadcasters, as well as tangibly increase accessibility in broadcasting by ultimately improving caption accuracy on live programming.
- Ryerson University – Continuing Education Course Series for Inclusive Media for Broadcast Production ($119,636) A continuing education course series focused on inclusive design for broadcast production, with a key focus on the instruction of re-speaking techniques for live closed captioning and audio description techniques including scripting will be developed.
- Mohawk College and Inclusive Media & Design Inc. – CapScribe 2.0 ($163,029) CapScribe 2.0 will give greater access to broadcast content for persons with disabilities, predominantly those with hearing or vision loss, and this application will be modernized to ensure compatibility to existing operating systems and devices and provide compatibility with alternative access systems used by captioners and describers with disabilities.
- PAVO Digital Inc.- Developing Artificial Intelligence Post Processing Methods for Improving Speaker-Independent Voice Recognition ($111,375) Using Artificial Intelligence, the accuracy closed captioning can be increased using speech recognition technology. This type of post-processing approach has the potential to optimize voice recognition as a captioning method by focusing on patterns of context in a text format, ultimately enabling the development of an AI text correction system that would ideally reduce the rate of errors in captioning to less than 1%.
- Centre de Recherche Informatique de Montréal (CRIM) – Web DV ($65,290) Leveraging video insertion technology designed for the insertion of advertising, this project will develop two extended Web Described Video (DV) production approaches. Building from existing production technologies previously developed by CRIM, these two approaches will be compared and tested with users. The results of this research will encourage Broadcasters to adopt DV broadcasting solutions which meet the needs of individuals living with low or no-vision, in both official languages in Canada. This project will offer Broadcasters two stable and multi-browser web readers to provide extended DV. Furthermore, the comparison of two achieved productions will measure their impacts on the production cycle.
With the assistance of legal counsel, the Fund developed a series of Project Funding Agreements, one with each recipient, setting out project obligations contractually, and tying grant payments to project milestones. Projects were launched in late 2018.
Continuing the Grant Committee’s recommendation for a predictable, annual cycle of funding, the fifth round of funding will begin with a Call for Letters of Intent on February 1, 2019.
With respect to the Committees of the Board, the Governance Committee continued to meet with the CEO on a monthly basis to discuss progress and overall direction of the Fund. The Grant Committee met frequently to guide the overall grant application process, conducting significant work in the detailed planning required to launch and complete the fourth round of applications. The Audit Committee met twice to review and make recommendations about the financial operations of the Fund.
To ensure a smooth and timely process, the 2019 Board Nominations and Election process was launched in late 2018. The Directorships of Mr. Allister Byrne (Independent), Mr. Max Beck (Mobility) and Mr. David Errington (Broadcasting Industry Director – Business) are concluding in June 2019. All nominations will be reviewed by the Nominating Committee prior to their formal appointment to the Board at the June 2019 AGM.
With respect to Marketing, Promotion and Capital Growth, two core documents were developed, posted to our website and delivered to a range of audiences. Meeting the Challenges of Content Accessibility and Projects and their Impact were drafted by staff and widely promoted to multiple audiences, including consumer groups, broadcasters, other stakeholder groups, the CRTC and government agencies.
The CRTC was updated regularly on the progress of the Fund. In addition, staff completed the initial draft of a submission to the Broadcasting and Telecommunications Legislative Review Panel, which has undertaken a comprehensive study of existing communications legislation. This is a pivotal undertaking and the final submission will be provided to the Panel in January 2019.
With respect to personnel, Ms. Catherine Morisset was retained as the Fund’s bookkeeper in 2017 and continues to provide stellar service to the Fund. As noted, Ms. Alena Wickware-Guay continue to fill the contract position of part time Project Co-ordinator, and has provided significant skill and expertise in other areas of our organization, including an expanded presence in social media and wider promotion of our work, our accomplishments and our continuing goals.

4. Looking ahead to 2019

The Broadcasting Accessibility Fund anticipates that 2019 will be a year that will mark a number of key events and achievements.

The fifth Call for Letters of Intent will be issued in February 2019. The Letters will be reviewed by the Grant Committee and those that meet the standards of the Fund will be invited to submit a full application. It is anticipated that a set of new projects will be approved with a brand new set of initiatives on the ground in the fall of 2019

The Grant Committee will remain extremely busy in working through the challenges of reviewing and adjudicating applications to the Fund.

The Nominating Committee will oversee the process of nominations and elections of Directors to the Board where member’s terms are expiring. The process for 2020 will begin in the fall of 2019 to allow ample time for stakeholder nominations.

5. Financial Statements

Appended: "Broadcasting Accessibility Fund 12.31.2018 Financial Statements - Final"

6. Contact Information

Richard Cavanagh

CEO/Funding Officer

Broadcasting Accessibility Fund/Fonds pour

l'accessibilité

(613) 729-1891

(613) 915-5575

richard@baf-far.ca

Broadcasting Accessibility Fund 2017 Annual Report

Table of Contents

1. Message from the Chair

2. Board of Directors

3. Highlights from 2017

4. Looking Ahead to 2018

5. Financial Statements of the Fund

1. Message from the Chair

As Chair of the Board of Directors of the Broadcasting Accessibility Fund (the Fund), I am delighted to present our fifth Annual Report, highlighting the achievements of the Fund over the past year and looking ahead to what promises to be a pivotal 2018.

Our mandate states that the Broadcasting Accessibility Fund:

(a) Acts as an independent and impartial funding body to support and fund innovative projects that provide platform-neutral solutions to promote accessibility of all broadcasting content in Canada;

(b) Funds only projects that are incremental to the existing regulatory obligations of the broadcasting industry in Canada;

(d) Provides efficient and accessible service in English and French, and provides documentation for grant applicants in the official language of their choice.

This past year was the Fund’s fourth year of full operation. The Board of Directors met on four occasions, three by conference call and one face to face meeting; an additional four projects were completed bringing the total number of completed projects to 8, delivering results that support and advance our mandate; and the third round of applications to the Fund was launched and finalized, with grants awarded to six more worthy applicants. This brings the total number of approved initiatives to 19, representing just over $1.9M in grant commitments for projects addressing a wide range of gaps in accessibility to broadcasting content across a number of platforms.

The Fund is fortunate to have in place a group of nine experienced, dedicated Directors and a CEO/Funding Officer with an exceptional expertise in the worlds of accessibility and broadcasting. As he continue to report to and work closely with the Board of Directors and especially with our Grant and Governance Committees, Richard Cavanagh has the demonstrated leadership skills to take the Fund forward in developing and completing a number of projects that meet our mandate and to chart our course forward as we address new challenges in seeking a permanent place in the Canadian accessibility landscape.

We look forward to reporting on the successful launch of the third round of projects funded through our core Grant Program, and on the fourth round of applications to the Fund in our next Annual Report.

2. Board of Directors

The Board of Directors governs and oversees the Broadcasting Accessibility Fund and approves all key decisions. The CRTC mandated that the Fund have nine Directors:

Four Accessibility Group Directors (one elected by each category of the Sight, Hearing, Mobility and Cognitive Groups);
Two Independent Accessibility Directors (elected collectively by all categories of accessibility groups); and,
Three Broadcasting Industry Directors (two elected by broadcasting industry business stakeholders, and one elected by broadcasting distribution undertaking stakeholders)

The Board met on four occasions in 2017: February16; June 5; August 17; and November 16. The Board will continue to meet on a quarterly basis through 2018.

Directors and Officers of the Fund for 2017:

Allister Byrne, Chair and Accessibility Director – Independent

Max Beck, Treasurer and Accessibility Director – Mobility

Chris Stark, Accessibility Director – Sight

Jim Hardman, Accessibility Director – Hearing

Bill Roberts, Accessibility Director – Cognitive Group

Dr. Charles A Laszlo, Accessibility Director – Independent

Heather Boyce, Broadcasting Industry Director – Business

David Errington, Broadcasting Industry Director – Business

Carl MacQuarrie, Broadcasting Industry Director – Distribution Undertaking

Richard Cavanagh – CEO/ Funding Officer

Ms. Boyce retired from the CBC and resigned her position with the Board of Directors in September 2017.

As noted below, a number of Directors will reach their full term in 2018, thus a process to nominate and elect new Directors was undertaken in late 2017.

3. Highlights from 2017

The following first round projects were completed in 2017. All were completed on time and on or under budget and are now self-sufficient, so that each is now a part of the accessibility profile of the organization/ institution, going forward.
- Designing Screen Reading Capabilities for the 10-foot User Interface, Rogers Communications - $140,000. Extensive research on the development of simplified and inclusive mechanisms to assist blind and low vision users to discover and consume video content.
- Broadcasting Accessibility Education for Hard of Hearing Canadians, Canadian Hard of Hearing Association - $125,000. An extensive project to assist hard of hearing Canadians with the accessible features of media devices, designed to build a base of knowledge including the producing of a web-based guide to device accessibility.
- Enhanced real-time and post-production captioning for VoiceWriter captioning software, Mediac Systems LLC - $123,000. Updating existing software and developing new in-roads to voice recognition technologies, to improve both real time (live) and post production captioning processes.
- Tecla Remote, Komodo Open Lab - $77,500. A Tecla switch device will enable users with limited mobility to control a range of media devices using the same controls used to operate wheelchairs. The Fund negotiated a royalty once the Tecla Remote reaches a commercially viable threshold.
The following projects remained in progress from the second round of funding; a number will be completed in early 2018.
- Accessible Design for Broadcast Media – An Open Source On-line Course, Humber College - $130,900. The course will teach students how to incorporate accessibility features such as described image and video, alt-text and screen-readers, transcription and captions into broadcast media content. Open-source version will be launched for all Canadians to use for free.
- Continuing the National Conversation: Making CBC Radio Accessible, CBC Radio - $61,953. CBC will build on its 2015/16 pilot program (made possible with a first round grant from the Fund) that made daily text transcripts of CBC Radio’s The Current available to consumers. The project will provide transcriptions for CBC Radio One’s As it Happens. They will be available to the public within 24 hours after the program airs every day, free of charge. The project is fully Canadian, with the retention of a Canadian firm to support transcript production.
- Understanding Consumer Responses to Live Closed Captioning in Canada, Captioning Consumers Advocacy Alliance - $141,250. Developing a survey research design for measuring subjective preferences of live closed captioning among different types of live closed captioning users. Includes consultations with Canadian and international experts, broadcasters and captionists; will further develop live captioned programming requirements and segments for a broad survey.
- Filmodio Access, CRIM - $101,442 (French-language project). Development of a new product called “filmodio”, an audio book for broadcast content. Project will use synthesized voice to combine audiovisual content with Described Video, in order to produce a kind of enhanced DV production. Builds from existing production technologies previously developed by CRIM.
- Development of an accessible digital audio/video media player, Radio-Canada - $96,200 (French-language project). Radio-Canada will optimize its multiplatform audio/video media players in order to provide audiences with content in completely accessible environments complete with numerous accessibility functions, such as captions, navigation, keyboard shortcuts, well-worded command buttons and operation with various browsers.
- Barrier-Free Emergency Communication Access and Alerting System, Canadian Hearing Society - $135,000. CHS will perform the research required to develop practical recommendations to make emergency broadcasting accessible for Deaf and hard of hearing consumers. The recommendations will be used to inform members of the National Public Alerting System and associated broadcasting agencies.
Under the direction of the Grant Committee and with guidance from the CEO, the third round of applications was completed and six projects were selected for grants. Our established process requires applicants to submit a Letter of Intent and complete a detailed application to the Fund if invited to do so on the basis of their Letter.

All applications were reviewed and evaluated by the Grant committee, which met over two days in Ottawa to finalize its recommendations to the Board.

A total of $624,298 was committed to the following six projects, as approved by the Board of Directors in August, 2017:
- Integrated Described Video Instructional Series (Accessible Media Inc., AMI), $85,000 - Will develop, produce and distribute a series of instructional videos on Integrated Described Video or IDV, a method of producing inclusive media content for “seamless consumption” by consumers with vision disabilities. The integration of describing key visual elements into content production itself circumvents the barriers to DV accessibility so commonly experienced by consumers who are blind or who have low vision (i.e. IDV eliminates the need for a secondary SAP audio stream).
- Enhanced real-time and post-production captioning for VoiceWriter captioning software (PAVO Digital Inc., formerly Mediac Systems LLC), $81,440 – PAVO’s first project for the Fund focused on updating existing software and developing new in-roads to voice recognition technologies, to improve both real time (live) and post production captioning processes. The project was successfully completed in the summer of 2017, resulting in new captioning software with advanced functionality. PAVO requested an extension and additional funding to finalize preparation of the software for the market, including de-bugging and other technical clean up together with additional functionality for consumer ease of use that is common in the software development industry. Final user testing will also be conducted.
- Market Survey: Continuing Education Course Series for Inclusive Media for Broadcast Production (Ryerson University), $11,995 – Ryerson will apply to the Fund in the next round to develop a continuing education Course Series in inclusive media for broadcast production, with a focus on learning re-speaking techniques for live captioning and Audio Description (AD) delivery and scripting. For this round, Ryerson a market survey to identify interest among adult learners in the course, the curriculum for which would be software-neutral and include a full range of re-speaking technologies, DV/IDV and a component on accessibility for short-form video.
- SmartTones Powered Radio App for Increased Accessibility & Enhanced Audience Engagement (Radio Ryerson Inc.), $64,655 – Will create a new model for radio app accessibility, business development and enhanced audience engagement by building new accessibility features activated by inaudible tones called SmartTones. Focusing on consumers who are blind or have vision loss, the proposed technology will enable interface with Open Broadcaster Emergency System enabling notification beyond current regulatory obligations, and will become the receiver for audible second screen interactivity that will include audible contests, special offers and promotions and other information typically inaccessible to those with vision disabilities.
- Mapping Physical Access Solutions to Broadcast Television (Neil Squire Society), $169,208 – A project focusing on how people with mobility disabilities can use existing and emerging assistive technologies to access a range of set top boxes, remotes controls, infrared hubs and broadcaster smartphone applications. Four phases are proposed, including definition of the problem, design of procedures, observation, analysis/interpretation and a communications matrix.
- Universal Intelligent Assistive Devices for Media Content Accessibility (Carleton University), $67,000 – Will design and develop a generic, modular class of systems called Intelligent Assistive Devices focused on improving accessibility to content for people with mobility disabilities. Technical objectives include the developing of sensing modules; a core platform interface between different input devices and media systems like Apple TV; and intelligent tuning systems to adapt to specific user needs. Designs take into account the rapid technology changes in media devices.

The Fund negotiated a royalty with PAVO Digital that will return modest revenue to the Fund once VoiceWriter reaches the market and achieves a threshold of sales.

With the assistance of legal counsel, the Fund developed a series of Project Funding Agreements, one with each recipient, setting out project obligations contractually, and tying grant payments to project milestones. Projects were launched in late 2017.

Continuing the Grant Committee’s recommendation for a predictable, annual cycle of funding, the fourth round of funding will begin with a Call for Letters of Intent launching on February 1, 2018.

With respect to the Committees of the Board, the Governance Committee continued to meet with the CEO on a monthly basis to discuss progress and overall direction of the Fund. The Grant Committee met frequently to guide the overall grant application process, conducting significant work in the detailed planning required to launch and complete the second round of applications. The Audit Committee met on three occasions to review and make recommendations about the financial operations of the Fund.

To ensure a smooth and timely process, the 2018 Board Nominations and Election process was launched in November 2017. The Directorships of Mr. Chris Stark (Vision Group), Mr. Charles Laszlo (Independent) and Mr. Bill Roberts (Cognitive Group) conclude in June 2018, and a replacement was required for Ms. Boyce (Broadcasting Industry Director – Business). The process resulted in the nomination of candidates in all but the Cognitive Group seat, which will follow in early 2018. All nominations will be reviewed by the Nominating Committee prior to their formal appointment to the Board at the June 2018 AGM.

In order to ensure a balance of Board turnover between Accessibility Directors and Broadcasting Industry Directors, the Fund’s bylaws previously underwent minor revisions to allow for more flexibility in terms to be served by individual Directors. These changes have proven successful in enabling a staggered approach to Board nominations and elections that was not in place previously.

The CRTC was updated regularly on the progress of the Fund.

With a focus on improving administrative and project support, the Fund made two personnel changes in 2017. Ms. Catherine Morisset was retained as the Fund’s bookkeeper; and Ms. Alena Wickware agreed to fill a new position as the Fund’s part time Project Coordinator. The presence of both Ms. Morisset and Ms. Wickware has provided valuable support to the Fund’s work.

4. Looking ahead to 2018

The Broadcasting Accessibility Fund anticipates that 2018 will be a year that will mark a number of key events and achievements.

The fourth Call for Letters of Intent will be issued in February 2018. The Letters will be reviewed by the Grant Committee and those that meet the standards of the Fund will be invited to submit a full application. It is anticipated that a set of new projects will be approved with a brand new set of initiatives on the ground in the fall of 2018.

The Grant Committee will remain extremely busy in working through the challenges of reviewing and adjudicating applications to the Fund. Two other important tasks will also be undertaken: (i) an expansion of the Grant Program through a special initiative such as a Call for Proposals targeting consumer groups and/or a University Challenge or Hackathon to address a specific gap in broadcasting content accessibility and (ii) the establishment of Project Evaluation Criteria to identify how funded initiatives are advancing the mandate of the fund.

A “Results & Impact” Report and PowerPoint will be developed and widely promoted to multiple audiences, including consumer groups, broadcasters, other stakeholder groups, the CRTC, government agencies and others. This promotion of Fund activities will also continue to seek a broader range of applications to the Fund from multiple regions of Canada. The work of our Project Coordinator is also pivotal to these goals.

This focus on results and the impact of the Fund on addressing gaps in content accessibility will also provide a foundation for a Capital Growth Strategy initiated in 2017. Working with the Board of Directors and particularly with the Governance Committee, the CEO will spearhead efforts to attract additional financial resources to the Fund from both the public and private sectors.

The Nominating Committee will oversee the process of nominations and elections of Directors to the Board where member’s terms are expiring. The process for 2019 will begin in the fall of 2018 to allow ample time for stakeholder nominations.

5. Financial Statements

Appended "BAF 12.31.17 Financial Statements"

6. Contact Information

Richard Cavanagh

CEO/Funding Officer

Broadcasting Accessibility Fund/Fonds pour

l'accessibilité

(613) 729-1891

(613) 915-5575

richard@baf-far.ca

Broadcasting Accessibility Fund 2016 Annual Report

Table of Contents

1. Message from the Chair

2. Board of Directors

3. Highlights from 2016

4. Looking Ahead to 2017

5. Financial Statements of the Fund

1. Message from the Chair

As Chair of the Board of Directors of the Broadcasting Accessibility Fund (the Fund), I am delighted to present our fourth Annual Report, highlighting the achievements of the Fund over the past year and looking ahead to what promises to be a very important 2017.

Our mandate states that the Broadcasting Accessibility Fund:

(a) Acts as an independent and impartial funding body to support and fund innovative projects that provide platform-neutral solutions to promote accessibility of all broadcasting content in Canada;

(b) Funds only projects that are incremental to the existing regulatory obligations of the broadcasting industry in Canada;

(d) Provides efficient and accessible service in English and French, and provides documentation for grant applicants in the official language of their choice.

This past year was the Fund’s third year of full operation. The Board of Directors met on five occasions, four conference calls and one face to face meeting; the first projects from our inaugural round of funding were completed, delivering results that support and advance our mandate; and the second round of applications to the Fund was launched and completed, awarding grants to six more worthy applicants. This brings the total number of projects to 13, representing just over $1.3M in grant commitments for projects addressing a broad range of accessibility barriers to broadcasting content.

The Fund is fortunate to have in place a group of nine experienced, dedicated Directors and a CEO/Funding Officer with an exceptional expertise in the worlds of accessibility and broadcasting. Reporting to and working closely with the Board of Directors and especially with our Grant and Governance Committees, Richard has the demonstrated leadership skills to take the Fund forward in developing and completing a number of projects that meet our mandate.

We look forward to reporting on the successful launch of the second round of projects funded through our core Grant Program, and on the third round of applications to the Fund in our next Annual Report.

2. Board of Directors

The Board of Directors governs and oversees the Broadcasting Accessibility Fund and approves all key decisions. The CRTC mandated that the Fund have nine Directors:

Four Accessibility Group Directors (one elected by each category of Sight, Hearing, Mobility and Cognitive groups);
Two Independent Accessibility Directors (elected collectively by all categories of accessibility groups); and,
Three Broadcasting Industry Directors (two elected by broadcasting industry business stakeholders, and one elected by broadcasting distribution undertaking stakeholders)

The Board met on five occasions in 2016: February 11; April 14; June 2 (AGM); August 18; and November 17. The Board will continue to meet on a quarterly basis through 2017.

Directors and Officers of the Fund for 2016:

Allister Byrne, Chair and Accessibility Director – Independent

Max Beck, Treasurer and Accessibility Director – Mobility

Chris Stark, Accessibility Director – Sight

Jim Hardman, Accessibility Director – Hearing

Bill Roberts, Accessibility Director - Cognitive

Dr. Charles A Laszlo, Accessibility Director – Independent

Heather Boyce, Broadcasting Industry Director – Business

David Errington, Broadcasting Industry Director – Business

Carl MacQuarrie, Broadcasting Industry Director – Distribution Undertaking

Richard Cavanagh – CEO/ Funding Officer

3. Highlights from 2016

The following first round projects were completed in 2016. All were completed on time and on or under budget and are now self-sufficient, so that each is now a part of the accessibility profile of the organization/ institution, going forward.
- Accessible Media Production Course, Mohawk College – $80,000. Student journalists receive mandatory, intensive training in producing content that is accessible across all media platforms.
- Making CBC Radio Accessible, CBC - $62,000. New speech-to-text conversion technology is used to post daily transcripts of CBC’s award-winning radio program, The Current to CBC.ca. The Current reaches some 2.3 million Canadians each week. In addition, one American Sign Language (ASL) interpreted radio documentary is filmed and posted to CBC.ca each month.
- Radio with a Voice, Vues et Voix - $116,000. Developed of a fully accessible web platform for Vues et Voix radio content focusing on disability- and accessibility- related stories and issues in the French language.
The following projects are in progress from the first round:
- Tecla Remote, Komodo Open Lab - $77,500. A Tecla switch device will enable users with limited mobility to control a range of media devices using the same controls used to operate wheelchairs. (Completion – spring 2017)
- Designing Screen Reading Capabilities for the 10-foot User Interface, Rogers Communications - $140,000. Extensive research on the development of simplified and inclusive mechanisms to assist blind and low vision users to discover and consume video content. (Completion – spring 2017)
- Broadcasting Accessibility Education for Hard of Hearing Canadians, Canadian Hard of Hearing Association - $125,000. An extensive project to assist hard of hearing Canadians with the accessible features of media devices, designed to build a base of knowledge including the producing of a web-based guide to device accessibility. (Completion – fall 2017)
- Enhanced real-time and post-production captioning for VoiceWriter captioning software, Mediac Systems LLC - $123,000. Updating existing software and developing new in-roads to voice recognition technologies, to improve both real time (live) and post production captioning processes. (Completion – summer 2017)

Under the direction of the Grant Committee and with guidance from the CEO, the second round of applications was completed and six projects were selected for grants. Our established process requires applicants to submit a Letter of Intent and complete a detailed application to the Fund, if invited to do so on the basis of their Letter.
All applications were reviewed and evaluated by the Grant committee, which met over two days in Ottawa to finalize its recommendations to the Board.

A total of $666,745 was committed to the following six projects, as approved by the Board of Directors in August, 2016:
Accessible Design for Broadcast Media – An Open Source On-line Course, Humber College - $130,900. The course will teach students how to incorporate accessibility features such as described image and video, alt-text and screen-readers, transcription and captions into broadcast media content. Open-source version will be launched for all Canadians to use for free.
Continuing the National Conversation: Making CBC Radio Accessible, CBC Radio - $61,953. CBC will build on its 2015/16 pilot program (made possible with a first round grant from the Fund) that made daily text transcripts of CBC Radio’s The Current available to consumers. The project will provide transcriptions for CBC Radio One’s As it Happens. They will be available to the public within 24 hours after the program airs every day, free of charge. The project is fully Canadian, with the retention of a Canadian firm to support transcript production.
Understanding Consumer Responses to Live Closed Captioning in Canada, Captioning Consumers Advocacy Alliance - $141,250. Developing a survey research design for measuring subjective preferences of live closed captioning among different types of live closed captioning users. Includes consultations with Canadian and international experts, broadcasters and captionists; will further develop live captioned programming requirements and segments for a broad survey.
Filmodio Access, CRIM - $101,442 (French-language project). Development of a new product called “filmodio”, an audio book for broadcast content. Project will use synthesized voice to combine audiovisual content with Described Video, in order to produce a kind of enhanced DV production. Builds from existing production technologies previously developed by CRIM.
Development of an accessible digital audio/video media player, Radio-Canada - $96,200 (French-language project). Radio-Canada will optimize its multiplatform audio/video media players in order to provide audiences with content in completely accessible environments complete with numerous accessibility functions, such as captions, navigation, keyboard shortcuts, well-worded command buttons and operation with various browsers.
Barrier-Free Emergency Communication Access and Alerting System, Canadian Hearing Society - $135,000. CHS will perform the research required to develop practical recommendations to make emergency broadcasting accessible for Deaf and hard of hearing consumers. The recommendations will be used to inform members of the National Public Alerting System and associated broadcasting agencies.

The Grant Committee recommended that a predictable cycle of funding take place on an annual basis. The cycle will begin February 1 each year, with sufficient time afforded for both Letters of Intent and Applications to the Fund. Based on the experience of the first two rounds of funding, projects will be on the ground by the fall of each year. The third round of funding will be announced on February 1, 2017.
The Board met on five occasions in 2016 in order with continued oversight of Fund operations and grants. With respect to the Committees of the Board, the Governance Committee continued to meet with the CEO on a monthly basis to discuss progress and overall direction of the Fund. The Grant Committee met frequently to design and guide the overall grant application process, conducting significant work in the detailed planning required to launch and complete the first round of applications. The Audit Committee met on three occasions to review and make recommendations about the financial operations of the Fund.
There was no turnover on the Board in 2016; Mr. Bill Roberts was re-elected to serve as Director, Cognitive Group to 2018.
In order to ensure a balance of Board turnover between Accessibility Directors and Broadcasting Industry Directors, the Fund’s bylaws underwent minor revisions to allow for more flexibility in terms to be served by individual Directors. These changes will enable a staggered approach to Board nominations and elections that was not in place previously.
The CRTC was updated regularly on the progress of the Fund.

4. Looking ahead to 2017

The Broadcasting Accessibility Fund anticipates that 2017 will be a year that will mark a number of milestone achievements.

The third Call for Letters of Intent will be issued in February 2017. The Letters will be reviewed by the Grant Committee and those that meet the standards of the Fund will be invited to submit a full application. It is anticipated that a set of new projects will be approved by August 2017, with new initiatives on the ground in the fall of 2017.

The Fund’s website will be reviewed and if necessary updated by its design architects toward the end of 2017, which will mark the third full year since the website launch.

The Grant Committee will remain extremely busy in working through the challenges of reviewing and adjudicating applications to the Fund. In addition, the Grant Program will be expanded to include a widely distributed Call for Ideas, targeting consumer groups for suggestions on projects to advance accessibility to broadcasting content. Based on the deliberations of the Committee, a Request for Proposals may be issued for suggestions with the most merit.

To guide the Grant Program of the Fund, a comprehensive Broadcasting Accessibility Fund Grant Policy and Procedures Handbook will continue to be developed for use by the Board and members of the Grant Committee in evaluating and adjudicating applications to the Fund.

In addition, results of completed projects will be widely promoted in order to identify the successes of the Fund to multiple audiences, including consumer groups, broadcasters, other stakeholder groups, the CRTC, government agencies and others. This promotion of Fund activities will also target a broader range of applications to the Fund from multiple regions of Canada.

The Nominating Committee will oversee the process of nominations and elections of Directors to the Board where member’s terms are expiring. The process for 2018 will begin in the fall of 2017 to allow ample time for stakeholder nominations.

The Audit Committee will continue to guide the financial health of the Fund, and oversee the development of a plan to seek further capitalization for the Fund. The CEO’s focus on a capitalization strategy will intensify 2017, as the available pool of capital will be exhausted in 2020.

The Fund is required to limit administrative expenses to no more than 5 percent of the total fund, with Directors’ expenses limited to 1 percent of the total fund. The Fund will remain fiscally responsible in adhering to the established limits on spending. As noted above, additional sources of revenue will be explored in 2017.

5. Financial Statements

Appended "BAF 12.31.2016 Final Financial Statements"

6. Contact Information

Richard Cavanagh

CEO/Funding Officer

Broadcasting Accessibility Fund/Fonds pour

l'accessibilité

(613) 729-1891

(613) 915-5575

richard@baf-far.ca

Broadcasting Accessibility Fund - 2015 Annual Report

Table of Contents

1. Message from the Chair

2. Board of Directors

3. Highlights from 2015

4. Looking Ahead to 2016

5. Financial Statements of the Fund

1. Message from the Chair

As Chair of the Board of Directors of the Broadcasting Accessibility Fund (the Fund), I am delighted to present our third Annual Report, highlighting the achievements of the Fund over the past year and looking ahead to what promises to be a very exciting 2016.

Our mandate states that the Broadcasting Accessibility Fund:

(a) Acts as an independent and impartial funding body to support and fund innovative projects that provide platform-neutral solutions to promote accessibility of all broadcasting content in Canada;

(b) Funds only projects that are incremental to the existing regulatory obligations of the broadcasting industry in Canada;

(d) Provides efficient and accessible service in English and French, and provides documentation for grant applicants in the official language of their choice.

This past year was the Fund’s second year of full operation. The Board of Directors met on seven occasions; the bulk of the Grant Program was created; and the first grants were awarded to seven very worthy applicants.

The Fund is fortunate to have in place a group of nine experienced, dedicated Directors and a CEO/Funding Officer with an exceptional expertise in the worlds of accessibility and broadcasting. Reporting to and working closely with the Board of Directors and especially with our Grant Committee, Richard has the demonstrated leadership skills to take the Fund forward in supporting and developing a number of projects that meet our mandate.

We look forward to reporting on the successful launch of the second round of projects funded through our grants, and on the third round of applications to the Fund in our next Annual Report.

2. Board of Directors

The Board of Directors governs and oversees the Broadcasting Accessibility Fund and approves all key decisions. The CRTC mandated that the Fund have nine Directors:

Four Accessibility Group Directors (one elected by each category of Sight, Hearing, Mobility and Cognitive groups);
Two Independent Accessibility Directors (elected collectively by all categories of accessibility groups); and,
Three Broadcasting Industry Directors (two elected by broadcasting industry business stakeholders, and one elected by broadcasting distribution undertaking stakeholders)

The Board met on seven occasions in 2015: January 15; March 12; April 8; May 28 (AGM); August 13; October 15; and December 10.

Directors and Officers of the Fund are:

Allister Byrne, Chair and Accessibility Director – Independent

Max Beck, Treasurer and Accessibility Director – Mobility

Chris Stark, Accessibility Director – Sight

Gary Malkowski, Accessibility Director – Hearing

Bill Roberts, Accessibility Director - Cognitive

Dr. Charles A Laszlo, Accessibility Director – Independent

Heather Boyce, Broadcasting Industry Director – Business

David Errington, Broadcasting Industry Director – Business

William (Bill) Abbott, Broadcasting Industry Director – Distribution Undertaking

Richard Cavanagh – CEO/ Funding Officer

3. Highlights from 2016

Under the direction of the Grant Committee and with guidance from the CEO, the first round of applications was completed and the first seven projects were selected for grants. The process required applicants to submit a Letter of Intent and complete a detailed application to the Fund, if invited to do so on the basis of their Letter.
All applications were reviewed and evaluated by the Grant committee, which met over two days in Ottawa to finalize its recommendations to the Board.
A total of $723,364 was committed to the following projects, as approved by the Board of Directors in August, 2015:

Accessible Media Production Course, Mohawk College – $80,000. Student journalists will receive mandatory, intensive training in producing content that is accessible across all media platforms.
Making CBC Radio Accessible, CBC - $62,000. New speech-to-text conversion technology will be used to post daily transcripts of CBC’s award-winning radio program, The Current to CBC.ca. The Current reaches some 2.3 million Canadians each week. In addition, one American Sign Language (ASL) interpreted radio documentary will be filmed and posted to CBC.ca each month.
Tecla Remote, Komodo Open Lab - $77,500. A Tecla switch device will enable users with limited mobility to control a range of media devices using the same controls used to operate wheelchairs.
Designing Screen Reading Capabilities for the 10-foot User Interface, Rogers Communications - $140,000. Extensive research on the development of simplified and inclusive mechanisms to assist blind and low vision users to discover and consume video content.
Radio with a Voice, Vues et Voix - $116,000. Development of a fully accessible web platform for Vues et Voix radio content focusing on disability- and accessibility- related stories and issues in the French language.
Broadcasting Accessibility Education for Hard of Hearing Canadians, Canadian Hard of Hearing Association - $125,000. An extensive project to assist hard of hearing Canadians with the accessible features of media devices, designed to build a base of knowledge including the producing of a web-based guide to device accessibility.
Enhanced real-time and post-production captioning for VoiceWriter captioning software, Mediac Systems LLC - $123,000. Focused on updating existing software and developing new in-roads to voice recognition technologies, to improve both real time (live) and post production captioning processes.

With the assistance of legal counsel, the Fund developed a series of Project Funding Agreements, one with each recipient, setting out project obligations contractually, and tying grant payments to project milestones.
With the completion of the first round of applications, planning for the second round intensified. The Grant Committee developed a set of “lessons learned” to be applied to subsequent rounds of funding, and determined that all Calls for Letters of Intent would be issued in February of each year.
Under the direction of the Nominating Committee and the CEO, the Fund held its first round of nominations and elections to the Board of Directors. All directors who were eligible for re-election to the Board were elected by acclamation. While no additional stakeholders registered with the Fund, extensive work was undertaken to promote our mandate.
The Board met frequently in 2015 in order to oversee the inaugural grant application process. With respect to the Committees of the Board, the Governance Committee continued to meet with the CEO on a monthly basis to discuss progress and overall direction of the Fund. The Grant Committee met frequently to design and guide the overall grant application process, conducting significant work in the detailed planning required to launch and complete the first round of applications.
All of the Fund’s internal policies - Board Expenses and Per Diems, Code of Conduct, Conflict of Interest, Whistleblower and Investment – were reviewed and finalized. A new policy on Inclusion – Accessibility, Accommodation and Anti-ableism – was drafted in late 2014 and approved by the Board in 2015. It has been posted to our website, and attracted attention and applause as a model policy on accessibility for other organizations, nationally and internationally.
The CRTC was updated regularly on the progress of the Fund.

4. Looking ahead to 2016

The Broadcasting Accessibility Fund anticipates that 2016 will be a year that will mark a number of milestone achievements.

In what will become an annual event, the second Call for Letters of Intent will be issued in February 2016. The Letters will be reviewed by the Grant Committee and those that meet the standards of the Fund will be invited to submit a full application. It is anticipated that a set of new projects will be approved by August 2016, with new initiative on the ground by October 2016.

To guide the overall grants program of the Fund, a comprehensive Broadcasting Accessibility Fund Grant Policy and Procedures Handbook will continue to be developed for use by the Board and members of the Grant Committee in evaluating and adjudicating applications to the Fund.

The Fund’s website will be reviewed and updated by its design architects.

The Board of Directors will continue to meet bi-monthly to oversee the Fund’s direction and fulfilment of its mandate. The Governance Committee will meet with the CEO/Funding Officer each month to discuss the needs and direction of his office.

The Nominating Committee will oversee the process of nominations and elections of Directors to the Board where member’s terms are expiring. The Audit Committee will continue to guide the financial health of the Fund, and oversee the development of a plan to seek further capitalization for the Fund. The CEO’s focus on a capitalization strategy will intensify in the second half of 2016.

Under the direction of the Governance Committee, the CEO will also develop and launch a stakeholder relations plan in order to promote the Fund’s objectives and stimulate applications to the Fund from consumer groups. The plan will also look at ways of attracting interest in the Fund from a diversity of Canadian regions.

The Fund will also review its by-laws, which after three years in existence require updating.

5. Financial Statements

To be appended

6. Contact Information

Richard Cavanagh

CEO/Funding Officer

Broadcasting Accessibility Fund/Fonds pour

l'accessibilité

(613) 729-1891

richard@baf-far.ca

Table of Contents - Annual Report 2014

1. Message from the Chair

2. Board of Directors

3. Highlights from 2014

4. Looking Ahead to 2015

5. Financial Statements of the Fund

1. Message from the Chair

As Chair of the Board of Directors of the Broadcasting Accessibility Fund (the Fund), I am delighted to present our second Annual Report, highlighting the achievements of the Fund over the past year and looking ahead to what promises to be a very exciting 2015.

Our mandate states that the Broadcasting Accessibility Fund:

(a) Acts as an independent and impartial funding body to support and fund innovative projects that provide platform-neutral solutions to promote accessibility of all broadcasting content in Canada;

(b) Funds only projects that are incremental to the existing regulatory obligations of the broadcasting industry in Canada;

(d) Provides efficient and accessible service in English and French, and provides documentation for grant applicants in the official language of their choice.

2014 represented the first year of full operations for the Fund. The Board of Directors met on eight occasions; retained the Fund’s first CEO/Funding Officer, Richard Cavanagh in May 2014; and proceeded to build the infrastructure necessary to fulfil our mandate.

The Fund is fortunate to have in place a group of nine experienced, dedicated Directors and a CEO/Funding Officer with an exceptional expertise in the worlds of accessibility and broadcasting. Reporting to and working closely with the Board of Directors and especially with our Grant Committee, Richard has the demonstrated leadership skills to take the Fund forward into 2015 as we begin the real work of funding projects that fully meet our mandate.

We look forward to reporting on the successful launch of the first projects funded through our grants, and the on second round of applications to the Fund in our next Annual Report.

2. Board of Directors

The Broadcasting Accessibility Fund is responsible to a The Board of Directors governs and oversees the Broadcasting Accessibility Fund and approves all key decisions. The CRTC mandated that the Fund have nine Directors:

Four Accessibility Group Directors (one elected by each category of Sight, Hearing, Mobility and Cognitive accessibility groups);

Two Independent Accessibility Directors (elected collectively by all categories of accessibility groups); and,

Three Broadcasting Industry Directors (two elected by broadcasting industry business stakeholders, and one elected by broadcasting distribution undertaking stakeholders)

The Board met on eight occasions in 2014: February 19; April 3; June 5 (AGM); July 17; August 28; October 6; November 28; and December 18. The frequency of meetings was designed to guide the Fund through a critical infrastructure process, and ultimately launch the first round of applications to the Fund before the end of the calendar year.

Directors and Officers of the Fund are:

Allister Byrne, Chair and Accessibility Director – Independent

Max Beck, Treasurer and Accessibility Director – Mobility

Chris Stark, Accessibility Director – Sight

Gary Malkowski, Accessibility Director – Hearing

Bill Roberts, Accessibility Director - Cognitive

Dr. Charles A Laszlo, Accessibility Director – Independent

Heather Boyce, Broadcasting Industry Director – Business

David Errington, Broadcasting Industry Director – Business

William (Bill) Abbott, Broadcasting Industry Director – Distribution Undertaking

Richard Cavanagh – CEO/ Funding Officer

3. Highlights from 2014

We retained Richard Cavanagh as our CEO/Funding Officer. With a background that combines broadcasting and accessibility, he has quickly demonstrated the unique set of skills in leadership, stakeholder relations and project management needed to move the Fund through its next phases.
We developed a new website, which was methodically designed with exceptional accessibility features; www.baf-far.ca. As an example of its leading edge accessible design, a number of trials were conducted to determine the best features for blind and low vision consumers, and most pages were translated into both ASL and LSQ. The website was launched in December 2014, concurrent with the Fund’s first Call for Letters of Intent.
The Board met frequently and, with the CEO’s guidance moved into the first phase of the inaugural grant application process: a Call for Letters of Intent, a funding model designed to ensure that proposals are received and evaluated in advance of the work required to complete a full application to the Fund.
With respect to the Committees of the Board, the Governance Committee meets monthly with the CEO to discuss progress and overall direction of the Fund. The Grant Committee also meets frequently to design the overall grant application process.
Throughout the design of the website and the development of the grant application process, stakeholders were contacted for advice on key accessibility features, the business dimensions of grant programs and legal issues such as intellectual property.
All of the Fund’s internal policies - Board Expenses and Per Diems, Code of Conduct, Conflict of Interest, Whistleblower and Investment – were developed. A new policy on Inclusion – Accessibility, Accommodation and Anti-ableism – was drafted and will be approved in early 2015. It will serve as a model policy on accessibility for other organizations, nationally and internationally.
The CRTC was updated on the progress of the Fund.

4. Looking ahead to 2015

The Broadcasting Accessibility Fund anticipates that 2015 will be a year that will mark a number of milestone achievements.

The first set of Letters of Intent will be reviewed by the Grant Committee, and those that meet the mandate of the Fund will be invited to submit a full application to the Fund. The Grant Committee will oversee the application process, and upon approval by the Board, the first cheques will be issued to successful applicants in the third quarter of 2015 – and first projects will be underway.

A subsequent Call for Letters of Intent will be issued in early 2016, kick starting the next round of applications to the Fund.

To guide the overall grants program of the Fund, a comprehensive Broadcasting Accessibility Fund Grant Policy and Procedures Handbook will be developed for use by the Board and members of the Grant Committee in evaluating and adjudicating applications to the Fund.

The Fund’s website will be reviewed and updated by its design architects.

The Fund’s new Policy on Inclusion – Accessibility, Accommodation and Anti-ableism will be approved in early 2015. All other existing policies will be reviewed throughout the course of the year.

The Board of Directors will continue to meet bi-monthly to continue its oversight of the Fund’s direction and fulfilment of its mandate. The Governance Committee will meeting with the CEO/Funding Officer each month to discuss the needs and direction of his office.

The Grant Committee will remain busy in working through the challenges of a first round of full applications to the Fund, and the Communications Committee will review and advise on the promotional aspects of the Fund, exploring ways to leverage our state-of-the-art website and expand our social media presence.

5. Financial Statements

To be appended

6. Contact Information

Richard Cavanagh

CEO/Funding Officer

Broadcasting Accessibility Fund/Fonds pour

l'accessibilité

(613) 729-1891

richard@baf-far.ca

Table of Contents - Annual Report 2013

1. Message from the Chair

2. Board of Directors

3. Highlights from 2013

4. Looking Ahead to 2014

5. Financial Statements

1. Message from the Chair

As Chair of the Board of Directors of the Broadcasting Accessibility Fund (the Fund), I am delighted to present our inaugural Annual Report that sets out the achievements of the Fund over the past year and sets the stage for the road ahead in 2014.

As an independent and impartial funding body, and the first of its kind anywhere, the Fund is uniquely positioned to support innovative projects focused on solutions to accessibility of all broadcasting content in Canada. Moreover, in seeking to increase accessibility to broadcasting content, the Fund encourages practical solutions, in English and/or French that make use of inclusive design principles, in order to promote accessibility at its earliest stages, and in the most cost-effective manner possible.

The past year was our first, and therefore represented a number of start-up initiatives, including the formation of an Interim Board; the drafting of by-laws; setting the process for the selection of Stakeholders who then voted on the permanent Board of Directors; the search for our first CEO/Funding Officer; and significant planning for what will become the Term of Reference for funding applications.
The Fund was created as part of the tangible benefits package associated with Bell Canada’s acquisition of CTV. The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) approved its creation together with initial funding of $5.7M. While we anticipate that the Fund will be operation in mid-2014 and that the first round of funding applications will be announced in the fall of 2014, a number of governance matters were successfully addressed in our first year.
First, it is important to reiterate that the Fund is an independent and separate, not-for-profit corporate body, and it is in turn responsible to a Board of Directors that governs the Fund and finalizes all key decisions. The CRTC mandate the Fund would have nine Directors:
Four Accessibility Group Directors (one elected by each category of sight, hearing, mobility and cognitive accessibility groups);
Two Independent Accessibility Directors (elected collectively by all categories of accessibility groups); and,
Three Broadcasting Industry Directors (two elected by broadcasting industry business stakeholders, and one elected by broadcasting distribution undertaking stakeholders)

The initial Directors will generally serve a term of either two or three years, to ensure continuity.

Stakeholders play a key role in the Fund, and will continue to do so going forward; accessibility groups and the broadcasting industry have the opportunity to nominate and elect the Directors – and the permanent Board then undertook the task of searching for the Fund’s first CEO/Funding Officer. This process was well underway by the end of 2013.

The Fund now has in place a group of Directors with deep experience in accessibility and broadcasting, and the new, permanent Board met twice in the latter part of the year. With much of the work on governance completed, we now turn our attention to the core task of our mandate: to develop the criteria for funding new and innovative projects that will advance accessibility to broadcasting content. We look forward to reporting on the successful launch of Fund operations and the initial funding of new projects, in our next Annual Report.

2. Board of Directors

The first meeting of the permanent Board of Directors took place on July 30, 2013. Officers were elected and Audit, Governance, and Nominating committees were struck and are already at work. A subsequent meeting was held on November 6, 2013.
Officers and Directors are:
Allister Byrne, Chair and Accessibility Director – Independent
Max Beck, Treasurer and Accessibility Director – Mobility
Chris Stark, Accessibility Director – Sight
Gary Malkowski, Accessibility Director – Hearing
Bill Roberts, Accessibility Director - Cognitive
Dr. Charles A Laszlo, Accessibility Director – Independent
Heather Boyce, Broadcasting Industry Director – Business
David Errington, Broadcasting Industry Director – Business
William (Bill) Abbott, Broadcasting Industry Director – Distribution Undertaking

3. Highlights from 2013

The Interim Board of Directors established a stakeholder-based process for nominating and electing the permanent Board.
The nominations and election process took place, and successfully brought nine Directors to the first permanent Board of Directors of the BAF.
Key committees were immediately struck, including Audit, Governance and Nominating.
Two meetings of the Board of Directors were held, in July and November.
The Board established a number of core policies, including:

Board Expenses and Per Diems
Code of Conduct
Conflict of Interest
Whistleblower
Investment

A search firm was retained to begin the process of hiring the Fund’s first CEO/ Funding Officer. A list of excellent candidates was finalized in December 2013.

4. Looking ahead to 2014

The Broadcasting Accessibility Fund anticipates that 2014 will be a year of tremendous strides. A CEO/Funding Officer will be in place by the spring; the Fund will be operational by the end of June; and the terms of reference for funding applications will be developed and implemented, with the first call for funding applications anticipated by the fall of 2014.

We anticipate that the first projects will have funding in place before the end of the 2014 calendar year.

In order to ensure the broadest possible range of eligible applications, the Fund will be widely promoted among key stakeholders in the disability community, the research community, the broadcasting industry and government agencies including the CRTC.

Given the Broadcasting Accessibility Fund is a unique and independent funding organization, we are truly excited about the calibre of project ideas we will attract, and the measurable success we will have in advancing accessibility to broadcasting content in Canada.

5. Financial Statements

To be appended

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Table of Contents - Annual Report 2013

1. Message from the Chair

2. Board of Directors

3. Highlights from 2013

4. Looking ahead to 2014

5. Financial Statements