For the deaf, the joys of movies and TV shows streaming on Netflix have long been unknown-- the majority of the site's catalog does not enable subtitles. The National Association for the Deaf is looking to change that, taking Netflix to court to demand that the company make its offerings deaf-friendly under the Americans with Disabilities Act.
The Association says that complaints on behalf of America's 36 million deaf people have repeatedly gone unanswered, despite the Disabilities Act's legal requirement that "full and equal enjoyment" be provided by places of entertainment.
"We have tried for years to persuade Netflix to do the right thing and provide equal access to all content across all platforms," The Association's President Bobbie Beth Scoggins said in a statement. "They chose not to serve our community on an equal basis; we must have equal access to the biggest provider of streamed entertainment. As Netflix itself acknowledges, streamed video is the future and we must not be left out."
Netflix has previously estimated that approximately 30 percent of its streaming content is equipped with subtitles. The company set a goal of increasing that number to 80 percent by the end of the year.
[CNET]
