Coalition of Organizations for Accessible Technology ________________________________________ March 26, 2008 Federal Communications Commission 445 Twelfth Street, SW Washington, DC 20554 In re: WC Docket 06-74 Comments of the Coalition of Organizations for Accessible Technology in Response to Report of "AT&T's Efforts to Provide High Quality Service to its Customers with Disabilities" (December 21, 2007) Dear Commissioners:

Synopsis: (October 1, 2007) The Coalition of Organizations for Accessible Technology (COAT) filed comments with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) concerning efforts to educate consumers about the transition to digital television (DTV). Widespread consumer understanding of the benefits and mechanics of the DTV transition is needed. COAT advocated for specific steps to be taken to reach the community of people with disabilities to ensure awareness about the DTV transition. In addition, COAT described the technical difficulties encountered by people with disabilities and proposed a way to address those issues. COAT offered a disability perspective on several consumer education proposals raised by the Commission in its Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, and urged more resources be made available for the consumer education initiative.

Download or view the Comments at http://tinyurl.com/2layx7 (http://fjallfoss.fcc.gov/prod/ecfs/retrieve.cgi?native_or_pdf=pdf&id_document=6519738849).

COAT recommendation: Reinstate the FCC’s modest regulations on video description and authorize the FCC to promulgate future rules to (a) further expand coverage of the video description rules, (b) require non-visual access to on-screen emergency warnings and similar televised information, and (c) ensure that the new DTV standard includes the capacity to deliver video description. Video description is the provision of verbal descriptions of on-screen visual elements that are provided during natural pauses in dialogue.