#VRSInteroperabilityNOW!

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Many thanks from Dr. Z!

With thanks to many of you, we are making headway–keep the phone calls and letters to the FCC going.

The NAD has jumped in with a letter to the FCC (link.)

If we sit back and do nothing after we tell the FCC what we thought, the issue will die down.

The FCC is required by law to respond to our complaints/comments. Let’s see what they say. In the meantime, keep the complaints/comments coming.

Once again, thank you from Dr. Z!

Thanks for listening and please go ahead and file the complaint. (here’s the link.)

Dr. Z cares about your communication access.

Disclosure: Dr. Z (Philip W. Bravin) is associated with CSDVRS, currently its Vice-President of Business Development

#VRSInteroperabilityNOW!

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Dr. Z continues to be fed up. Why can’t we deaf and hard of hearing people be like our hearing counterparts. Our hearing family and friends can do a lot of things with their smartphones while we deaf and hard of hearing people use our phones through trial and error and not being sure if it works 100% of the time. (This is exactly the same thing I said all along.)

Because of this, Dr. Z has written a letter to the FCC (link) explaining his thoughts on why Sorenson is not allowing other people who use other providers that call Sorenson devices to leave a videomail message. This is not a broken record—it is all about EQUALITY (functional equivalence) and being like our hearing family and friends who can leave voicemail to anyone they call. While we can’t leave messages on Sorenson devices, Sorenson callers can leave messages on other provider’s devices. Deaf and hard of hearing people are calling on a one-way street while hearing people call on a two-way street. Is this fair?

If we sit back and do nothing after we tell the FCC what we thought, the issue will die down.

The FCC is required by law to respond to our complaints. Let’s see what they say. In the meantime, keep the complaints coming.

Once again, thank you from Dr. Z!

Thanks for listening and please go ahead and file the complaint. (here’s the link.)

Dr. Z cares about your communication access.

Disclosure: Dr. Z (Philip W. Bravin) is associated with CSDVRS, currently its Vice-President of Business Development

Thank you! Thank you! Many of you wrote to the FCC about the Sorenson videomail interoperability issue. It has to come from you as deaf and hard of hearing consumers. Let’s continue to remind the FCC about this inexcusable issue.

Why is this inexcusable? All VRS providers get public money to be sure the VRS service is functionally equivalent. Look here: Title IV of the ADA which is the law of the land says in part: “provide the ability for an individual who has a hearing impairment or speech impairment to engage in communication by wire or radio with a hearing individual in a manner that is functionally equivalent to the ability of an individual who does not have a hearing impairment.”

This is the law of the land. The FCC is letting Sorenson get away with this–the FCC is paying providers to provide functionally equivalent service. The other providers are absorbing the cost of videomail as part of the FCC reimbursement while Sorenson is saving money by not providing the service and they get the same monies from the FCC. Is this fair?

Dr. Z continues to be fed up. Why can’t we deaf and hard of hearing people be like our hearing counterparts. Our hearing family and friends can do a lot of things with their smartphones while we deaf and hard of hearing people use our phones through trial and error and not being sure if it works 100% of the time. (This is exactly the same thing I said a week ago.)

If we sit back and do nothing after we tell the FCC what we thought, the issue will die down.

The FCC is required by law to respond to our complaints. Let’s see what they say. In the meantime, keep the complaints coming.

Once again, thank you from Dr. Z!

Thanks for listening and please go ahead and file the complaint. (here’s the link.)

Dr. Z cares about your communication access.

Disclosure: Dr. Z (Philip W. Bravin) is associated with CSDVRS, currently its Vice-President of Business Development

Dr. Z is getting fed up. Why can’t we deaf and hard of hearing people be like our hearing counterparts. Our hearing family and friends can do a lot of things with their smartphones while we deaf and hard of hearing people use our phones through trial and error and not being sure if it works 100% of the time.

Because of this, Dr. Z has written a letter to the FCC (link) explaining his thoughts on why Sorenson is not allowing other people who use other providers that call Sorenson devices to leave a videomail message. This is not a broken record—it is all about EQUALITY (functional equivalence) and being like our hearing family and friends who can leave voicemail to anyone they call. While we can’t leave messages on Sorenson devices, Sorenson callers can leave messages on other provider’s devices. Deaf and hard of hearing people are calling on a one-way street while hearing people call on a two-way street. Is this fair?

If you don’t think this is fair, file a complaint to the FCC (here’s the link.) Just say in the complaint that you feel it is not fair not to be able to leave a videomail on Sorenson devices and ask the FCC to require this to happen

Let’s all mobilize together and make the FCC wake up on this important matter. Sorenson gets public money and they restrict this—does this make sense? Public money should promote, not restrict equality. Think about this.

Thanks for listening and please go ahead and file the complaint.

Dr. Z cares about your communication access.

Disclosure: Dr. Z (Philip W. Bravin) is associated with CSDVRS, currently its Vice-President of Business Development