What's News: Walt Disney World
Press Release from Walt Disney World:
Breakthrough Wireless Service Puts Captions in the Hands of Guests With Hearing Disabilities at Walt Disney World Resort
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. -- Enhancing its services for guests with hearing disabilities, the Walt Disney World Resort has developed a pioneering program to provide synchronized captions via wireless technology at popular theme park attractions.
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Photo copyright (c) 2002 the Walt Disney Company.
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Long recognized as the industry leader for its commitment to accommodating guests with disabilities, the Walt Disney World Resort debuted the free system on Dec. 5, 2001 -- the 100th anniversary of Walt Disney's birth -- at "Walt Disney: One Man's Dream," a new attraction at the Disney-MGM Studios.
The breakthrough service was created by Disney engineers in Florida to exceed the expectations of guests with hearing disabilities by utilizing recent advances in wireless communication. Using a handheld receiver, Walt Disney World Resort guests are now able to read captions while enjoying theme park attractions where captioning had previously been impractical or impossible, such as rides that send guests through multiple show scenes or outdoor environments.
Wireless signals throughout participating attractions automatically trigger synchronized captions on the handheld device in real time, an innovation that allows guests with hearing disabilities to more fully experience the magic of the Walt Disney World Resort. Portable captioning will be available at more than 20 Walt Disney World attractions by the end of 2001 with expansion planned at the Walt Disney World Resort and the Disneyland Resort.
"Our challenge was finding a way to deliver captions in narrative attractions where fixed captioning systems weren't an option," said Greg Hale, vice president of Design and Engineering for the Walt Disney World Resort. "When we couldn't find an 'off-the-shelf' solution, we developed our own technology.
"We are now exploring opportunities to make this technology available in venues outside of theme parks, where it could provide synchronized captioning, audio translations and other services in a wide variety of applications such as museums, movie theaters, tours and transportation."
The handheld captioning system joins several existing services for guests with hearing disabilities at the Walt Disney World Resort theme parks, including reflective captioning, American Sign Language interpreters, assistive listening systems, video captioning and printed attraction aids. The Guidebook for Guests with Disabilities offers a complete overview of the services and facilities available at each park.
"With our handheld captioning program, Disney has once again shown its commitment to provide an outstanding experience for our guests with disabilities," said Al Weiss, president of the Walt Disney World Resort. "The program perfectly illustrates our willingness to meet challenges with creative, innovative solutions for exceptional guest service."
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