[nfbmi-talk] story on harkin's agreement

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http://www.bizjournals.com/phoenix/news/2011/11/10/legal-agreement-forces-harkins.html

 

Legal agreement forces Harkins Theatres to install technology for blind, deaf

 

Phoenix Business Journal by Mike Sunnucks, Senior Reporter

Date: Thursday, November 10, 2011, 2:58pm MST - Last Modified: Thursday, November 10, 2011, 4:39pm MST

 

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Harkins Theatres

#

will install closed captioning equipment for the hard of hearing and video description technology for the blind in almost all of its 346 Arizona movie screens.

 

The move is part of a legal agreement over a federal disability accommodation case brought by some blind and deaf customers, as well as the state of Arizona

and the Arizona Center for Disability Law.

 

U.S. District Court in Phoenix signed off on the Harkins deal this week. The original lawsuit was filed in 2006.

 

Harkins also will give 1,000 free movie passes to customers who have hearing or vision disabilities as part of the deal.

 

The Scottsdale-based chain will install the closed captioning and video description technology in its movie theaters next year.

 

The latter provides headsets for blind movie-goers to hear narration of the film’s action, character expressions and other visual aspects. Capitol Media

Services reports that it costs $2,000 to outfit an individual theater with the technology. Harkins had originally wanted to outfit only selected theaters

in each complex with the technology.

 

Harkins will pay the Center for Disability Law’s $24,000 of legal costs in the case.

 

The agreement was reached earlier this year and submitted to the federal courts last month. A federal judge in Phoenix approved the deal this week.

 

Harkins is Arizona’s largest movie theater chain. The lawsuit was filed under the Americans with Disabilities Act and Arizonans with Disabilities Act.

 

Harkins issued the following statement on the settlement and the assisting ...

 

Harkins Theatres

#

will install closed captioning equipment for the hard of hearing and video description technology for the blind in almost all of its 346 Arizona movie screens.

 

The move is part of a legal agreement over a federal disability accommodation case brought by some blind and deaf customers, as well as the state of Arizona

and the Arizona Center for Disability Law.

 

U.S. District Court in Phoenix signed off on the Harkins deal this week. The original lawsuit was filed in 2006.

 

Harkins also will give 1,000 free movie passes to customers who have hearing or vision disabilities as part of the deal.

 

The Scottsdale-based chain will install the closed captioning and video description technology in its movie theaters next year.

 

The latter provides headsets for blind movie-goers to hear narration of the film’s action, character expressions and other visual aspects. Capitol Media

Services reports that it costs $2,000 to outfit an individual theater with the technology. Harkins had originally wanted to outfit only selected theaters

in each complex with the technology.

 

Harkins will pay the Center for Disability Law’s $24,000 of legal costs in the case.

 

The agreement was reached earlier this year and submitted to the federal courts last month. A federal judge in Phoenix approved the deal this week.

 

Harkins is Arizona’s largest movie theater chain. The lawsuit was filed under the Americans with Disabilities Act and Arizonans with Disabilities Act.

 

Harkins issued the following statement on the settlement and the assisting technology:

As has been our stated intention since these discussions began, Harkins Theatres is excited to be able to offer newly available technology on virtually

all screens and locations to provide closed captioning for the hearing impaired and descriptive narration for the visually impaired.

 

Rather than accepting the completely ineffective requirements that were being demanded of us, we were determined to wait for the new technologies developed

for digital projection that provide a real and viable solution for moviegoers.

 

Harkins had issued a press release earlier this year announcing this new technology and our timeline for rolling it out.

 

This groundbreaking technology is intended to provide the disabled community complete access to enjoy the moviegoing experience at any time. For those who

are hearing impaired, personal closed captioning devices with digital text displays that attach to seat cup holders will be available. Those who are visually

impaired can take advantage of Harkins’ descriptive narration devices; headsets that provide not only dialogue and sound effects, but audio descriptions

of action taking place on the screen. This is in addition to the hearing impaired headsets that provide an amplified assisted listening soundtrack, which

are currently available.