Subtitles are far too large and intrusive. Friends and family are furious that subtitles can’t

[Sarah+Yorksher]

Given that the original post was from December 2020 I think you'll be away from Sky for a good while.

Sky clearly don't intend to provide a service for people with hearing difficulties or neurodivergence.

[Kat70]

I'm watching a show on E4 and the titles are small and at the bottom of the screen. So much better. I thought perhaps something had finally been done but I switched channels and sadly they were in the old format : massive and back in the middle of the screen. 
I really wish someone would read this thread and do something about it. 
I can't even post a picture here to show the difference. 

[RachaelFS]

@Kirsty+S27 is there an update on this issue yet please? I have been discussing this with Sky today as my mum is struggling to read the screen and we have been advised that we can cancel this contract at no charge as I considered this a service that has been mis-sold!

There are many visually impaired people of all ages and this should be a fundamental feature of Sky and considered with any update! 

Thank you!

Rachael 

[Roseazia]

But what about when I am watching with my family or others? It's uncomfortable enough (for me personally) to have to draw attention to my different needs, without it being so invasive for anyone who watches with me. 

[adamb12345]

[AN.Other]

The awful intrusive teletext subtitles may be generated by a hardware teletext chip in the sky box, so it may be a long time before Sky rework their subtitle implementation in line with other streaming providers. But here's hoping they get around to it soon !

[adamb12345]

Surely they fixed this with sky q? They will lose market share to people like netflix etc if they don't fix this

[Roseazia]

I have sky Q and it's the same giant letters. Also it is encoded teletext. That's why subtitles are not available on sky go app too. It's not the 80's Sky, sort it out

[adamb12345]

only been four years since someone asked them to fix it... nothing like agile development

[adamb12345]

I posted about this on linkedin and received a response here: 

https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:7186375097882927104/?commentUrn=urn%3Ali%3Acomm...

It's from Clare Davidson, Head of Product Inclusion and Equity. Her response reads as follows: 

"I was at an Ofcom event today where we discussed this very topic and how broadcasters and streaming app providers should come together and standardise features like these to ensure our customers receive a consistent experience across all platforms. In addition to the Ofcom research conducted last year, we conducted our own research on various aspects of customisation such as colour, style, positioning etc as well as considering cognitive conditions and people who are neurodiverse. I would really like to see bionic reading brought into customisation as this would aid the readibility of subtitles. So it’s not a case of fixing them, it’s about understanding what our diverse customers needs are and then thinking about how we create subtitle customisation that is inclusive for all needs. Ofcom have also launched a working group which is meeting in July which is very encouraging. If you feel like this is something relevant to you then I would get in touch."

Any thoughts? 

[Kae53]

@adamb12345 

Thanks for this link. I have replied to Clare Davidson on LinkedIn.  Whilst it does sound promising I'm not optimistic for an early resolution. They are only  at the "thinking about how..." stage! 

[AN.Other]

"it’s about understanding what our diverse customers needs are"

It shouldn't take long to figure out that what their diverse customers DON'T need is archaic fixed size teletext based subtitles in an oversize picture obscuring box.

[Franki3Ann3]

Have you actually had a response off sky? I only joined sky during the last week or so and I am already contemplating getting rid because of how difficult  it is to actually use/find wthat I'm looking for.. 

I can't use the  subtitle as they're ridicuously big and cover the majority of the screen but I struggle without them ..plus the remote control they sent is beyond a joke. 

Sky is extremely difficult for me to use... 

It just seems as though pepole with disabilities wern't even an after thought when Sky  produced thier laest round of  updates etc