Amazon Unbox more like a Huh?box
When Amazon announced Unbox, I was tickled silly. This new Amazon product makes it possible to download a rental movie (you can buy movies too) from the Unbox site and watch it on your TV or PC. In less than an hour, you can download a movie to watch at home and not be bothered with returning the video to a store. You can even start a download from your PC at work to be ready for when you get home. See why I was so tickled?
But guess what? Closed captioning isn’t included in the download. My first movie, About a Boy, is full of Hugh Grant voiceovers. I missed every word. I complained straight to Amazon. Here’s what they said:
Greetings from Amazon.com.
Thank you for writing to us about closed captioning and Amazon Unbox
videos.Unfortunately we do not offer closed captioning at this time. The
availability of content through our Amazon Unbox service depends on
our agreements and arrangements with various content owners. We are
constantly working to establish and improve these agreements so we can
offer the largest range of content possible.It is always important for us to hear how customers react to all
aspects of shopping at Amazon.com. Strong customer feedback like
yours helps us continue to improve the selection and service we
provide, and we appreciate the time you took to write to us.Thank you for your interest in Amazon Unbox video downloads on Amazon.com.
Bummer.
Join me in telling Amazon that their agreements with their content owners need to include closed captioning. Go to Amazon.com, and look for the contact us button on the side. Surely 31 million people deserve this support!
Cindy | Sep 18, 2007 | Reply
Thanks for letting us know about this. Just wanted to let you know that I emailed Amazon:
Dear Amazon,
I would love to get the Unbox to start watching movies on my computer; however, until the movies have captioning, there’s no point in my doing so. I, along with 31 million other Americans, have hearing loss and absolutely REQUIRE captioning.
Please make the Unbox accessible for your deaf and hard of hearing customers by providing captioning, or ensuring that your vendors include captioning. This is an important issue that should not be ignored.
Sincerely,
Cindy
Kevin Jeray | Sep 24, 2007 | Reply
Thanks for bringing this to our attention. I also emailed Amazon to let them be aware they are ignoring a large customer base.
Dain Muller | Oct 10, 2007 | Reply
I would have to assume the origional content sent to the cable companies has the correct CC content persuant to 47 CFR Part 79.1(g)(3). In fact, nobody is allowed to tamper with that encoding. For it not to be present means it was tampered with, no? Also, does Amazon and its Unbox program constitute a Video Distributor in any way? If so, the are required to follow the CC rules as laid out. I wonder if we can get anyone to see if this has merit and start a class action against them…