Bret, It's actually in: 47 CFR Part 6--access to telecommunications service, telecommunications equipment and customer premises equipment by persons with disabilities
Excerpt: § 6.1 Applicability. The rules in this part apply to: (a) Any provider of telecommunications service; (b) Any manufacturer of telecommunications equipment or customer premises equipment; (c) Any telecommunications carrier; (d) Any provider of interconnected Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) service, as that term is defined in §9.3 of this chapter; and (e) Any manufacturer of equipment or customer premises equipment that is specially designed to provide interconnected VoIP service and that is needed for the effective use of an interconnected VoIP service. § 6.5 General obligations. (a) Obligation of Manufacturers. (1) A manufacturer of telecommunications equipment or customer premises equipment shall ensure that the equipment is designed, developed and fabricated so that the telecommunications functions of the equipment are accessible to and usable by individuals with disabilities, if readily achievable. There's also some more in Part 64. The underlying principles are the same but the FCC has taken action since VoIP is commonly marketed as a replacement for standard analog service. If you're interested Report & Order from 15 June 2007 (Docket 07-110) has a good discussion of the issues. Now to the topic of testing for HAC compliance on VoIP phones... I know that the FCC has ruled that HAC is required, but I also know that there is some issue with determining the actual test methods to demonstrate compliance that is pushing enforcement out closer to 2009 (maybe just for wireless devices though?). Unfortunately, I don't know the exact status of this - if anyone cares to pitch in some more info it would be quite welcome and could be of interest to the group. Best Regards, -Dave David Heald EMC Engineer | Worldwide Regulatory Compliance Motorola Networks & Enterprise, Enterprise Mobility Business tel: +1.631.738.5373 fax: +1.631.738.5520 ________________________________ From: [email protected] [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of McDougal, Bret (SHC US) Sent: Thursday, April 10, 2008 5:46 PM To: [email protected] Subject: VOIP Phones and HAC List Members, It appears that FCC Part 68 calls for all phones to be Hearing Aid Compatible (HAC): Excerpt from FCC Part 68: § 68.4 Hearing aid-compatible telephones. (a)(1) Except for telephones used with public mobile services, telephones used with private radio services, and cordless and secure telephones, every telephone manufactured in the United States (other than for export) or imported for use in the United States after August 16, 1989, must be hearing aid compatible, as defined in § 68.316. Every cordless telephone manufactured in the United States (other than for export) or imported into the United States after August 16, 1991, must be hearing aid compatible, as defined in § 68.316. (2) Unless otherwise stated and except for telephones used with public mobile services, telephones used with private radio services and secure telephones, every telephone listed in § 68.112 must be hearing aid compatible, as defined in § 68.316. (3) A telephone is hearing aid-compatible if it provides internal means for effective use with hearing aids that are designed to be compatible with telephones which meet established technical standards for hearing aid compatibility. However I am less clear about VOIP phones, as I do not believe they are registered with ACTA. Does Part 68 apply, or is there some other requirement for VOIP phones to be HAC? Best Regards, Bret McDougal PQA & ES This message and any attachments are solely for the use of intended recipients. 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