On December 16, 2016 the Federal Communications Commission (FCC or Commission) released amended rules to allow phone companies to transition from text telephony (TTY) technology to real-time text (RTT) communications over IP communications networks to improve the accessibility of these networks for consumers who are deaf, hard of hearing, deaf-blind, and speech disabled. The Commission also adopted a notice asking questions about next steps in the process of integrating these services into telecommunications relay services and the need for certain RTT features for people with cognitive disabilities and who are deaf-blind. Deadlines for filing comments on the notice have now been announced. Comments will be due by February 22, and reply comments will be due by March 24, 2017.
