Spectrum testing virtual ASL interpreter program in Rochester stores. How does it work?
Trent Gobble stands at the front of a Spectrum store in Henrietta, opens the camera on his phone and scans a QR code on a sheet of paper stationed on a small stand facing the door.
A link pops up, opens to Gobble's internet browser and instructs him to turn up the volume on his phone, allow access to the camera's microphone and disconnect from any Bluetooth devices.
From there, an American Sign Language interpreter appears on the screen, while Gobble is visible in a smaller box in the top right corner.
As he signs, the virtual interpreter verbally relays the message to store territory manager Josh Berbs — Berbs' responses are then communicated to Gobble through the ASL interpreter.
Gobble, a first year student at RIT studying neuroscience, is deaf and trying out Charter Communications/Spectrum's ASL Video Relay Service Interpreter pilot program, which launched at four Rochester locations earlier this week.
The program paves the way for easier communication between Spectrum employees and members of the deaf community. Here's what to know about the pilot program and why Rochester is the ideal location.
What to know about Spectrum's ASL pilot program
Spectrum is partnering with Convo, a deaf-owned video relay service provider, to provide remote interpreting in their stores.
"In most situations ... it's pen and paper to communicate or pointing and gesturing or maybe typing in the notes on their phone," Spectrum's senior manager of accessibility Stacey Romero said inside the Henrietta store Tuesday. "It's really hard to build connections with people when you're not able to communicate."
But this new program changes that.
The program, which launches through a QR code, provides an ASL interpreter directly on a customer's mobile device, allowing on-site communication with Spectrum representatives in real time.
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Why Rochester?
Charter's ASL virtual interpreter pilot program is being tested at these four Rochester-area Spectrum stores:
Henrietta - 720 Jefferson Rd.
Brighton - 1393 Mt. Hope Ave.
East Rochester - 349 W. Commercial St.
Irondequoit - 2255 E. Ridge Rd.
"Rochester has a large deaf population," Romero said. "It's why we picked this market. What better place to allow our customers to come in and try it out?"
According to the city of Rochester's website, the Rochester area is home to one of the largest per-capita populations of deaf and hard of hearing people in the country.
How it will help Rochester's deaf community
Independent interactions with various store employees are tough for Gobble to achieve with English not being his primary language, Gobble said through an ASL interpreter.
But with new developments and products like Spectrum's ASL Video Relay Service program, Gobble says he believes it will help deaf youth gain that independence earlier in life.
"Sometimes, I've had to write back and forth and I feel like they don't get the full access to what I mean," Gobble said. "But now that I can use my primary language and they can use their primary language, we're able to share that information and it's really nice."
And it's something he hopes will continue to expand in other aspects of his life.
"I see a lot of potential of this continuing," Gobble said. "People are going to recognize it. ASL is getting more recognition too ... I think it can happen and will happen sooner than later."
Emily Barnes is the New York State Team consumer advocate reporter for the USA TODAY Network. Contact Barnes at ebarnes@gannett.com or on Twitter @byemilybarnes.
This article originally appeared on Rochester Democrat and Chronicle: Spectrum stores launch ASL pilot program in Rochester NY. How it works
