Can all television sets display closed captions?
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The Television Decoder Circuitry Act of 1990 required that television sets with screens 13 inches or larger manufactured for sale in the United States must have built-in closed-caption decoder circuitry that allows viewers to display closed captions on their sets. Closed captioning is technology that provides visual text to describe dialogue, background noise, and sound effects in television programming. The deadline for compliance with this act was July 1993.
Last update or review: January 18, 2013
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