Teletext, which uses television to present textual information, has come into the limelight again. Many televisions now have built-in teletext receivers and new models allow teletext to be viewed simultaneously with image broadcasts, creating an environment conducive to popularization.
Diversified Information Service
Teletext is a type of multiplex broadcasting that uses the
gaps in television broadcasting waves to project still
images of text and figures. The television stations have set
up 25 specialized teletext stations, which broadcast
supplementary programs coordinated with regular television
programs, as well as independent programs that allow the
viewer to get information at any time.
The first supplementary program, subtitles for people
with hearing problems, was broadcast by NHK in October 1983.
As of May 1995, there were 23 such programs, totaling about
25 hours a week. Independent programming began two years
later, in November 1985. At present, 800 programs are
offered, including news and weather reports, information
useful in day-to-day living, and stock market listings.
Special programs are created as needed. At the time of the
Great Hanshin Earthquake, the names of victims and
information on vital services was broadcast for days.
TVs Capable of Handling Teletext Spreading
Paralleling these improvements in teletext software, the
hardware has also progressed. There are now 20 television
models with built-in teletext receivers on the market, and a
model has appeared that is capable of receiving ordinary
programs and supplementary text broadcasts simultaneously on
the right and left sides of a wide screen, overcoming the
need to switch back and forth that has been an inconvenience
of ordinary TV sets.
(The above article, edited by Japan Echo Inc., is based on domestic Japanese news sources. It is offered for reference purposes and does not necessarily represent the policy or views of the Japanese Government.)