IBM has announced a new technology that can help blind and visually impaired people see Internet multimedia.

The company said that the new multimedia browsing accessibility tool, which is designed at IBM's Tokyo Research Laboratory, enables blind people to experience streaming video and animation on the Internet, and has the potential to open up a world of rich content to visually impaired people all over the globe.

The new multimedia browsing accessibility tool provides visually impaired people with the same multimedia control features that normal people see and operate with a mouse. And to enjoy a streaming video on video sharing Web sites, for example, visually impaired people can select the "play" button by simply pressing a predefined shortcut key to control the media, instead of having to search for buttons to control the video.

Talking about the tool, Frances West, Director of Human Ability and Accessibility Center, IBM, said, "The new multimedia browsing accessibility tool will enable persons with visual impairments an opportunity to access dynamic multimedia Web content, quickly and easily. IBM has a long history of developing innovative solutions for persons with disabilities, and this tool is another example of an IBM innovation that will enhance the Web experience for persons with visual impairments."

The new tool can adjust the volume of an individual source, allowing users to identify and listen to different sound sources, including screen-reading software and the sound of a video. It allows users control video replay speed, volume, and also speed up the sound.

Besides, if a content creator wants to lend voice to a video, the new accessibility tool offers the flexibility of utilizing metadata, which contains a text script explaining what is happening on the screen. The tool automatically makes adjustments to let voice guidance synchronize with the video, even with the speed control capability.

Meanwhile, IBM plans to open source the new multimedia browsing accessibility tool to accelerate adoption of the tool by the visually impaired.