Marylebone Cricket Club is the First Club to Offer Fully Accessible Interactions with Deaf British Sign Language Users, with SignVideo Partnership

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Collaboration aims to improve real-time communication and assistance

LONDON, May 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- SignVideo by Sorenson, the market leader in delivering on-demand video interpreting and community interpreting to the Deaf British Sign Language (BSL) community in the United Kingdom (UK), today announced it is providing sign language interpretation for the distinguished Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC), founded in 1787 and today, the arbiter of laws relating to cricket globally and owner of Lord's Cricket Ground.

"We are ecstatic to partner with Marylebone Cricket Club in creating social impact by removing language barriers for Deaf cricket fans in the UK. Our partnership provides communication access that is intended to enrich the experience for users of BSL," said Jorge Rodriguez, CEO of Sorenson, parent company of SignVideo, which offers interpreting services in the UK. "This means Deaf and hearing fan journeys will be very similar – an exciting breakthrough in creating equivalent participation." 

Whether Deaf people want to call to buy tickets for upcoming matches or discuss a membership package, SignVideo's BSL video relay service, effective immediately, will offer Deaf people options to contact MCC the same way as hearing counterparts.

MCC staff and stewards will also be able to communicate on the spot with a Deaf person through an on-demand video BSL interpreter via a mobile or tablet device. This video remote interpreting service is especially useful when an interpreter is needed immediately, such as for ad-hoc Deaf spectators visiting on match days or for communicating with the ticket office or MCC club on non-match days. 

Stuart Dunlop, Sustainability and Accessibility Manager, MCC, said: "Partnering with SignVideo is a very important step for MCC, as we continue to look into ways of ensuring that Lord's is a Ground for all.

"We are very pleased to become the first cricket venue to partner with SignVideo, whose service will make it easier for members of the BSL community to communicate with the Club's staff. We hope this partnership will open up the experience of Lord's to those who previously may not have considered visiting," Dunlop noted.

Founded in 2004 to advance equality of Deaf and hearing communities, SignVideo introduced the first videophone to Deaf people in the UK, providing instant access to BSL/English interpreting through video conferencing. Today, SignVideo by Sorenson's services include online video and face-to-face BSL and Irish Sign Language (ISL) interpreting across the UK.

In 2020, SignVideo joined Sorenson, one of the world's leading language services providers. Across all business lines, Sorenson connects more than 140 million conversations each year through a full suite of inclusive language services, combining patented technology with human-centric solutions. Learn more about SignVideo by Sorenson. To learn more about the full range of services Sorenson offers, visit www.sorenson.com

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Sorenson Press Contact
Denisse Tamez
Public Relations Director
001-1- 404-960-6779
[email protected]

Marylebone Cricket Club Press Contact
Seb Maxam
MCC Communications Officer
Lord's Ground
07948 715327
[email protected]

About SignVideo by Sorenson
Predominantly a BSL-led organisation dedicated to high quality, customer-focused services and standards, SignVideo delivers BSL interpreting 24/7 for Deaf and Deaf-Blind BSL users through Video Relay Service (VRS) solutions commissioned by public and private sectors which include, government, National Health Service, councils, banks, helplines, and telecommunications providers across the UK.

In 2020, SignVideo joined Sorenson, one of the world's leading language services providers. Across all business lines, Sorenson connects more than 140 million conversations each year through a full suite of inclusive language services. Sorenson combines patented technology with human-centric solutions to deliver call captioning and video relay services, video remote and in-person sign language and spoken language interpreting, translation, real-time captioning, and post-production language services.

Sorenson strives to increase diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility for underrepresented people through communication solutions for all. Sorenson impact extends beyond the connections we support. Under Sorenson's Impact and ESG Vision and Action Plan, we're reviewing our carbon footprint, addressing accessibility and advancement barriers for Deaf employees, and implementing a supplier diversity program. Sorenson is a portfolio company of Ariel Alternatives LLC's Project Black^® fund, which aims to scale sustainable minority-owned businesses to serve as leading vendors to Fortune 500 companies—supporting supply chain diversity. For more information on how we advance human connection, visit sorenson.com or es.sorenson.com.

About Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC)
There are few clubs in the world that have made as big an impact on any sport as MCC has made on cricket. From its iconic ground in north-west London, MCC has led the game for over 200 years and helped take it from a national pastime to a global obsession.

At our heart is Lord's, the Home of Cricket. Taking care over every detail, we're dedicated to growing its reputation as the most celebrated and admired venue in cricket. Everything we do is for the good of the game; from working with local communities to growing cricket's global influence.

Founded in 1787, MCC is recognised as the sole authority on the game's Laws. There are approximately 18,350 Full and 6,000 Associate Members of MCC.

SOURCE Sorenson Communications, LLC