From 1 October, TIM's technical assistance service will become more inclusive — deaf customers will be able to receive help online in Italian sign language (LIS). This is a sign of the Group's commitment to breaking down physical and cultural barriers.
By accessing the technical assistance area of the TIM website via PC, smartphone or tablet, thanks to the TIMinLIS service, deaf customers can report issues and be guided in solving problems through a video call with a sign language interpreter connected in real time with a TIM technician. The service will also be available by appointment, depending on the client's needs.
The project, which is unprecedented in the telecommunications sector, was developed with the collaboration of deaf colleagues in the TIM Group who contributed in particular to developing the 'technical' vocabulary in LIS and testing the service.
The inclusion of deaf people is an area in which TIM has launched several initiatives for its customers and for the people working in the Group.
During the pandemic, in cooperation with ENS (Ente Nazionale Sordi) the national association for the deaf, we provided COVID-19 patients in hospitals with technology and services to help them stay in touch with their loved ones.
TIMVISION has long enriched its programming with cartoons translated into LIS to include children and now also offers 26 episodes of Siamo fatti così in LIS, the cartoon series which, with the help of animated characters, explains the structure and functions of the human body, enriched with short tutorials that support the understanding of scientific terms not present in sign language.
Through venture capital initiatives, the TIM Group has helped in the foundation of Pedius, the start-up which enables people to make and receive phone calls by converting written text into spoken word and vice versa with an app.
And today it offers TIM employees who are deaf, whether they are oralists or use sign language, a system that integrates the services of Pedius and Veasyt, the app that offers online LIS video interpreting, to help manage interviews and meetings.
Inclusion is a concrete commitment for the organisation and our people, as evidenced by the work of hundreds of TIM people, deaf and hearing, who have helped establish many other initiatives, including the 4Weeks4Inclusion event, whose 2021 edition will be announced soon. For more than three years now, this commitment has been recognised as a global best practice by international industry indices such as the Refinitiv D&I Index.