Closed Captions out of sync on ABC shows

Yes, just ABC. 

remember, this is happening on recordings in the cloud as well as on demand so it really doesn’t have anything to do with my local unit. I have turned it on and off many times

Could it be we need new TiVo cards?  Both of mine are about 8 years old.  Not that they are worn out, but the closed captioning codes may have changed somehow.  Maybe it’s worth a try.  How old is yours?

Sooooo I finally convinced Xfinity to send two new TiVo cards 10 days ago.  They promised I would receive them within two business days.  Of course, they never arrived.  I guess he just said that to get rid of me, knowing I would never be able to track him down.

This is happening with our local abc affiliate KXTV channel 710 on my cable system. All the other local stations have the captions in sync.

I have been having the same issue with all abc shows live or recorded for last few weeks

@Monkey19​ Are you using a cable card to access the shows?

Hey there, Monkey19, thanks for reaching out through Xfinity Forums regarding your issues with ABC show. Have you tried any troubleshooting steps already such as restarting your box to see if that helps?

Thank you for this information @user_kh9bi4. This may be a programming failure from the network to provide Close Captioning. Not all programming is required to display Closed Captioning under the FCC rules therefore it may not work properly on every channel on every show. That being said as someone who has hearing loss I know how important Close Captioning is to individuals. Have you tried to disable and then enable Close Captioning on your box? I have found this to help small issues I have run into myself from time to time. https://www.xfinity.com/support/articles/x1-closed-captioning is a link that will assist with turning closed captioning on and off on X1 boxes. I have a shortcut on my Voice Remote and you can see how to do this with the link: https://www.xfinity.com/support/articles/program-accessibility-shortcut-x1-remote 

Your reply does not appear to indicate that you are understanding what I am saying. This is not a matter of close caption being on or off. It is a matter of a large delay, rendering them unusable.    As I have indicated, previously turning them on and off, does nothing to solve the problem

@user_kh9bi4 We do, and again we don't impact the content or its captions. That will come from the networks, and they're in charge of how it all syncs up. The details you posted, point to that single network, as the delay is not present on all channels or happening to the box in general. You can try to go beyond simple restarts, and choose a System Refresh to ensure the device settings and content are updated, with the steps here https://www.xfinity.com/support/articles/x1-reboot-my-set-top-box. If the system sees more issues, it will help suggest a tech visit or further troubleshooting :). 

@user_kh9bi4​ I have the exact same problem with the Sacramento California Area ABC affiliate. Turning the cations on and off doesn't help.

Yes, please help us Xfinity.

@CaliLady​ May I ask what way you are viewing your shows? I use a Tivo with a cable card and I noticed someone else who is having this problem in this thread is having the same issue. I wondered if you also were using a Tivo and/or a cable card?

Thanks,

Rob

I use Tivo and Cable card and I have the exact same problem.

@CaliLady​ Are you by any chance using a Tivo to view your shows? I and at least one other user on this thread are doing that and I wonder if that is more than a coincidence.

@user_kh9bi4​  Yes, on the two TVs with the problem, I have TiVo and am using a cable cards.  However, I also watch Xfinity on two iPads, and they have the same captioning delay.  On our other Xfinity TVs, there are DVRs, and there is no problem.

Okay, that is a big clue. Those of us who are using cable cards have the problem both on the cable card devices and from when we use the Xfinity Streaming app. But you say you don't have it when you use an Xfinity DVR. That explains why no one has really been complaining in general. Only the cable card users have this problem! So there must be a different way they get the source. I'll report this back to Xfinity's team and maybe that will give them a big hint as to where to look. Perhaps the cable card users are getting the signal in a different way.

This is totally annoying, none of the other channels have delayed captions as does ABC.

They are unusable.

Have you even tried so see for yourself what we are telling you?  Do you care?

@Dolphfrank thanks for your feedback. We sure do care which is why we want to take a look deeper into everyone's account who is having this problem. Typically, we do ask for you to start your own public post then we will ask you to send us a direct message as that is part of our community guidelines. Since we are connected you can move forward with sending us your details in a direct message per the steps laid out above.  

@XfinityMartyR​ I have just done as you suggested and logged a DM. [Edited: "Solicitation"]

@Dolphfrank​ Are you by any chance using a cable card to view and record your shows? At least 2 of us on this thread are configured that way.

@user_y04pts Good morning! Thank you for reaching out to our Community Forums Team for assistance with your Closed Caption. It can be frustrating when your services are working as designed. I'm happy to assist you in getting it working properly. Aside from turning your closed caption on and off, are there any other troubleshooting steps you have tried before we begin? 

Yes I am using a smart card.  But none of the other channels show that problem.

@user_kh9bi4​ Yes, I am using a TiVo cable card on both TVs with the problem, but I also have the problem through Xfinity Stream on two iPads.  I am in Sacramento area.  It only happens on ABC.

@user_kh9bi4​ Yes, I have a cable card in my Tivo.

@user_kh9bi4​

I just found this thread this morning and have been frustrated - as you are - with the closed caption delay issue.  I too am using a TiVo DVR with a cable card connected to Xfinity.  I can confirm that I have seen this issue only with the local ABC channel (KXTV).  I have three TiVo DVR's in my house - two connected via cable cards to Xfinity and one an off-air TiVo.  While watching programming live on the cable DVRs I can see the CC delay, but on the off-air DVR the CC sync is fine.  That would support the KXTV engineer's statement that the CC data coming FROM the network is fine.

However, there must be a feed from KXTV to Xfinity that carries the national programming and the local programming to Xfinity.  So my guess is that there's a piece of equipment in the KXTV facility that feeds Xfinity that has a problem with CC data.  Given the comments in this thread about prime time programs showing this issue and local programs not showing this issue, it may well be where the national and local programming merge to go to Xfinity where the issue is.

While watching Will Trent this week (from a recording on my cable-connected DVR) I saw that the CC was terribly delayed for the first 5 minutes.  Then, at a specific scene the CC data snapped into sync and the caption font changed at the same time.  I replayed this section of the recording and it was always at this scene when the CC data snapped into place.

@user_kh9bi4 since you have had communications with the chief engineer at KXTV, please pass along this information to him/her.  I will try contacting them as well.

@user_kh9bi4​   Thank you for the updates.  I also use the Xfinity cable card with TiVo and have the same issues.  I reported it here to Xfinity Support, but I haven’t received a response.  I know that TiVo support is low on Xfinity’s priority list, and TiVo has made few efforts to keep up connections with other providers.  We lost On Demand several years ago, and since then…I love my TiVo, but it may be time to part ways.

If tivo was the problem, then this will happen for *ALL* channels,  not only ABC.

@user_kh9bi4​ I am just going to Hulu for those prime-time shows, the captions work just fine on Hulu. No wonder so many people in my area are leaving Xfinity and going to Frontier and Youtube TV.

@Dolphfrank​ I am not saying that Tivo is the problem. After all, the people with Tivo's are seeing the same issue when they use the Xfinity Streaming app too (at least, I and one other person has noted that on this thread). If it was the Tivos per se, the problem would not also appear on recordings from Xfinity's cloud. What I am guessing at here is that cable card users are receiving their signal differently than Xfinity DVR customers. Since I know that the ABC signal is sent to Xfinity 2 different ways, one by fiber and one OTA, I'm guessing that maybe one of those ways ends up being the only way that Tivo's receive their programming (I'm guessing it's the OTA method) and THAT source is flawed in some way when it comes to how ABC is carried.

@jfahlman I am sorry to hear about your TiVo issues. I want to be sure we can get everything figured out for you with your service. Please send me a Direct Message with your name and service address so that I can fully dive into this for you! I will leave you instructions on how to initiate the message with us! I look forward to working with you soon!

- Click "Sign In" if necessary
- Click the "Direct Message" icon (upper right corner of this page)
- Click the "New message" (pencil and paper) icon
- Type "Xfinity Support" in the to line and select "Xfinity Support" from the drop-down list
- Type your message in the text area near the bottom of the window
- Press Enter to send your message

Hey there @user_vmg6vh. What specific shows/networks are you noticing the out of sync closed captions on? It is ABC or other channels as well?

@Dolphfrank​ I agree that this is frustrating.  I was so frustrated the other day that I did something *relatively* drastic -  I opened up an Accessibility Complaint with the FCC.  I gave them the jist of the issue, but also provided the link to this forum thread so they can read other customer's comments and issues.  Today I got emails from the FCC saying that the FCC has reviewed my complaint and forwarded it to both Comcast and KXTV.  Both parties have 30 days to respond to the complaint - to both the FCC and me.  Maybe this will get some action towards a resolution.

When I was working I worked for several companies in the video space and spent more than my fare share of time in video headends around the country.  This problem could be at KXTV, Comcast, or possibly even with TiVo (one of the companies I actually worked for).  It will take some careful examination and testing to determine where the problem is.  All it takes is some "misbehaving" piece of equipment in the ABC signal path to account for the problem we are all seeing.  Up until now, all the parties involved seem to be pointing at someone else.  But maybe now that the FCC is involved we'll get motion towards a solution.  After all, Closed Captioning is a legal REQUIREMENT that falls under the category of Accessibility.  For it not to work is unacceptable.

@user_kh9bi4, thank you for using the Xfinity Forum page to reach out. We are glad to hear that you are seeing an improvement with the closed caption related issued you referenced. Please keep us in the loop as you continue to troubleshoot with your equipment and the provided suggestions.

Unfortunately the problem has reverted back to its original status...the long CC delay has returned. While last week's American Idol was almost okay, this week's broadcast went back to being 4 minutes delayed.

On a more optimistic note, my contact at Xfinity said that my ticket is being closed out and merged into a new ticket that is being handled at a higher level. Apparently now that the FCC is involved, a special unit within Xfinity that deals with the government has taken up the issue. So while I personally will no longer be getting updates, i take hope from the fact that this is due to increased attention on a national level. I thank you @Dolphfrank for getting this expedited because I assume it was your complaint that got this escalated. 

Rob

@user_kh9bi4, the sooner this issue is resolved the better for everyone! I have not personally experienced this concern using my own or any family members equipment, however I do know that sometimes issues can arise that impact different customers differently. I hope we are able to get this issue taken care of for you soon to enjoy your captions. Definitely keep us updated if any additional information is presented to you on this topic.

Last week (04/16) Conners and Not Dead Yet, were just a few seconds delayed.  So it was an improvement.

I just checked this week's (04/23), and the captions look right on time.  I say checked because I taped them and I will watch them in the next days, but the first 30 seconds were perfect, I would imagine that they will be in sync all the way through.

@user_kh9bi4 - I cannot take the credit for the escalation, it was actually @rgm2448 which I think really shook things up with the 'Accessibility Complaint with the FCC'.  

I wait for the new batch of Good Doctor/Rookie/Will Trent/911/Station 19/Greys Anatomy of episodes next week, before claiming victory. 

Thank you for your detailed feedback, @Dolphfrank! We appreciate you keeping us (and the community) up-to-date on what you're seeing, and I remain hopeful that things are looking better!