Firm plans sign language interpretation center

From: Columbus Business First, OH - Mar 16, 2005

A Utah company plans to open a center in Columbus to help people with hearing impairments to make phone calls.

Sorenson Media Inc.'s proposed center will employ a staff of American Sign Language interpreters to facilitate phone calls between deaf and hearing people. People with hearing loss will call the center on a videophone and trained interpreters will place calls using regular phone lines.

Salt Lake City-based Sorenson is also opening a center in Indianapolis. It said the service is growing rapidly.

"We chose Indianapolis and Columbus for interpreting centers because both have large populations of certified and qualified interpreters available to work with Sorenson Media and meet the needs of the community," Chris Wakeland, vice president of interpreting at Sorenson Media, said in a press release.

Sorenson was founded in 2000 to make videoconferencing gear, but expanded into sign language interpretation.

© 2005 American City Business Journals Inc.