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| Version 3 | Version 4 |
|---|---|
| Volume turned down on MP3 players | Volume turned down on MP3 players |
| (40 minutes later) | |
| The European Commission is calling for a suggested maximum volume to be set on MP3 players, to protect users' hearing. | |
| The commission wants all MP3 players sold in the EU, including iPods, to share the same volume limits. | |
| This follows a report last year warning that up to 10m people in the EU face permanent hearing loss from listening to loud music for prolonged periods. | This follows a report last year warning that up to 10m people in the EU face permanent hearing loss from listening to loud music for prolonged periods. |
| EU scientific experts have agreed that the default maximum setting should be 85 decibels. | EU scientific experts have agreed that the default maximum setting should be 85 decibels. |
| Users would be able to override this setting to reach a top limit of 100 decibels. | Users would be able to override this setting to reach a top limit of 100 decibels. |
| In January, a two-month consultation of all EU standardisation bodies will begin on these proposals, with a final agreement expected in the spring. | In January, a two-month consultation of all EU standardisation bodies will begin on these proposals, with a final agreement expected in the spring. |
| Some personal players examined in testing facilities have been found to reach 120 decibels, the equivalent of a jet taking off, and no safety default level currently applies, although manufacturers are obliged to print information about risks in the instruction manuals. | Some personal players examined in testing facilities have been found to reach 120 decibels, the equivalent of a jet taking off, and no safety default level currently applies, although manufacturers are obliged to print information about risks in the instruction manuals. |
| Dr Robin Yeoh said young people were having hearing trouble | Dr Robin Yeoh said young people were having hearing trouble |
| Modern personal players are seen as more dangerous than stationary players or old-fashioned cassette or disk players because they can store hours of music and are often listened to while in traffic with the volume very high to drown out outside noise. | Modern personal players are seen as more dangerous than stationary players or old-fashioned cassette or disk players because they can store hours of music and are often listened to while in traffic with the volume very high to drown out outside noise. |
| Dr Robin Yeoh, an audiology consultant at the Epsom and St Helier NHS Trust, said: "More and more young people are referred to me by their GPs with tinnitus or hearing loss as a direct result to exposure to loud music. | Dr Robin Yeoh, an audiology consultant at the Epsom and St Helier NHS Trust, said: "More and more young people are referred to me by their GPs with tinnitus or hearing loss as a direct result to exposure to loud music. |
| "It's the sort of damage that in the old days would have come from industrial noise. | "It's the sort of damage that in the old days would have come from industrial noise. |
| "The damage is permanent and will often play havoc with their employment opportunities and their personal lives." | "The damage is permanent and will often play havoc with their employment opportunities and their personal lives." |
| 'Personal choice' | 'Personal choice' |
| DigitalEurope, the Brussels-based body representing the industry, agrees safety must be improved. | DigitalEurope, the Brussels-based body representing the industry, agrees safety must be improved. |
| But according to their spokesman Tony Graziano, "the solution must lie in a balance between safety and enjoyment of the product by the consumer". | But according to their spokesman Tony Graziano, "the solution must lie in a balance between safety and enjoyment of the product by the consumer". |
| "Eighty five decibels would not be appropriate because noise coming from traffic, engines and so on would obliterate the sound," he said. | "Eighty five decibels would not be appropriate because noise coming from traffic, engines and so on would obliterate the sound," he said. |
| Conservative MEP Martin Callanan, who sits on the European Parliament's Environment, Public Health and Food Safety Committee, said: "Kids have always listened to their music loud and this is not going to stop them." | Conservative MEP Martin Callanan, who sits on the European Parliament's Environment, Public Health and Food Safety Committee, said: "Kids have always listened to their music loud and this is not going to stop them." |
| He added: "You have to educate them to the risks but ultimately you have to allow personal responsibility and personal choice." | He added: "You have to educate them to the risks but ultimately you have to allow personal responsibility and personal choice." |
| The Politics Show broadcasts at 1200 GMT on BBC1 and for seven days after on the BBC iPlayer | The Politics Show broadcasts at 1200 GMT on BBC1 and for seven days after on the BBC iPlayer |