IO2 is conducted by the University of Trieste. Setting out the profile of the AD professional defining his/her skills and competences is needed as a backbone to the project, and will act as a logical extension of IO1 as well as a key to the definition of the course content (IO3). Although AD is being produced – to varying extents – in several countries (ADLAB 2012), outside inner, professional circles, little is known about who audio describers are, how many there are, and whether and how they received their training. Such issues are crucial given the impact that AD texts can have on users and given the need for high quality descriptions across various categories of audiovisual texts (cinema, TV, live events, museums and art galleries, etc.). Work on the profile of the AD professional will start from a study of the existing literature, including present guidelines, and by consulting working audio describers and, very importantly, AD end users, through a series of semi-structured interviews. In particular, we wish to gain insight into the training that has already been received, what is missing in current training, what is stressed in current training, and what competences have to be developed further. The findings that we obtain from IO2 will then enable us to determine whether there are any competences that have not shown up in the survey of what present courses offer (IO1) or in the literature analyzed. The results of this work, as well as being of value to HEIs, will also have direct and indirect consequences for the target groups of the project. The final outcome will be a document illustrating a comprehensive professional profile that will serve as a starting point for the development of the curriculum.