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Introduction to accessibility requirements for audio-video

This document is a great introduction on how to make accessible video for a communication advisor audience which are in between the web author and the content expert.

Introduction

The purpose of this guide is to teach you how to ensure all audio-video learning products are accessible for all learners. WCAG 2.1 and other accessibility guidelines refer to audio-video recordings, live or pre-recorded as Time-Based Media.

Time-based media can be any of the following:

We often use audio and video to present information, facilitate courses and demo systems. By not including the appropriate information when developing a time-based media learning object, we are excluding many learners or at minimum, making it difficult for them to access the training they need to do their job.

General Requirements

Whether the time-based media is accessible largely depends on the following four factors being taken into consideration:

Summaries for each of the factors are presented here, while guidelines, checklists and samples follow later in the document.

Transcript summary

Transcripts are the text equivalent of an audio or video file. They make it easier for people who need to access information in audio and visual media but can't hear or see the content. Ensure that transcripts include all:

Transcript Guidelines

Transcript Checklist

Captioning summary

Videos with audio require synchronized captioning (where the text aligns with the spoken words in the audio and when important actions are presented on the screen).

Most “closed captions” can be hidden or shown by people watching the video. They can also be “open captions” that are always displayed and cannot be turned off.

Open captions are recommended at the top of American Sign Language (ASL) and Langue des Signes Québécoise (LSQ) videos.

Anything said or heard in the video must be included in the captioning. It is important that captions are:

Design teams or a contractor can provide the caption text.

Captioning Guidelines

Captioning Checklist

Audio description summary

Audio description allows any user with a visual disability or cognitive disability to receive a very detailed and descriptive experience of what is happening on the screen. During existing pauses in dialogue, audio description provides information about actions, characters, scene changes, and on-screen text that are important and are not described or spoken in the main soundtrack.

This can be done using:

Audio Description Guidelines

Audio Description Checklist

Keyboard Access

All video controls must be accessible and navigable via the keyboard. It is the responsibility of the developer to ensure that video players are accessible such as:

Keyboard access is tested by the developer, design teams or a contractor.

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