Accessibility video guidelines are easiest to implement when creating a video from beginning to end, but you can take steps to make a video file accessible by adding captions and descriptions using YouTube.com or Rev.com captioning services. YouTube allows you to add your own subtitles and captions. If you have videos that you do not wish to publish on YouTube, you may choose to use Rev.com, which is a video captioning service vendor for Auburn University.
If you are live streaming a video, you will need to provide live captioning or a sign language interpreter. This is a special case and requires much more planning and coordination of technology and/or resources. Please contact the Office of Accessibility for assistance if you must live stream your video.
Please note that Auburn University is not responsible for any content posted on unofficial Auburn University YouTube channels.
| Captioning Service/Software | Video Captioning | Audio Transcription | Multiple Languages | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| YouTube.com | Yes | No | Yes | Free |
| Rev.com (Contact Office of Accessibility for Rev.com Vendor ID) |
Yes | Yes | Yes ($9/minute for foreign languages) |
$1.50/minute |
For online help with YouTube trascription and translations, please visit YouTube Help.
Standard
Equivalent alternatives for any multimedia presentation shall be synchronized with the presentation.
How to Meet the Standard
To pass this standard video files and live audio/video presentations on the web must have captions that sync to the audio. Also, visual content that is not expressed through audio must have an audio description.
Who does this help?
Captions and transcripts are essential for those with hearing disabilities, but are helpful for everyone!
Sources:
W3C Web Accessibility Initiative Videos
WebAIM.org Section 508 Checklist
Last Updated: November 08, 2023
