Issues and proposals for Guideline 1.2 - "media-equiv"

Guideline 1.2 Provide synchronized media equivalents for time-dependent presentations.

• Make multimedia accessible
• Provide alternatives for audio and video
• Either make multimedia directly accessible (with captions and audio descriptions) or provide transcripts or descriptions

Level 1 Success Criteria for Guideline 1.2

• Issue 555 - use the term "multimedia" instead of media?
• Issue 792 - proposed rewording, "In audio-visual media, synchronize audio descriptions of visual events that are not evident from the audio provided. ["that are not evident.." is part of the definition of audio description]
• Issue 792 - reorder this to #2 and move captioning to #1.
• Issue 983 - Specify a minimum audio quality for audio descriptions. [in gateway techniques]

• When to provide audio description is a policy issue.
• What should be described is a technique.
• Therefore, all we need to say is that multimedia is described. We define audio description ala the experts and in techniques talk about how to describe.
• Defn of multimedia does not include video-only thus webcams do not need audio descriptions and are covered under 1.1.
• Provide audio descriptions for multimedia

• Joe Clark (JC) - "significant" may cause people to leave some stuff out
• JC replace "sounds" with "sound effects"
• Issue 792 - Don't need the phrase, "time-dependent material"
• Issues 555 and 792 - Requires music with lyrics to display lyrics as captions?
• Issue 871 - Replace "time-dependent presentation" with "multimedia"
• Issue 980 - "time-dependent" is confused with "realtime" instead of the intended meaning - "interactive"
• Issue 983 - Ensure sufficient contrast for captions, ideally give a choice to display box behind captions [user agent issue? technique?]
• Issue 983 - Specify a minimum size and font for captions. RNIB suggests 16 py Helvetica or Arial (joe suggests anything but Arial).
• JC This requires everything in a Web broadcast to be captiond. Most broadcasters have small exemptions for outside commercials or promos.[Telecom act of 1996 mandates # of broadcast hours. It increases to 100% by 1 Jan 2006. 2-6 a.m. is not included, thus 20 of 24 hours is 100%. Those prgrams aired before 1 Jan 1998, 30% must be captioned by 1 Jan 2003. 75% by 1 Jan 2008]
• JC No reliable way to produce closed captions [due to differences in formats and support between different players. although SMIL provides some overlap, but not all players support SMIL not provide ability to control presentation of captions @@]
• JC authors or producers or webcasters are not qualified captioners

• When to provide captions is a policy issue.
• What should be captioned is a technique issue.
• Therefore, all we need to say is that Multimedia is captioned. we define captions ala the experts and in techniques talk about techniques for realtime, rebroadcasts, and applications.
• Defn of multimedia does not include audio-only thus internet radio does not need to be captioned and is covered under 1.1 (a label is provided...that label could be the link to the program)
• What about talk radio? Interviews? Need to be transcribed?
• Provide captions for multimedia

Note:

This exception applies to both success criteria 2 and 3 above.

• Issue 792 - delete this criterion or perhaps discuss audio-only webcasts? Audio presentations may be accompanied by a script unless production is interactive.
• JC - how can a "text transcript or other non-audio equivalent" be synchronized?
• JC - what is a possible "non-audio equivalent?" If the guideline attempts to say that providing sign-language interprestation is sufficient, WAI needs to understand that it would thereby sanction foreign-language translation, which wouldn't serve even the entire deaf/hard-of-hearing population and would open up a very large kettle of fish.
• Issue 792 - the exception says, "multimedia...is audio-only" - it can not be multimedia if it is audio-only.
• Issue 1027 - this will require a transcript for any kind of internet radio.

• Provide transcripts for prerecorded audio-only presentations
• Provide a description of real-time audio-only presentations
• Interactive presentations that contain multimedia should follow guideline 4.1 and 4.2 (since they are embedded applications) and where needed, should also follow the other criteria in this guideline (talk about the characteristics? think about the apps from the examples that I found)

Exception:

If the content is a music program that is primarily non-vocal, then captions are not required.

• The definition of "real-time" links to "real-time events." Same thing?
• Issue 792 - delete or change to, "In audio-visual media that is not realtime, synchronized audio descriptions of visual events that are not evident from the audio are provided."
• JC - no allowance for repeat webcasts?
• Issues 445, 981, 1084 "primarily non-vocal" is ambiguous.
• Issues 555 and 792 - Requires music with lyrics to display lyrics as captions?
• JC cost of setting up streaming may cost less than cost of captioning.
• Issue 1083 - would disallow video conferencing since few video providers have the capability to include real-time captions.

• a substitute that conforms to guideline 1.1 (for example, an ongoing text report of weather conditions)
• a link to a substitute that conforms to guideline 1.1 (for example, a link to a weather Web site that conforms to Guideline 1.1)

• Issue 446 - is this now handled by Guideline 1.1?
• Issue 792 - remove or redefine "time-dependent presentation"
• JC - "an ongoing text report of weather conditions" - the alt-text won't change, nor will it link. The image could link however.
• JC - what about interactive webcams? What about unstaffed webcams? It requires a monitor to select an equivalent. The examples is not good. Clear skies could be cold or warm. [does it depend on the intent of why the webcam is showing the outdoors? in seattle, the primary concern is if it is raining or not, which could be seen in a webcam thus the link to a weather site could be sufficient. another example?]
• Issue 1027 - if you have any kind of webcam at all, you need to scrounge up some other site you can link to that is somehow the “equivalent” of the webcam’s image. [we've replaced "equivalent" with "alternative" - does that help? part of 1.1? see issue 446]

• s/equivalent/alternative?
• handled by 1.1? or previous new criteria?

Exception:

If content that is rebroadcast from another medium or resource meets accessibility requirements for that medium, then the rebroadcast satisfies this checkpoint if it complies with other applicable sections of WCAG 2.0

• Issue 447 - clarify what this means
• JC - explain how this is different from a phone call, "contains only audio or only video requires users to respond interactively at specific times during the presentation"
• JC - "synchronized equivalent presentation (audio, visual or text) is provided" - ungrammatical. the author could provide an audio "equivalent presentation" with an audio original. it appears to require live captioning of an audio-only stream (which has no visual component to add captions to) and live description of video-only (may not have audio component for the audio description). theoretically possible, but difficult and expensive thus impracticable.
• JC - live captioning of audio feed requires (java) scripting.
• Issue 792 - most all Web pages are currently "video only." What is a "video-only presentation?"
• Issue 1085 - Need to define "respond interactively".
• The exception:
  • Issue 171, 438, 668, 792 - clarify: if a broadcast has captions, then when shown on the web, those captions should still be available.
  • JC - good that other guidelines trump WCAG. However, it fails to say "the content must be rebroadcast with the accessibility features intact". But how? Closed or open? single or multiple stream?

• voicexml application?
• Daisy apps are mostly audio, but also have interactive/visual component. where does it apply then? need a transcript?

Level 2 Success Criteria for Guideline 1.2

Editorial Note : There are questions about what is possible and what should be required for real-time audio description since there is no way to know when there will be gaps in audio (when descriptions could be read) and other issues with describing real-time events.

• Issue 980 - Encourage Best Practices with respect to real-time captioning. [add a note to this criterion?]

• captions, by definition, are synchronized.

Level 3 Success Criteria for Guideline 1.2

• Issue 964 - encourage authors to generate sites with signing avatars.

Who Benefits from Guideline 1.2 (Informative)

• People who are deaf or have a hearing loss can access the auditory information through captions.
• People who are blind or have low vision as well as those with cognitive disabilities who have difficulty interpreting visually what is happening benefit from audio descriptions of visual information.

People without disabilities also benefit from media equivalents :

• People in noisy environments or with muted sound often rely on captions.
• Captions help many people to develop language and reading skills.
• Audio descriptions provide visual information for people who are temporarily looking away from the video presentation, for example, when following an instructional video and looking at their hands.
• Captions and text descriptions make it possible to index and search media files.

• @@Needs a rewrite

Time-dependent presentations that require people to use a single sense to follow two or more things at the same time may present significant barriers to some users. Depending on the nature of the presentation, it may be possible to avoid scenarios where, for example, a user who is deaf would be required to watch an action on the screen and read the captions at the same time. However, this may not be available for live broadcasts (for example, a football game). Where possible (especially for education and training materials), provide content so that it does not require tracking multiple simultaneous events with the same sense, or, give the user the ability to freeze the video so that captions can be read without missing the video.

• Issue 794 - "Where possible ... missing the video" is a hidden success criterion. Either remove or make it a level 3 criterion.
• Issue 982 - "Where possible ... missing the video" make it a level 1 criterion.

Examples of Guideline 1.2 (Informative)

A clip from a movie is published on a Web site. In the clip, a child is trying to attract a puppy to the child's bedroom by laying a trail of crumbs. Since the soundtrack includes only the child's mumbling, the audio description that is heard when the child stops mumbling says "Charlie puts a crumb on each stair leading to his room." The caption that appears as he mumbles reads, "[inaudible mumbling]."

• Issue 1029 - Provide real-life examples

Transcript of audio from the first few minutes of, "Teaching Evolution Case Studies, Bonnie Chen" (copyright WGBH and Clear Blue Sky Productions, Inc.)

Describer: A title, "Teaching Evolution Case Studies. Bonnie Chen." Now, a teacher shows photographs.

Bonnie Chen: These are all shot at either the Everglades...for today you just happen to be a species of wading bird that has a beak like this."

Describer: wooden tongue depressors

(will non-Americans know "wooden tongue depressors?")

A video clip accompanies a news story about flooding in a major city. The reporter gives a verbal description of the scene. No audio description is necessary. The captions display what the reporter is saying.

• Issue 1029 - Provide real-life examples

A video clip shows how to tie a knot. The captions read, "(music)

USING ROPE TO TIE KNOTS

WAS AN IMPORTANT SKILL

FOR THE LIKES OF SAILORS, SOLDIERS, AND WOODSMEN."

From Sample Transcript Formatting by Whit Anderson

An animation shows a pantomime with a white face and black costume climbing an invisible ladder. There is no audio track for this animation. No captions or audio description are required. Instead, a text label and description are provided as required by guideline 1.1 .

• Issue 781 - Why is audio description not required?
• Issue 781 - This is a different version example 3 under Guideline 1.1 (animation of a knot)
• Issue 1029 - Provide real-life examples

An animation shows how a car engine works. There is no audio and the animation is part of a tutorial that describes how an engine works. All that is needed is a description of the image. From "How car engines work: Internal combustion" (include some of the explanation? in fact, the explanation given is not complete, so this is hypothetical)

• Example 4: internet radio stream vs short interview (diff between ongoing/radio and finite/interview?)
• Example 5: interactive animation/slideshow (Motorola example)
• Example 6: webcam (africam)
• Example 7: music video

Definitions from the glossary

Note:

When adding audio description to existing materials, the amount of information conveyed through audio description is constrained by the amount of space available in the existing audio track unless the audio/video program is periodically frozen to insert audio description. However, it is often impossible or inappropriate to freeze the audio/visual program to insert additional audio description.

• JC this phrase, " to the extent possible given the constraints posed by the existing audio track and limitations on freezing the audio visual program to insert additional auditory description" is not needed. It is implicit in the definition of audio description. [This is "extended description" and should perhaps be a separate item, perhaps a level 3]
• Issue 980 - The note highlights a difficulty without providing a solution.

1. Audio description is a method of taking what is visual and making it available to consumers who are blind or have low vision. It is the insertion of audio explanations and descriptions of the settings, characters, and ation taking place in a variety of media, when such information about these visual elements is not offered in the regular audio presentation. (from Audio Description International)
2. Narration, read out loud by a human being that succinctly explains visual details not apparent from the audio alone. A narrator tells you everything that's happening onscreen that you can't figure out just from the soundtrack. (from "Understanding media-access terminology" by Joe Clark)
3. Audio descriptions provide access to multimedia for people who are blind or visually impaired by adding narration that described the visuals, including actions, scene changes, graphics and on-screen text. (from Software and Web Accessibility: Guideline 2 by WGBH)
4. Audio description is the descriptive narration of key visual eleemnts in a video or multimedia product. This process allows individuals who are blind to access content that is not otherwise accessible simply by listening to the audio. In audio description, narrators typically describe actions, gestures, scene changes, and other visual information. They also describe titles, speaker names, and other text that may appear on the screen. (from "What is audio description" AccessIT)

• Issue 983 - not sufficiently generic. No mention of sign language avatars.

• JC doesn't distinguish between
  1. live programs streamed live
  2. live programs stored and streamed later
  3. pre-recorded programs streamed as they are first broadcast
  4. pre-recorded programs stored and streamed later
• JC does "real-time" mean "live?"
• JC stenocaptioning only reliably done in English, French, Spanish, and Italian. Some languages have no real-time captioning. Thus, for those languages, there is not way to meet this.

• is composed of synchronized audio and visual tracks (e.g., a movie), OR
• requires the user to respond interactively at specific times in the presentation.

• Issue 477 - Too techniquey?
• Issue 667 - Does it address the needs of people who are deaf and blind?
• Issue 792 - If replace "media" with "multimedia" webcams are handled under guideline 1.1.
• Issue 592 - Stress ease of access to [trans]scripts. [Does this mean scripts are easy to find? easy to use? Easy to read?]
• Issue 983 - Avoid overlap of sign windows with main content. Recommended - CIF 352x288 px, 25 fps
• JC ensure "auditory description" is not used anywhere.
• Take into consideration the many implementation issues.
• How do we dispel the myth that WCAG is anti-javascript, anti-multimedia, "anti-everything-but-plain-text?"
• Issue 1028 - is about difficulties of real-time captioning/describing, and collated transcripts. [don't mention real-time descriptions or a collated transcript in this guideline. close this issue?]

• too techniquey - perhaps
• 667 - need to require transcripts at t minimum, perhaps collated transcripts at level 2
• 792 - try multimedia to see how it wflies
• 592 - good practice to place link to transcript near the multimedia. mention in gateway.
• Issue 983 - avoid overlap - put in gateway technique related to sign language track
• 1028 - if move this to level 2, then taken care of?

• 1.1 Provide a text equivalent for every non-text element
• 1.3 Until user agents can automatically read aloud the text equivalent of a visual track, provide an auditory description of the important information of the visual track of a multimedia presentation.
• 1.4 For any time-based multimedia presentation (e.g., a movie or animation), synchronize equivalent alternatives (e.g., captions or auditory descriptions of the visual track) with the presentation.

1. "when Federal agencies develop, procure, maintain, or use electronic and information technology, they shall ensure that the electronic and information technology allows Federal employees with disabilities to have access to and use of information and data that is comparable to the access to and use of information and data by Federal employees who are not individuals with disabilities, unless an undue burden would be imposed on the agency. Section 508 also requires that individuals with disabilities, who are members of the public seeking information or services from a Federal agency, have access to and use of information and data that is comparable to that provided to the public who are not individuals with disabilities, unless an undue burden would be imposed on the agency."
2. "Complaints and lawsuits may be filed 6 months from the date of publication of these standards in the Federal Register."

1. "'Web content' in this Standard refers to various information and services which are accessed by users through a Web browser and other means, and is applied, for instance, to electronic document created using World Wide Web technology and distributed through the Internet, intranet, and on recorded media, such as CD-ROM, as well as equipment which is designed to be operated using a Web browser."
2. "This Standard is applied also to new technology relevant to the World Wide Web. This Standard, however, does not necessarily need to be applied to new World Wide Web technology which is in the research and development phase."

• Guideline 2 Provide access to multimedia presentations for users with sensory disabilities.
• Checkpoint 2.1 Add audio descriptions to multimedia presentations.
• Checkpoint 2.2 Add closed captions to multimedia presentations.

1. Policy issues
2. Focus on educational materials

• Accessibility of electronic commerce and new service and information technologies for older Australians and people with a disability
• Government of Canada Internet Guide
• ES 189 (2002) - Opinion of the Economic and Social Committee
• Law n. 4, January 9, 2004 - Italy refers to EU policy (which refers to WCAG 1.0)

• Effective 1 January 2001 - "TV programs shown in prime viewing hours (6-10.30pm) on all free-to-air Australian TV stations to be captioned, plus all news and current affairs programs outside those hours. All regional stations, including those in Tasmania, are expected to comply by 2004 or from the date they convert to digital transmission."
• "From 1 July 2003 all television commercials/community service announcements, videos, digital video discs (DVDs) and CD-ROMS produced for broadcast by or for the Tasmanian Government for viewing by the public must include captioning* for the Deaf and hearing impaired. This includes general information videos and DVDs playing in a government office, customer service area, public hospital, public event or trade show, and videos and DVDs that the public can request, hire or purchase."
• "Open captioning (visible on a standard television, video cassette player, DVD or CD-ROM player and seen by all viewers) must be used in all new videos, DVDs, and CD-ROMS made by or for the Tasmanian Government for viewing by the public."

• Effective date: 1 November 2002
• "The CBC and Newsworld will be captioning all material they broadcast, including news updates, station promos, live interviews, sports, and emergency reports."
• "Only paid advertising is not subject to the CBC's new captioning policy"

• Side effect of current WCAG 1.0 language: developers claim that WCAG 1.0 essentially "bans" multimedia because of skills and cost required to create and synchronize captions and audio descriptions.
• Difference between broadcast requirements (content primarily created by large production houses) and Web requirments (need for a single author to create content).
• Broadcast vs Web-original: broadcaster controls air times vs Web where content can be accessed at any time