With so many speech-to-text services available, there has never been a better time to make your content more accessible to a wider audience. Whether you are looking to use live transcribing, captioning for videos or subtitles on your next project, making sure that your content receives the worldwide reach it deserves will largely come down to how much effort you have gone to so that it is highly accessible to everyone.
In 2019, it was found that 80% of consumers in America enjoy reading subtitles to their videos – even if they aren’t deaf. 50% also agreed that video captioning is important when they want to watch a video without turning the sound on.
What Is Subtitling And Captioning?
Subtitling occurs on videos when the spoken language of the audio is transcribed into another target language so foreign viewers can follow along in their own language. It is mainly used in films and TV programs but can be used by anyone wishing to extend the reach of their content.
Captioning on the other hand is adding words to the videos which are not a direct translation, but rather show what is happening, including the type of music playing, someone gasping or a door creaking open. This helps to involve the viewer with the content they are viewing, especially if they are hard of hearing. There are two types of captioning:
- Open – also known as hard-coded captions, these are when the text is written directly onto the video so they are always on the screen. They pause when the video is paused, and cannot be removed from the video. This kind of captioning is usually seen on news channels or tv cables. We have seen some restaurants or public places turn on news channels or tv cable, some people still can watch and understand the content even in busy and loud places. Or in the gym so that other gym members are not disturbed by the tv sound.
- Closed – this is where the viewer is in control of whether captions appear or not. Many platforms like Netflix, Disney and YouTube have a CC button which can be turned on to bring the captions immediately into view. It’s useful when you want to know what a video is saying without having to listen.
While both subtitling and captioning are essentially the same, the main difference comes in the aim of each of them, with subtitling aiming to educate the viewer on exactly what is being said so they can follow a plot line, whereas captioning has the aim of improving the level of accessibility to the viewer.
How Does Transcription Differ?
Transcription plays a role in subtitling, however, it involves creating a new copy of an existing file or document that is separate and distinct from the original. Subtitling and captioning are meant to be partnered with the video itself on the other hand, whereas transcription is in essence the conversion of audio to text.
Transcription is often used in court to keep an accurate record of what has been said, and it’s also useful in business meetings for taking minutes that can be then reviewed at a later date. To make a subtitle from a transcription, it needs to be converted into a text document of a certain format and then saved before being added to the screen.
If you need accurate transcription, subtitling or captioning, get in touch with the expert team here at Elite Asia and we will be able to provide you with the highest levels of service in this area.
