BBC iPlayer audio description is now available
One of my favourite quotes from some focus groups that we did with blind and visually impaired people last year was:
"audio description is great... they are saying they are working on putting it on iPlayer, but I don't really believe them".
This, to me, summed up the frustration of a lot of our visually-impaired BBC iPlayer users - if iPlayer has subtitles and signed content, why doesn't it have audio description?
We've always been committed to high standards of accessibility across all of our sites and services, especially those new services like iPlayer which strive to deliver the benefits of emerging technologies to all our audiences. But it always helps to hear from our audiences exactly what they expect from us.
So I'm delighted to say that we have now given visually-impaired people what they've been asking for - approximately 25 hours per week of the BBC's audio described programmes, across many genres including Childrens', are now available on iPlayer.
We also have plans to extend the coverage of the service to include more of the BBC's weekly broadcast audio described programmes in the future.
How do I get it?
The great thing about audio description on iPlayer is that it is simple to get, and it's free. Quite a number of people at those focus groups were still worried about having to work out what set-top box they needed to watch audio described programmes on TV, how much it would cost, how to work out which BBC programmes have audio description, and how they'd navigate to them.
Now, if you already have a computer which is able to use iPlayer (and pretty much all computers do), together with whatever Screenreader or magnification software you use, you've already got all the technology you need.
All you have to do is to go to the "Audio described" category in iPlayer (or Children's iPlayer), look at the listing of the audio described programmes available from the last 7 days, and select the programme you'd like to play.
It's as simple as that. Give it a try.
Why has this taken us so long?
The BBC is the first broadcaster in the world to include audio described TV programmes in our video-on-demand service. Because of that, we have not been able to use existing technology from within the BBC or elsewhere to help us bring audio description to iPlayer. Our technology team (with our partner, Red Bee) have had to research and develop all of the technology and infrastructure to make it work ourselves.And that takes time...
After investigating several delivery models and doing a lot of custom R&D to make this happen, we're delighted to be able to offer a solution which should not only work well now, but also be able to cope with any technology changes required by the ongoing advances in picture and sound quality which the iPlayer team are constantly working to achieve.
So what do you think? - send us your views
We hope you'll agree the wait has been worth it, and that the addition of audio described programmes to iPlayer will open up more of the BBC's TV programmes to our visually-impaired audiences, whenever you want to watch them.Initial feedback that we've received from people in the blind and visually-impaired community is very positive, as this quote from someone on the blind support group TAFN shows:
"iPlayer does have audio description because I have just watched all the weeks episodes and I am impressed. There is a pause, stop button which is easy to locate and you can even restart the episode. If you go back again it will take you to the same place where it was if you listened last time. I find it very accessible and easy to work and I am very pleased with it. Only problem, it has made me start watching Eastenders again"
Now that sounds like a good problem to have...
If you have any comments or suggestions about how the accessibility of iPlayer could be further improved, we in the BBC Audience Accessibility Team would love to hear your views.
Jonathan Hassell is Head of Audience Experience & Usability.
© MMIX~RS~q~RS~~RS~z~RS~37~RS~)
Comments
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Because this isn't a service that I need, I won't be using it; but I'm sure there are many others who will need it and I think all the time and money spent in setting it up will work out to be worthwhile in the end.
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I'm not visually impaired, but I'd like to be able to download a programme with audio description as an mp3 to listen to while driving etc.
I presume the rights issues with that are a minefield though?
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Bravo BBC! Great job - we here in America can learn from you - and plan to!
... Larry ...
Larry Goldberg, Director
Media Access Group at WGBH
The Carl and Ruth Shapiro Family
National Center for Accessible Media (NCAM)
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" All you have to do is to go to the "Audio described" category in iPlayer (or Children's iPlayer), look at the listing of the audio described programmes available from the last 7 days, and select the programme you'd like to play."
I'm wondering how the visually impaired is going to look at the listing and select ? Is the listing read out as well ? If not, this service might still need some major work.
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@Generate-Traffic:
Google "Screen reader"
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Hats off to Auntie Beeb! What a great job! Definitely worth the wait. Is functionality to allow us to download audio-described programmes in the pipeline? Only a small group of people will appreciate this great development, but we'll appreciate it very much.
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went to a help section of the iplayer website that said the page was no longer there, searched this website for a while, and finally found your article. through six paragraphs of your opinions (which are unhelpful, boring and pretty self centred - oh look what we've done!|! - I finally found a bit that says 'go to the audio description section'.
to be fair, if I knew where that was, I think I could have worked it out for myself. the image you've put along side the advice is of the page you get to once you've found the link, and there aren't any directions to it whatsoever. i put 'audio description' in the search engine of iplayer and of cause nothing came up.
thanks 'head of audience experience and usability' whatever that is.
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For those using the Jaws screen reader, I've written a guide to the iPlayer website which includes details of how to find and play the audio described versions of the TV programmes. It's available at:
http://vip.chowo.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/jaws/BBC-iPlayer-Guide.html
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What about adding transcripts to audio?
20% of users are deaf and hard of hearing and another 20% are non-native English speakers and yet more are adults and children learning to read..
I feel that blind users have more accessibility than deaf users do.
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It's a fantastic idea. More power to you. BUT! Could someone please please tell me how to REMOVE it when I don't want it??!!! I've just made about 8 attempts to watch the second episode of Garrow's Law. It took me a couple of seconds until after the opening credits (which were read, but I thought that was just a curious mode of introducing the programme, almost in a "period" way)to realise that something wasn't right, at least not for me. I've tried accessing the programme through the "drama" section rather than the "audio described", I've watched the first episode again (or at least skipped through it) and it seems fine, then following on to the second, only to be met with the audio description again!! I've tried right clicking "audio description" to see if I can disable it and still no joy.
Yes, it's a great idea, but will someone please please please please tell me how to turn it off on this episode???
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