The Future of Subtitling - TV and Broadcasting Conference

Transcription

1 The Future of Subtitling - TV and Broadcasting Conference 10 November 2014 Event report This report draws on the event transcript from The Future of Subtitling conference held on 10 November 2014 to provide summaries and quotes from the presentations and discussions that took place on the day. This report reflects the views of each event speaker, and does not necessarily reflect the organisers position on the topics covered. Our sponsors Thank you to our sponsors who allowed us to offer 100 free conference places to people with a personal interest in subtitles: Gold: Silver: Bronze: Background On 10 November 2014 Action on Hearing Loss, Sense and UK Council on Deafness (UKCOD) organised a one day conference to discuss the challenges and solutions for the future of television subtitles. Subtitles were first developed 35 years ago and have proved, at their best, to offer a fully accessible TV experience for deaf people. We have come a long way but many challenges remain, particularly as a result of the changing way in which we watch television. People now access content in a diverse range of ways that encompasses traditional linear 1 broadcasts, catch up TV, TV streamed over the web, internet connected Smart TVs and a variety of Video streaming services. The conference discussed the key challenges around subtitles: how the quality of live subtitling can be improved, the initiatives that will see more subtitles on Video on Demand broadcasts and the innovations in subtitling provision, equipment, software and training. 1 Linear broadcasters are where the viewer has to watch a scheduled TV programme at a particular time and on a particular channel 1

2 The conference was attended by a wide range of stakeholders invested in solutions including Government, Ofcom, ATVOD, broadcasters, access service providers, voluntary organisations and deaf people. Legislative context Currently linear broadcasts are subject to quotas for the number of hours of programmes delivered with access services (subtitles, audio description and signing) if the broadcaster meets criteria on their audience reach and turnover. The Government has stated it wants the UK to remain a world leader in terms of the extent and quality of access services and that it would work with The Authority for Television on Demand (ATVOD) the co-regulator for Video on Demand services) to increase the provision of access services for Video on Demand content, monitoring this through ATVOD s annual survey. In July 2013 The Department for Culture Media and Sport published a strategy paper Connectivity, Content and Consumers which states we will work with the Authority for Television on Demand (ATVOD) to increase the levels of subtitles and audio-description for on-demand content and we will monitor progress through its annual survey. If it is clear that progress isn t being made in three years time a reasonable timeframe in our view we will consider legislation (p22). Questions submitted in advance to panellists In order to provide those who could not attend the event with a chance to participate, the organisers invited questions in advance for our expert panels. Over 100 questions were submitted, collated into themes, and shared with the panellists in advance of the conference. Whilst time did not allow us to cover all specific questions at the conference, many of the themes raised were discussed. The event organisers will be using the questions to inform their campaigns work moving forward including in representations to the Department of Culture Media and Sport. Key issues emerging from questions submitted in advance Quality of subtitles Delays between speech and subtitles Inaccuracies in subtitles Missing subtitles Provision of live subtitles on pre-recorded programmes Subtitles covering important information or peoples mouths (essential for lipreading) Customisation of subtitles including placement, colours, size, background Problems with subtitle delays when recording subtitles Incorrect or different words used in subtitle compared with words actually spoken, editing of information Quantity of subtitles Lack of subtitles on Video On Demand (no regulation) 2

3 Lack of subtitles on linear (traditional) channels, including local channels, and new channels (due to low quotas, no quotas for low audience channels or new channels) Lack of subtitles on live streaming online Paying for a service people with hearing loss cannot access (including licence fee and purchasing a service) Lack of subtitles on DVDs Lack of information about where subtitles are and aren t available (especially on Video on Demand) Lack of subtitles on video clips on websites Event programme Event Chair: Jim Edwards, Chair of UKCoD and CEO of Signature Welcome and Introduction Paul Breckell, Chief Executive, Action on Hearing Loss Morning session: Quality of subtitling where will we see improvements? The morning session looked at work being done by Ofcom, subtitling companies and researchers to monitor and improve the quality of live subtitling. Presentation: Monitoring of the quality of live subtitles Peter Bourton, Head of TV Content Policy, Ofcom Presentation: New developments in live subtitling David Padmore, Head of Access Services, Ericsson Broadcast & Media Services Presentation: A different approach, a different priority Dr Pablo Romero Fresco, University of Roehampton Panel discussion: How can we improve the quality of live subtitles? Graham Willis, Technical Co-ordinator for Access Services, Deluxe Ian Cottrell, Controller of Broadcast Operations, ITV Nathalie Sfakianos, volunteer at Action on Hearing Loss Peter Bourton, Head of TV Content Policy, Ofcom Dr Pablo Romero Fresco, University of Roehampton Simon Pearse, Deaf Access to Communications Afternoon session: Subtitling on Video on Demand what does success look like? The afternoon of the event focused on the provision of subtitles on Video on Demand (VOD) which includes catch up services such as BBC iplayer and 4oD whereby viewers are able to watch television content at a time of their choosing. 3

4 Presentation: Your views and how we make them count Tanvir Ahmed, Senior Campaigner, and Laura Matthews, Senior Research and Policy Officer, Action on Hearing Loss Presentation: Technical challenges and success on the BBC iplayer Gareth Ford Williams, Head of Accessibility, User Experience & Design, BBC Future Media Presentation: Encouraging improvements Peter Johnson, CEO, Authority for Television on Demand (ATVOD) Panel discussion: How can we increase the amount of subtitles on video on demand (VOD) services? Gareth Ford Williams, Head of Accessibility, User Experience & Design, BBC Future Media Peter Johnson, CEO, Authority for Television on Demand (ATVOD) Alex Varley, CEO Media Access Australia Lidia Best, Chair of NADP and UKCoD Trustee Laura Matthews, Senior Research and Policy Officer, Action on Hearing Loss Summary and next steps Joff McGill, Head of Information, Advice and Research Sense and UKCoD Trustee Introduction Paul Breckell, Chief Executive, Action on Hearing Loss For the 10 million people in the UK with hearing loss, subtitles are a vital tool to help them understand and enjoy television. There is real pressure from users to improve access to TV through more and better quality subtitles. TV is hugely important to all of us and exclusion can mean a lack of news, information, entertainment and missing out on national cultural life. Research shows people with hearing loss watch more TV than the average viewer, and, according to Ofcom, seven and a half million people have used subtitles to watch TV. There is much to be proud of in the UK, with an episode of Blue Peter being the first live programme to be subtitled in The BBC news has been subtitled since 1990 and in 2008 reached 100% subtitled content on its main channel output. ITV are very close to achieving the same on ITV 1. We have seen substantial improvements in the quality of subtitles on national TV. Such progress is to be applauded but there is still much to do. Viewers continue to experience errors and delays with live subtitling; there are no legal obligations on Video on Demand services to include access services and provision is much lower than linear broadcasts. Digital exclusion can only lead to isolation, and this is not acceptable. 4

5 Monitoring the quality of live subtitling Peter Bourton, Head of TV Content Policy at Ofcom We believe that even the process of monitoring these categories of programmes has helped to focus the attention of the broadcasters and their access service contractors to maximise the quality and accuracy of their news products Overview This session outlined the findings to date of Ofcom s two year project to monitor live subtitling and the improvements that we are beginning to see. Peter revealed initial findings of trials where delays to the broadcast of live programming are giving subtitle providers more time to improve accuracy and latency. Ofcom s two year project to monitor live subtitles After a decade or more of focusing on the quantity of subtitling, Ofcom are pleased that there are now 70 channels that provide subtitling, most of them delivering 80% or more of their content with subtitles. The BBC has reached 100% and ITV and Channel 4 are close to that. It is has become clear that quality is not yet as good as it could be, hence Ofcom, last year, launched a two year project to monitor the quality of live subtitling. Following discussions with users and looking at the research, a number of factors were identified as being key to quality: Accuracy errors in subtitles force viewers to work harder to understand what was intended Latency the delay between the speech and subtitles make it difficult for viewers to relate Speed if the speed of subtitles is too high more time is spent focussing on the subtitles and less time is available to view the TV pictures Presentation research shows that block subtitles are easier to read, but there are times, such as with live programming, when block is not possible and scrolling subtitles are used. Ofcom want to examine the scope for increasing the proportion of block subtitles. Ofcom decided to look at three genres of programmes: news, entertainment and chat show. Broadcasters are asked to submit randomly chosen samples of live subtitling after they were broadcast and these are analysed for quality by Ofcom. The broadcasters do not know in advance what the samples will be. Reporting on quality The first report was published in April 2014 and the second report in November It will take more reports and more data before trends can be identified, but the early reports suggest the process has helped focus attention on the quality and accuracy of news programmes. There has been more emphasis on getting scripts, running orders, and pre- 5

6 recorded video packages to subtitle providers in advance. The monitoring process is a potential driver for the broadcasters and their access service contractors. The early reports suggest that speed of subtitling is not too much of an issue, with very few samples exceeding the recommended words per minute. Ofcom s findings relating to the latency of chat shows Ofcom recognises that latency is a key issue for users and the early data suggests that it is not possible to meet the current guidelines of a three four second delay for live subtitles. It is a very tough process to get subtitles out in a time span that is comfortable for the viewer. The median across the samples is six seconds, with a delay of as much as 24 seconds in some cases. Improving quality - what makes a difference? There are a number of processes that might deliver better quality live subtitles. Ofcom would like broadcasters to explore the scope for short delays in live programming to give subtitle providers more time to improve accuracy and latency. S4C (a Welshlanguage public-service television channel) carried out a trial with some live programming going out with a 25 second delay. This allowed block subtitles be produced, errors significantly reduced and latency reduced to two seconds. The trial continues and the results will be studied with interest. 6

7 Ofcom are also looking at how much original content has to be edited to get subtitles on the screen. Some people want near verbatim subtitles but some editing makes it more likely subtitles can appear in a reasonable time scale. Finally, the work on live subtitling is bringing a greater focus to the processes needed to produce subtitles and there are signs of greater co-operation between broadcasters and subtitle providers. The best way of improving quality is to avoid the need for live subtitling, and Ofcom s next report will publish more information on the number of pre-recorded programmes that are delivered late and thus need live subtitling. New guidance Once the third and fourth reports are published (Spring and Autumn 2015) Ofcom will consult on updating the best practice guidance around subtitles as the current version reflects thinking years old. New developments in live subtitling David Padmore, Head of Access Services, Ericsson / Red Bee "When you are watching a news programme, sometimes you can see the same video package being shown several times within a period of a few hours, so it is possible to get the subtitles and reuse them Overview This presentation outlined the key issues facing subtitlers and the on-going work to improve the quality of live subtitling, including better access to newsroom systems and scripts, increasing production of block subtitles and the combining of live and pre-recorded subtitles. David also highlighted the importance of promoting the broader value of subtitles, for example the role that subtitles can play in Search Engine Optimisation (SEO). Ericsson s UK subtitling clients Background 7

8 As a provider of subtitles, Ericsson / Red Bee recognise the massive explosion in volume of subtitling on TV. Twenty years ago around 20% of BBC content had subtitles, and of that only a small proportion was live programming. There is also recognition of the significant degree of frustration viewers feel with the services partly down to quality, but also accessibility of the huge amount of Video on Demand services. Continuing the work on standardisation in the industry will help improvements spread across multiple platforms. Ofcom s activity, the commitment of broadcasters, and the voice of viewers and users of subtitles all demonstrate the determination to ensure the UK continues to be at the forefront of subtitling and accessibility. How is live subtitling done? Live subtitling is produced from a combination of text which the subtitler can get in advance (for example the words which the newsreader is reading from the autocue), using information from repeated content in live programmes (for example, a video package used across live news bulletins where subtitles can be re-used), and finally live content that you cannot prepare in advance and so stenography or speech recognition is needed. Preparation is key as this allows the subtitles to be presented in sync with the audio at high levels of accuracy. Knowing what is going to be said in advance is very important, so access to news room systems and scripts is very important, but not always possible, particularly on live entertainment shows. Subtitlers do tend to hear the sound before the viewer, so they have a little bit of a head start, but when the content is very unpredictable subtitlers need to be very resilient and good under pressure. The mistakes seen on the screen may be down to many issues going on in the technology and broadcasting environment. Challenges and Improvements Accuracy is clearly very important. If the words on the screen do not reflect what people are saying it is impossible to understand the content. Even compared to a year ago, subtitlers are receiving more prepared material in advance, allowing production of block subtitles, a lower latency and increased accuracy. Stenography and speech recognition is improving and work takes place to make the software work effectively. The subtitling industry will benefit from the wider interest in speech recognition, which will inevitably continue to improve. Latency needs to be kept as low as possible. Again, prepared text means lower delay. A news programme has a mixture of prepared and live text, so the delay can be variable. It is difficult to build subtitles for programmes when you are switching between prepared and live subtitles and to ensure a smooth viewing experience. Continued learning about the processes involved will result in smoother transitions. 8

9 Delaying live broadcasts for certain types of programmes is an interesting option but audience trust may be a barrier particularly when you consider the amount of betting on sports and entertainment programmes. Audience trust is vital to news programmes as well. Speed is generally less of an issue in the UK as the methods of production used put an upper limit on the speed that can be achieved. But it can be a problem when subtitles are presented very fast. Ofcom s focus on latency is helpful. Presentation using block subtitles wherever possible is preferred. Some people do like scrolling subtitles they like the immediacy but block enables the text to be in sync with the audio. The problem with block subtitles and genuinely live content is that it introduces an additional delay. The broadcast chain can be key to delivering subtitles effectively and there is now much greater awareness of what is needed within the industry. Availability of material in advance is key. Pre-recorded programmes should have pre-recorded subtitles but this is not always possible when broadcast material is not received in advance or is received very late in the day. There are fewer pre-recorded programmes with live subtitles than in the past, but it is inevitable that specific programmes will be delivered late, for example if they have very topical, often legally contentious content, such as Have I Got News For You. The value of subtitling In the past, the focus has been on the cost of producing subtitles, but perhaps it is more important to understand the value of subtitling to a broader population. Subtitles work well for everyone in a noisy environment. Increasingly we see broadcasts in public spaces and more and more subtitles are used, not only helping all the viewers, but raising the profile of subtitling. Subtitles are a great support for non-native speakers of a language, supporting comprehension and helping with language and literacy development. Interesting work is taking place in India on using subtitles to help people learn to read more research is needed in this area. Search engine optimisation helps people find and enjoy content and is very important to broadcasters - subtitles can be very valuable in this respect, helping people search and navigate their way around a programme. Broadcasters and video content producers are beginning to see subtitles as a valuable asset file and are finding new ways of using the data. So there is cause for optimism. Audiences and social media bring pressure for more subtitles, content producers see the value of text files that are complete and accurate, the technology is getting better and research shows the huge benefits of subtitling. But there is more to do to generate new knowledge about the broad value of subtitles and text. 9

10 The optimism can only be realised if subtitling is of good quality. There is still a lot of frustration amongst audiences, but we have an active regulator, we have a very engaged audience in the UK and we have some very committed broadcasters who have done a lot of work to make their services accessible. There are some new challenges around, particularly outside of the traditional TV sphere, so the debates and our horizons need to be broader. There will be a continued focus on improving accuracy and reducing delay. Regulation has a role, but it is perhaps most important to ensure the value of subtitling and access services is recognised this is the bigger challenge and the bigger picture. Presentation: A different approach, a different priority Dr Pablo Romero Fresco, University of Roehampton Overview The University of Roehampton trains subtitlers and re-speakers, engages in research around subtitles and accessible film making and is currently working with Ofcom in the external review of the quality of live subtitling. This session outlined the University s current subtitling research, including research into accuracy and delays of live subtitling and optimal positioning of subtitles, using eye tracking technology. Pablo also presented the University s pioneering Accessible Filmmaking project calling for integration of translation and accessibility as part of the creative and production process, rather than a postproduction add-on. Quality Live Subtitling Research shows that the accuracy of subtitles in the UK is good when compared to Switzerland, France and Spain. The research methodology developed by the University shows that accuracy and the impact it has is related to the type of errors appearing in the subtitles. Omission errors occur because of a very fast speech rate, unscripted shows and speakers talking over one another. Chat shows are a good example, and the result is the subtitlers are forced to edit or omit words. One in three errors in such programmes are omissions of full sentences which has a significant impact on comprehension. Without a script it is difficult to find a solution. Unscripted chat shows remain very challenging to subtitle. Recognition errors are related to speech recognition software. Research is looking at the peculiarities of the English language and will be released soon and shared with broadcasters and access service providers so that it can influence training and practice. Latency in programmes that are fully live can have good stretches of 4-5 seconds but realistically six seconds delay is the norm and is as good as we can expect. Indeed this compares well to other countries. The combination of pre-recorded and live subtitles has helped to decrease the delay and increased accuracy. It is not without problems. There is less continuity for re-speakers which in turn impacts on the performance of the speech 10

11 recognition software. With training, this problem can be solved. The pre-recorded element of the subtitles can be displayed too fast, in an attempt to synchronise it with the audio. Research shows that subtitles displayed at 200 words a minute gives you around 20% of the time to look at the images, decreasing accessibility. Overall, there are problems but with collaboration, there is the potential to find solutions. The University research group is always looking for collaborative work with deaf organisations, broadcasters and access service providers, and for topics to research. Quality Video on Demand Initial research shows that two-thirds of viewers surveyed watch Video on Demand subtitles. 55% often or very often find them satisfactory. Those that find them unsatisfactory (36%) tend to note issues to do with formatting and the size of subtitles on different platforms and different devices. Inconsistent features cause problems. Some platforms and devices don t identify the different characters or speakers, others omit information about sound and music. Accessible film making The University have been pioneering an approach to integrate accessibility and translation as part of the creative and production process, rather than see it as an add-on postproduction. Analysis has shown that 57% of the revenue obtained by the top-grossing Hollywood films from 2000 to 2014 was provided by language translation and subtitles, through revenue from foreign markets, but at a cost of only 0.1% of the films budget. The task is to persuade producers that translation and accessibility add value, help find new audiences, provide meta data for search, and help the way films creatively and accessibly deal with the increasing presence of text on our screens as an integral part of the programme or film. Evidence is needed to raise awareness about the value of subtitles and accessibility. A variety of activity will help with accessible film making. Translators and subtitlers must learn about production and post-production and if they wish so, they can also learn to make films. This is the case in the new MA in Accessibility and Filmmaking at the University of Roehampton, where students learn how to make films and how to translate them and make them accessible. Collaboration with film makers, film schools and festivals means that access service providers work side by side with film makers from the inception of a project. Accessibility becomes part of the main production budget, not an add-on. A Producer of Accessibility would work as part of the film production and post-production they are part of the creative process. Persuading commissioners to adopt this approach can result in it being a requirement of funding. 11

12 Research has been helping film makers find ways of showing text on the screen, something that is happening more and more whether it is an SMS exchange, a thought process or a telephone conversation. Subtitlers have been looking at how to show text on the screen for a long time, so there is a lot they can contribute to production. Eye tracking analysis Dr Pablo Romero Fresco presenting the University of Roehampton s eye tracking analysis Research is also using eye tracking to understand how people view images and text on the screen. If subtitles are at the bottom of a screen but the image is of two people further up the screen then their eyes have to track a long way. Experiments are taking place with different types of subtitles, integrated closer to where the speakers are on the screen. It might not be for everyone but results show that most viewers do not take any longer to find the subtitles and they spend less time reading them, so have more time to take in the images. Accessible film making also looks to collaborate over the appearance of text. If a film uses text on the screen, it helps for the subtitles to appear integrated, to look the same, rather than a completely different appearance. Finally, progress with regard to accessible filmmaking has already been made with filmmakers, production companies and film commissions in different European countries. 12

13 The International Telecommunication Union (ITU), a UN group on accessibility, has supported the initiative and is considering adopting it as part of their standards. Dr Romero-Fresco has made the first short film involving accessibility from production, a short documentary on audio description entitled Joining the Dots, presented at the International Venice Film Festival in Panel discussion: How can we improve the quality of live subtitles? Graham Willis, Technical Co-ordinator for Access Services, Deluxe Ian Cottrell, Controller of Broadcast Operations, ITV Dr Pablo Romero Fresco, Reader in Translation, Accessibility and Filmmaking at the University of Roehampton Nathalie Sfakianos, volunteer at Action on Hearing Loss and member of Deluxe s user panel assessing the quality of live subtitles Peter Bourton, Head of TV Content Policy, Ofcom Simon Pearse, Deaf Access to Communications (DAC), a special interest group of the UK Council on Deafness (UKCoD) established to campaign for equal access to e- communicaitons for deaf people. Introduction by Nathalie Sfakianos Nathalie shared her experiences as a user of subtitles and member of Deluxe s user panel assessing the quality of live subtitles. She has worn hearing aids for over 20 years. While subtitles enable her to enjoy pre-recorded programmes, and stay in the loop with the latest TV series, live television isn t accessible. I have learnt an awful lot about the amount of work that is going into live subtitles however I have to say that despite all this effort live television does not often feel genuinely accessible to me. Nathalie s role assessing quality of live subtitles involves commenting on accuracy, latency and positioning of live subtitles. If a mistake is made, sometimes it's corrected quickly, and sometimes it is not. Either way, my mind has to work out whether to wait for a correction, or to move straight on. If a correction is made, then I instinctively hesitate to take in the new word. This means that even if the latency has not been compromised much, the work I have had to do to assimilate what has been said, has meant I am lagging further behind. Where names, quotations or mouths are covered on the screen, this causes further barriers to understanding the content. This also leaves less or even no time to look at the pictures. The frustration generated by this can be overwhelming. Nathalie concluded that even when levels of accuracy, latency and positioning are all deemed above average in terms of Ofcom s guidelines, Nathalie s experience of that programme is often less than average. It might be even so frustrating that I stop watching. 13

14 Question submitted in advance: Why is it not a legal requirement for all TV channels to have subtitles on TV? Peter Bourton, Ofcom When Parliament set Ofcom s remit, there was an expectation that most TV channels would be subtitled over time, provided that the costs were not disproportionate. Ofcom felt that it shouldn t force channels off air because they couldn t afford the cost of subtitles, which would reduce consumer choice. Ofcom selected two criteria for provision of subtitles, to ensure that they offer sufficient benefit to viewers, and are affordable to broadcasters: size of audience (a UK audience share of 0.05%), and an income that enables the channel to cover the cost of subtitles by spending no more than 1% of turnover. Question submitted in advance: My husband and I use subtitling all the time. My issue is with the subtitles obscuring important on-screen information. During factual programmes, the identity of a speaker is usually flashed up on screen for audiences to see - for those of us using subtitles, this vital information is obscured by those subtitles. What plans do you have to address that situation please, to put us on a level playing field with the rest of the viewing public? Graham Willis, Deluxe Positioning of live subtitles is one of the many things a live subtitler is thinking about when producing subtitles including colour, accuracy, editing and pace. An effort is always made to raise or lower the subtitles when an interviewee s name or a graphic is shown, or to avoid obstructing the action of a football match for example. Simon Pearse, Deaf Access to Communications Sometimes, for example, travel information on the news is covered up by subtitles. There should be a way of notifying the broadcasters so they can fix problems there and then. Simon is working with the subtitle providers and the broadcasters to develop a twitter reporting scheme and is looking for volunteers to trial the scheme. Dr Pablo Romero Fresco, University of Roehampton When the University trains their re-speakers for live subtitles the multitasking they have to do is already complex. Positioning is one more task to be added to this, and the University of Roehampton really focuses on this element during training. There is unpredictability as to whether subtitles will need to be re-positioned as a programme progresses, so while there are things that can be done, this adds to the complexity of subtitling the content. Suggestion from the audience: The BBC raise their caption graphics for speakers, leaving space for two lines of subtitles to go beneath. This is something others can do right away. 14

15 Question from the audience: Can we legislate so that all new TVs have software that reads what is being said and produces subtitles automatically? Peter Bourton, Ofcom A lot of money is being spent on speech recognition to generate subtitles or text, but the quality is currently low. Research that was recently presented in Berlin shows that results are not great, and are often better where the speakers are clearer, for example trained studio presenters, but for people being questioned by the presenters the quality is poor. Further down the track it might be a possibility. Dr Pablo Romero Fresco, University of Roehampton The research that Roehampton has carried out on automatic subtitling normally shows an average of between 80 and 85% accuracy. This sounds high but is short of the 98% that we expect. The main issues are introduction of punctuation, identification of different speakers and accuracy, especially for fast speech. Simon Pearse, Deaf Access to Communications Speech recognition software like Dragon can be trained to understand individual voices, which could be an option to enable newsreaders who are on the TV every day to use speech recognition to convert their speech directly into live subtitling. Question from Jean Strauss: Who regulates in-flight entertainment? When I go on long hauls the English films are not subtitled. Peter Bourton, Ofcom No one regulates in-flight entertainment. Input from Robyn Carter, Caption It New Zealand: If you are flying to the US there has to be 100% captions on those planes. Question from Giacomo Pirelli: How can we expand the legislation around subtitling provision to other countries? Dr Pablo Romero Fresco, University of Roehampton A project called Digital TV for All did research in 11 countries in Europe looking at the possibility of standardising guidelines. The conclusion was that it is very difficult because there are many different national habits. In the UK, colours are used for character identification, but in other countries they prefer a name tag, for example, and this goes for most of the features in subtitling. So instead, the focus will be on working with associations in every country individually on a national as opposed to an international basis. Question from audience: Often with subtitling, the first line is perfect but the second line jumps, disappears, a word appears and it is very jumbled up, which is very confusing. What is preventing a perfect two lines every time? 15

16 Graham Willis, Deluxe The subtitler might identify an error while re-speaking and back-space past that error and then re-speak. Sometimes Freeview boxes and display boxes do present the information in different ways, and the bottom line can appear to slightly flicker. Ian Cottrell, ITV Those who experience individual technical problems can get in touch with ITV through Viewers Services. It helps to explain what happened, on what channel and what programme, so ITV can narrow it down. Questions from Roy Staines: 1. Subtitles on Freeview HD channels are not scaled to match with the size displayed on corresponding HD channels through Sky and Virgin. This results in subtitles being shown at half the size on Freeview, which start from the left of the screen and only go about halfway across. Can the suppliers consider upgrading their software? 2. Can suppliers and broadcasters develop customisation features via software which enables viewers to change subtitle size, font, colour and positioning, as with Apple TV? Ian Cottrell, ITV This might be a manufacturer question, as thinking about the broadcast chain, the customisation described would have to happen in the display equipment or set top box. Peter Bourton, Ofcom There is no single answer for customisation but there are promising signs. Samsung recently demonstrated the ability to change the size of its subtitles, but this is at an early stage, so no TVs currently on the market will have this facility. External pressure could help encourage manufacturers to take action on this moving forward. Dr Pablo Romero Fresco, University of Roehampton The University of Roehampton is working on a project looking at customisation of subtitles, among other issues, called Hybrid Television for All, funded by the European Commission. The project will run for another one and a half years before reporting to the European Commission. Question from Susan Daniels, Chief Executive of the National Deaf Children s Society (NDCS): Regarding speed of subtitles, can you give us an example of what might be too fast? Moving forward might speed become a customisable function? Dr Pablo Romero Fresco, University of Roehampton The maximum recommended speed is 180 words per minute. Re-speakers don t normally produce subtitles faster than that because speech recognition does not work properly at faster speeds. The University of Roehampton has found that in chat shows speakers sometimes speak at 220 words per minute, which is 70 words over the limit, and would be very difficult to read. Chat shows like The One Show can be very difficult with speeds over 200 words per minute and two or three people speaking at once. This is very difficult and it s difficult to change. 16

17 Some experiments will be launched in two months in Switzerland to offer the possibility of slowing down the programmes. This will slow down the audio and the subtitles a bit. Another way is to delay the subtitles, which means there's going to be more latency. It's a difficult one to solve, but the University of Roehampton are looking into it. Simon Pearse, Deaf Access to Communications This conversation is focusing on re-speaking, but stenographers are able to achieve a faster speed. Graham Willis, Deluxe Deluxe is showing (in the conference side room) a demonstration of Formula 1 racing. There is a very high word rate, particularly as the commentators get more excited. The respeakers condense the speech to bring out the important information. A viewer simply could not read subtitling for those kinds of high word rates if provided by stenographers. Question from Marika Rebicsek: Would it be possible to convey emotive information which is important to speech in subtitles? It is possible to convey this through sign language interpretation for example. Graham Willis, Deluxe Certain styles can be added to subtitles, for example we currently use italics, we can make all capitals, we emphasise certain words in a different colour just to make it stand out. Even though it might not convey the exact intention of the speaker it can sometimes make it clearer that the word was said in a particular way. Dr Pablo Romero Fresco, University of Roehampton There are four elements that we teach subtitlers to add to normal subtitles: identification of characters, information about sound, information about music and information about the mood or tone of the speaker, which, for example, conveys the loudness of what's being said or any potential mood information that can be conveyed. We have also looked at the extent to which viewers prioritise one of those elements over another. Mood tends to be the one that ranks lowest after character identification, sound and music, but we still stress it's important to convey it. 17

18 Presentation: Your views and how we make them count Tanvir Ahmed, Senior Campaigner, and Laura Matthews, Senior Research and Policy Officer, Action on Hearing Loss In 2013, 69 traditional channels were required to provide subtitles, however there is no similar regulation for VOD services Overview This session outlined the frustrations of people with hearing loss in relation to provision of subtitles, and the key barriers to providing subtitles on Video on Demand services, before outlining Action on Hearing Loss s research and campaigns work on this issue. Tanvir Ahmed: Frustrations faced by people with hearing loss accessing VOD services There has been a dramatic increase in the number of channels and providers and people have more choice and channels than ever before. Access to TV is a social activity and brings people together, but when subtitles aren t available deaf people are excluded from engaging with others. It is unfair that people with hearing loss pay the same for platforms like Virgin and Sky and on demand TV but receive a substandard service. Laura Matthews: Barriers to providing subtitles on Video on Demand services Technical Platforms have been built without enabling subtitles to be shown, so now companies are having to go back to redesign and retrofit those platforms. There are also problems with subtitle format if a programme was aired with subtitles on traditional TV you cannot always transfer subtitles to Video on Demand, which requires a different format. Regulation The 2003 Communications Act places a legal obligation on broadcasters to provide subtitles on their traditional channels. In traditional channels were required to provide subtitles, however there is no similar regulation for Video on Demand services. In 2009 ATVOD was given the power to encourage Video on Demand services to become accessible, but has no power to force services to do so. In America there is much stronger regulation. Here the Government has said they will only consider regulation if they believe that progress is not being made voluntarily by the broadcasters and service providers Action on Hearing Loss campaigns work Action on hearing Loss works with Government and MPs and ATVOD and Ofcom; they hold meetings with the broadcasters and Video on Demand services, and the subtitling companies; they work with other charities including SENSE, RNIB and the UK Council on Deafness; they talk to supporters to gather evidence and undertake research to understand what people with hearing loss want. Action on Hearing Loss s recent Video on Demand research Recently 655 people with hearing loss responded to Action on Hearing Loss s Video on 18

19 Demand research. Three-quarters use subtitles all of the time whilst watching Video on Demand services, when available. 80% said they would prefer to watch Video on Demand services on their TV, 37% through a computer or a laptop, 29% through tablet device, 7% through mobile phones. Amazon instant video campaign Action on Hearing Loss supported Stephanie McDermid with her call for more subtitles on Lovefilm; now Amazon Instant Video. This included encouraging people to sign a petition, and highlighting a stunt by the comedian Mark Thomas. As a result of this campaigning Action on Hearing Loss secured a meeting with Amazon, to discuss their plans for subtitles, where Amazon said they are committed to providing subtitles and that work was already underway in this area and that they are hoping to announce improvements shortly. The session ended by encouraging delegates to give feedback to broadcasters, who often tell Action on Hearing Loss that they don t receive much feedback and so don t recognise any problems with the service they provide. Presentation: Technical challenges and success on the BBC iplayer Gareth Ford Williams, Head of Accessibility, User Experience & Design, BBC Future Media Over 500,000 programmes a day are viewed on iplayer with subtitles With iplayer, we lead by example, but there is a lot of work still to do Overview This session looked at the challenges that have been overcome to make the iplayer accessible on over one thousand devices, revealed the huge audience for subtitled programmes on iplayer, and outlined new research into the positioning of subtitles and plans to provide subtitles on video clips. Gareth also shared the work BBC Future Media do to support ATVOD in their regulation of Video on Demand providers and urged viewers to provide feedback to the BBC. Background to iplayer iplayer is a Video on Demand service and appears on four screens (TV, tablet, PCs and mobiles) across multiple platforms including YouView, Freesat, Freeview, Virgin TiVo, Xbox 360, Windows, Sony television and LG Smart TV and thousands of different devices. Accessibility has always been a fundamental part of iplayer, from the early stages of development in 2003 to the launch in Overcoming challenges iplayer was built on a framework of other people s technologies and standards, so they had to engage with a wider industry to ensure the iplayer was accessible across thousands of devices and platforms. Since 2010 the technology has been there to provide subtitles across all platforms. BBC Future Media works with manufacturers of devices 19

20 including games consoles and mobile phones to ensure they are accessible, including recently with the developers of the Google s Chromecast second screen media streaming device Platforms that BBC Future Media works with Where other organisations are getting it right, iplayer uses their technology rather than reinventing the wheel, e.g. subtitle facilities were already good on the ios. Since around 2010 availability of subtitles has been part of the approval process for getting iplayer, for example when providers want to launch a TV in the UK with iplayer preinstalled on it. BBC Future Media has some quality gates that a dedicated accreditation team test against. The tests are given to the supplier and who send them the implementation. If it meets the required standards then they get given the green light. Demand for subtitles on iplayer BBC Future Media recently began monitoring use of subtitles on iplayer and early findings indicate that over 500,000 programmes a day are viewed on iplayer with subtitles switched on, which is an enormous audience. Current projects BBC Future Media is currently carrying out research into the position of subtitles on iplayer, to give a better user experience. Prototypes are currently being built and tried out by research participants, for example positioning subtitles at the top of the screen to avoid obscuring the picture. 20

21 BBC Future Media s research into the positioning of subtitles They are also currently looking at solutions for offering subtitles on clips. The challenges are wide-ranging, including the issue that clips are obtained from a very large range of sources, and it may not be possible to reuse previous subtitles. Regulation The BBC is exempt from Ofcom and ATVOD regulations, and instead is regulated by the BBC Trust, which has very strong regulations. BBC Future Media works closely to support ATVOD, with three members of BBC staff on the ATVOD technical working group. In this capacity BBC Future Media meets and shares information and learning from their experience with iplayer with other broadcasters. User feedback Gareth appealed to subtitle users to give more feedback about their experiences of subtitles, and not to be put off by the automatic reply when they complain. Whilst they cannot respond to everyone, all feedback goes to their product teams. They identify patterns, e.g. if 5 people raise a similar problem, this is flagged as something they need to investigate. 21

22 Presentation: Encouraging improvements Peter Johnson, CEO, Authority for Television on Demand (ATVOD) Sometimes it appears nothing is happening over a long period of time and then a lot happens, and I think that is what progress is going to look like in the Video on Demand world over the next few years On the basis of what I have been told in these meetings I think we can expect to see some quite significant progress over the next 12 to 18 months They are not things that can t be solved, just things that take effort and changes to work flow and money to get around. Overview ATVOD outlined their work encouraging Video on Demand (VOD) providers to provide subtitles, such as bringing together a large number of stakeholders including broadcasters, manufacturers and platform operators to identify workable solutions to the technical barriers of providing subtitles on Video on Demand services. Who are ATVOD? ATVOD is a co-regulatory body which means they try and work in partnership with industry. They were designated in 2010 by Ofcom and their duties include encouraging service providers to make their on demand programme services more accessible to people with disabilities relating to sight and/or hearing. ATVOD regulate just over 100 UK-based Video on Demand services including TV catch up services such as 4oD and ITV player. They also regulate a number of movie on demand services including Amazon Instant Video and Picturebox and music Video on Demand services like MTV and specialist niche services, including those offering sports videos or adult content. They do not regulate platforms such as YouView because they do not provide Video on Demand content themselves. ATVOD is a small organisation with the full time equivalent of under four staff members. How does ATVOD encourage improvements? ATVOD has a duty to encourage but this does not come with any powers to compel. They cannot set quotas for on demand services, but use soft powers of encouragement. They encourage through monitoring provision, direct encouragement, publishing information and guidance, and facilitating industry and stakeholder engagement to find solutions. 22

23 Key challenges An illustration of the complexity of delivering accessible Video on Demand content With many different devices offering Video on Demand content, distribution chains for Video on Demand are complicated. There are many different platforms and different aggregators working with a range of content providers. Although a particular piece of content may have appeared with subtitles when originally broadcast on television, this does not mean that the problem has been solved for making that content appear with subtitles on Video on Demand. 23

24 Working with industry to find solutions Members of ATVOD s Access Services Working Party ATVOD established an Access Services Working Party to help identify the priorities and develop best practice guidelines, which were published in Following this ATVOD established a Working Group on Access Services which looks particularly at technical issues. The range of stakeholders that ATVOD collaborates with includes advocacy groups like Action on Hearing Loss and Sense, technical specialists and Video on Demand providers and platforms. Having everyone in the room together enables content providers, manufacturers and platforms to identify how they can work together to make subtitles available. For example, if a set top box operator is in the room with a content provider, they can have a discussion about the most appropriate format to provide subtitles. 24