Success Criterion 1.2.3: Audio Description or Media Alternative (Prerecorded)

Why This Criterion Matters

Audio description narrates important visual information in videos that blind or visually impaired users cannot see. It fills the gaps between dialogue to describe actions, settings, facial expressions, and other visual elements essential to understanding the content.

• Describes visual action: "John walks to the window and looks outside"
• Identifies speakers: "Sarah turns to address the group"
• Describes settings: "The scene shifts to a busy city street at night"
• Conveys visual text: "The sign reads 'Welcome to Springfield'"

Who Benefits

How to Meet This Criterion

Option 1: Audio Description Track

Provide an additional audio track with narrated descriptions of visual content.

<video controls>
    <source src="documentary.mp4" type="video/mp4">
    <track kind="captions" src="documentary-captions.vtt" 
           srclang="en" label="English Captions">
    <track kind="descriptions" src="documentary-descriptions.vtt" 
           srclang="en" label="Audio Descriptions">
</video>

<!-- Alternative: Separate version with audio descriptions -->
<p>
    <a href="documentary-with-descriptions.mp4">
        Watch version with audio descriptions
    </a>
</p>

Option 2: Full Text Alternative

Provide a complete text transcript that includes all visual and audio information.

<details>
    <summary>Full Video Transcript with Descriptions</summary>
    <div class="transcript">
        <p><strong>[Scene: Office meeting room. Five people 
        sit around a conference table.]</strong></p>
        
        <p><strong>MANAGER:</strong> Let's review the quarterly results.</p>
        
        <p><strong>[A bar chart appears on screen showing 
        sales increasing from $1M to $1.5M over three months]</strong></p>
        
        <p><strong>MANAGER:</strong> As you can see, we've grown 
        significantly.</p>
        
        <p><strong>[Team members nod and smile]</strong></p>
    </div>
</details>

What to Describe

• Actions: Physical movements, gestures, facial expressions
• Settings: Location changes, time of day, environment
• On-screen text: Signs, titles, graphics, charts
• Speaker identification: Who is talking when not obvious from audio
• Visual effects: Scene transitions, important visual elements

<!-- Training video relies heavily on visual demonstrations -->
<!-- but no audio description is provided -->
<video src="software-tutorial.mp4" controls></video>

<!-- Narrator says "click here" but doesn't describe where -->

Common Failures to Avoid

Testing Methods

Manual Testing Steps

1. Close your eyes: Listen to the video. Can you understand the content?
2. Identify visual-only information: What important content is only shown visually?
3. Check for audio descriptions: Are visual elements described in the audio?
4. Review text alternatives: Does the transcript include visual descriptions?
5. Verify completeness: Are all essential visual elements described?

When Audio Description is Essential

• Training videos with on-screen demonstrations
• Videos with charts, graphs, or diagrams
• Content where visual action tells the story
• Videos with on-screen text not read aloud
• Content with multiple speakers who aren't identified by voice

Related Criteria