This translation has not been editorially reviewed yet. The German version is authoritative. Deutsche Fassung
Accessibility
When does a video need a sign language translation?
Level AAA criterion 1.2.6 requires sign language translation for each recorded video with sound. Subtitles (level A) reach many deaf people, but not all: for many, sign language is the first language and written German is a foreign language that they read slower than a video runs. A superimposed interpreter makes the sound as accessible to her as subtitles to late-deaf people.
What the Criterion Requires
Each recorded video with spoken content receives a sign language version: either as a faded-in image with an interpreter or as a second video version accessible from the page. In Austria and Germany, this is the Austrian and German sign language respectively; They are their own languages with their own grammar, not a signified form of German. The translation must fully reflect the content, including speaker changes and important sounds. Except for videos that are themselves only a media alternative to a text.
Why this criterion is at level AAA
Sign language translation costs interpreting and production time per minute of video. For a website with hundreds of videos, this is an ongoing effort that the WCAG has deliberately placed above the mandatory level AA. Therefore, the criterion is a target for performances where video is the main channel: news from public authorities, educational videos, instructions from authorities. Those who implement it say: Our most important messages reach deaf people in their language.
This is how we deal with it
The inspection service checks the levels A and AA required by law. Whether a video has a sign language version, a measurement cannot decide; It can find and identify videos. The criterion is here as a separate category, so that operators know what is possible beyond the obligation. A seal is not created for this today; anyone who has the translation can have it named in the report as an additional indication.
Examples
Video with subtitles only
<video controls src="rede.mp4">
<track kind="captions" src="rede.vtt" srclang="de">
</video><video controls src="rede.mp4">
<track kind="captions" src="rede.vtt" srclang="de">
</video>
<p><a href="rede-oegs.mp4">Fassung mit Gebärdensprache (ÖGS)</a></p>The sign language version is a separate video or a picture-in-picture with interpreter, visibly linked.
- Count your videos with sound and rank them by range: homepage and core messages first.
- Get a translation into the sign language of your country at an interpreting service with deaf examiners.
- Display the interpreter large enough (at least one-sixth of the image height) or offer a second version with a visible link.
- In the Accessibility Statement, indicate which videos are translated and which follow.
