In a move aimed at improving accessibility, Warner Bros. Discovery has partnered with Google to introduce AI-generated captions on its Max streaming platform. The collaboration utilizes Google's most recent generative AI technology to automatically generate closed captions and further improve the viewing experience of people with auditory impairments, making content readily available for all audiences.
Closed captions have long been recognized as a standard feature in the entertainment industry, allowing users to follow along with the dialogue and sound effects. Yet, manual captioning is expensive and takes a long time to complete. This is particularly true for channels with a high volume of content like Max. AI assistance helps with the struggle to keep up and can be beneficial for multiple language translations.
The decision to leverage Google’s AI technology will help Warner Bros. Discovery produce captions at much faster speeds while adapting to various accents, dialects and even informal speech that might otherwise be difficult for traditional captioning systems. This approach will make it scalable, as Max can provide high-quality captions across its extensive and ever-growing content library.
The role of AI in accessibility
AI-generated captions may improve the viewing experience for all users. Closed captions serve many purposes beyond those who are hard of hearing, especially as many viewers are used to multi-tasking. Many viewers watch their content with the captions when they're in noisy environments, learning a new language, or simply just consuming content without sound. Automating this process could ensure that there is far greater availability of captions on all content types, from blockbuster movies to niche shows, including foreign films.
Meanwhile, the integration of AI into the captioning process opens up options such as real-time captioning for live events or broadcasts. As more platforms integrate live streaming into their services, the ability to provide AI-generated captions instantly, could become a crucial feature in capturing audiences who rely on this service.
As AI naturally integrates further into the entertainment industry, there are some important questions that need to be answers. First, there is concern with the accuracy of AI captions, especially in situations that are complex or nuanced, which may need oversight from humans to ensure those quality standards remain superior. Warner Bros. Discovery says it would continue to ensure that the highest standards of caption quality are maintained, whereby AI does the heavy lifting in the captioning, but a human editor will always review the material for mistakes or misinterpretations before it goes live.
This deal underlines Warner Bros. Discovery's drive to make content accessible, but also positions Max as a forward-thinking platform embracing technological innovation.
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