Quick Guide to Video Platforms and Captions

As the need to move more of our content and communications online increases, pre-recorded and live videos are likely to become a bigger part of your digital toolbox. In online courses, public web pages, and live streaming events, it’s up to you as the content author/host to make sure that your videos include accurate captions.

Some platforms include automatic speech recognition (ASR) of pre-recorded video, though the accuracy tends to fall below the threshold of accessibility and needs some manual cleaning up. If you have a student who requires captions during live class meetings, or if you are hosting a webinar for the Rice community and beyond, please contact the Disability Resource Center to learn more about transcription service options.

The following platforms are used commonly to host and share video content. Use this quick guide to choose the one that’s right for you and your audience.

Kaltura
Zoom
YouTube
Vimeo

Kaltura

License: Canvas-only
Recommended use: Academic
Pre-recorded video: YES
Live video: NO
ASR: YES
Caption editor: YES, learn more.

Zoom

License: Pro currently available for Rice faculty and staff. Webinar available by request only.
Recommended use: Academic and Public
Pre-recorded video: YES
Live video: YES
ASR: YES, Cloud recordings only
Caption editor: YES, learn more.

YouTube

License: NO
Recommended use: Public
Pre-recorded video: YES
Live video: YES
ASR: YES, both live and pre-recorded
Caption editor: YES, learn more.

Vimeo

License: NO
Recommended use: Public
Pre-recorded video: YES
Live video: NO
ASR: NO
Caption editor: NO

Because Vimeo does not include automatic closed captions, we do not recommend using it unless you have a detailed process for creating and uploading your own caption files. For more information, see the following ‘Contact’ section.

Contact

For additional questions and support, contact the Digital Information Accessibility Coordinator.

Email: a11y@rice.edu
Phone: 713-348-6116
Consultation: calendly.com/jw115