YouTube Auto-Caps: Hype Or Help?

Google's recent announcement of the introduction of automatic captions (auto-caps) for YouTube has caused a predictable flurry in the world of subtitling.
People now wonder just how good their automatic speech recognition technology will prove to be.
With over 30 years experience in the specialised sector of subtitling, closed captioning, teletext and digital text services, SysMedia produces and transmits for the likes of BBC, BSkyB, Red Bee Media and Ascent Media to name a few.
"While admirable in its intention, Google-owned video service YouTube’s automatic captions should not yet be seen by anyone as being a cheap substitute for human subtitlers," explained SysMedia Chief Executive Oficer Andrew Lambourne.
He continues: "In Google's own words, 'The captions will not always be perfect'.
In practice they vary from quite impressive to truly awful; and subtitlers understand only too well the reasons why," said Mr Lambourne.
Automatic Speech Recognition (ASR) has advanced significantly in the last ten years, and auto-caps should be applauded for aptly demonstrating that point. However, the new service also highlights the challenges inherent in unleashing automated speech processing technology on real-world problems.
ASR has now reached the point where someone speaking clearly and fairly consistently can be recognised to an accuracy of perhaps 90 per cent or more, provided that there is no background noise, no other speakers interrupting or unusual vocabulary used. In reality, very few media clips are like that, and so useful captioning of professional content will need the human touch for many years to come.
Lambourne added: "As subtitlers and their audiences know only too well, errors in subtitles can be very confusing for people who cannot hear or understand the original soundtrack.
"For example, try to make sense of, 'We're about to witness the most trying to draw my natural world the mayor persist well Frank'.
ASR, along with automated translation technology, certainly has its place in the subtitling workflow, and SysMedia specialises in products that blend the productivity-saving benefits of these technologies with the more adaptable skills of the human to achieve quality subtitles all the time.
SysMedia is currently developing WinCAPS Quantum, a brand new subtitle production platform for the broadcast subtitling market, which combines the efficiency of the latest technologies, including automated speech transcription and machine translation, with fast and targeted manual editing.
Lambourne concluded: "Automation technology is continually improving, and as it does so SysMedia will continue to harness it to make subtitling more efficient. But I suspect that for a good while yet, human subtitlers will still be an essential part of the editorial process."
Additional information can be found at www.sysmedia.com
(BMcN/BMcc)