Making Audio Content Accessible

You’re most likely here because you need to make sure your web audio content is accessible to people with disabilities.

You might have a specific problem, like:

how to make an audio player keyboard accessible so it can be used by assistive technology
how to provide audio content in alternative formats
how to avoid keyboard traps
whether to start audio automatically
what controls need to be provided

Perhaps you need a comprehensive list of likely issues with audio web accessibility – and how to address them. Or maybe you just want to ask a direct question and get a clear, expert response.

You’re in the right place.

OzWiki will tell you what you need to know to make the web audio content accessible. The Audio section details 18 accessibility problems and how to address them, demonstrating compliance with 15 WCAG Level A success criteria and three Level AA success criteria.

As a subscriber, you’ll also be able to request further or more detailed information relating to your specific situation.

See an example

Audio is not keyboard accessible

Category	Audio
Topic	Keyboard
WCAG SC 2.1.1: Keyboard	All functionality of the content is operable through a keyboard interface without requiring specific timings for individual keystrokes, except where the underlying function requires input that depends on the path of the user's movement and not just the endpoints. Note 1: This exception relates to the underlying function, not the input technique. For example, if using handwriting to enter text, the input technique (handwriting) requires path-dependent input but the underlying function (text input) does not. Note 2: This does not forbid and should not discourage providing mouse input or other input methods in addition to keyboard operation. http://www.w3.org/TR/UNDERSTANDING-WCAG20/keyboard-operation-keyboard-operable.html See more errors for this SC
Level	A
Technique(s)	G90: Providing keyboard-triggered event handlers
Impact	High

Error

Some audio cannot be activated or operated via the keyboard.

Solution

Ensure all audio can be used by the keyboard.

OzWiki is an accessible resource that provides best known methods to achieve A & AA level design and interaction for web content in areas such as Audio, Video, Link, Captcha, Maps, Navigation and more. These outlined accessibility errors, examples and solutions help you become 508 compliant by demonstrating associated WCAG 2.0 success criteria and techniques.

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