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Subtitles and captions can make your Brightcove videos more enriching, accessible and useful. Further, they allow deaf and hearing-impaired people to understand the audio portion of your presentation. Today, we’ll learn how to add captions and subtitles, both manually and by integrating Rev and Brightcove. I’m sure you’ll find it’s a great timesaver.
Manual Configuration of Brightcove Captions and Subtitles
While it’s sometimes necessary to manually configure Brightcove captions and subtitles, it’s a more time consuming and tedious process. Here, we’ll learn how.
The easiest way to add Brightcove captions or subtitles is to use one of Brightcove’s partners—and we’ll discuss that later. However, sometimes you’ll have a situation in which you’ll need to manually configure those captions and text track properties.
Begin by selecting the video you want to caption from the Media Module, and scroll down to the text track properties. Brightcove uses the WebVTT caption format, which is available from Rev. Remember: each language will require its own WebVTT file. Brightcove caption files can be uploaded from a local directory or a publicly accessible URL, using Video Cloud as the host. You can also use a remote URL.
When you upload your caption file, you’ll see four boxes to populate. “Language” allows you to enter a code for each language selected. “Label” is what will viewers see when using the player, allowing them to select their preferred language. “Kind” allows you to set captions, subtitles, descriptions, chapters, and metadata. Leave the MIME type set to “text/vtt.”
After you’ve uploaded your file and set the language, label, kind, and MIME boxes, click “Add Text Track.” Repeat the process for any other languages, then click “Save.”
To test whether Brightcove player closed captions are working, publish your video, and open it in the player URL. Let your mouse rest over the CC button for a moment, and the available language captions should appear.
Rev and Brightcove Caption Integration
Integrating Rev and Brightcove to generate WebVTT formatted captions and subtitles for your company’s videos is a multi-step process that ultimately saves you time for more important tasks.
Learn how to get a $100 off when you try Rev for Brightcove.
Manually configuring your Brightcove captions is time-consuming and tedious, but there is an alternative. Here, you’ll learn how to integrate Rev and Brightcove, automating the process. You save time and clicks using this method. It only takes a few minutes to complete and your job will be a lot easier.
First, link your Rev and Brightcove accounts. Start by setting up payments—just add a credit card to your billing account. Or, set up a monthly invoice for your corporation or business.
Linking Your Account
Once you’ve set up payments, click over to your Rev Account Settings page, and scroll down to “Integration Settings.” Click on “Link New Account,” where a dropdown menu allows you to select “Brightcove.”
Next, log in to Brightcove, and click on the “Admin” menu. From there, choose “API Authentication,” and select “Register New Application.”
You’ll be prompted to name and (optionally) describe your application. You’ll also need to select your account(s) for authorization.
Most importantly, you’ll need to add two permissions before saving. Under “CMS,” select the following two boxes: “Video Read” and “Video Read/Write.”
Next, under “Ingestion Profiles,” click the following three boxes: “Configuration Read,” “Configuration Read/Write,” and “Read.”
Once these are saved, you’re ready to enter your Brightcove credentials. This is an easy two-step process. First, copy your Brightcove Client ID and Client Secret and paste them into your Rev account. Then, return to Brightcove, and click on the “Admin” menu again. Select “Account Information.” Choose “Account ID,” and copy it to your Rev account.
Finally, click “Link.” Your Brightcove and Rev accounts should now be linked.
Ready to start ordering captions? Keep reading—and remember, you can always email support@rev.com where you can find guidance and solutions.
Placing a Caption or Subtitle Order Through Brightcove
Now that you’ve linked your Brightcove and Rev accounts, we’ll show you how to tag your videos to generate foreign subtitles, track orders, or place a rush on your captions.
Beginning at Brightcove, go to your list of videos. Select which ones you wish to send us for captioning by clicking “Tag.”
Next, tag your selected videos with “rev” and any of the language tags listed at our support page to order your captions and subtitles. Then click save—it’s that simple.
Brightcove automatically receives new orders 24 hours a day. You’ll know yours was received when the language tags change. For example, if you ordered Japanese subtitles—tagged “rev-ja”—you’ll see the tag change to “rev-ja-placed”. When your order is ready, the tag will change to “rev-ja-completed.”
Rush orders
If you need your Brightcove captions in a hurry, use the tag “rev-rush.” However, keep in mind that rush orders can only be applied to caption orders. Subtitles cannot be rush ordered.
Now that you have gained information on adding captions and subtitles by integrating Rev and Brightcove, you can save time on your video projects.
Learn how to get a $100 off when you try Rev for Brightcove.