Common Look and Feel Guidelines for the Internet, Part 1: Implementation Guide for Multimedia Content

Table of Contents

• Application
• Context
• Definitions
• Guidance
  • Accessibility
  • Third-party symbols
  • Official languages
• Related policies
• Enquiries
• Appendix A
  • Part 2, Requirement 1 – Compliance with World Wide Web Consortium Priority 1 and Priority 2 checkpoints
  • Part 2, Requirement 3 - Primary format of documents on Web sites
  • Part 2, Requirement 4 - Offering information in multiple formats
  • Part 3, Requirement 11 - Third-party symbols and hyperlinks
  • Directive on the Use of Official Languages on Web sites
• Appendix B

Application

This implementation guide applies to institutions listed in Schedules I, I.1 and II of the Financial Administration Act.

Context

Canadians have the right to obtain information and services from Government of Canada Web sites regardless of the technologies they use and in the official language of their choice. The Common Look and Feel Standards for the Internet help institutions to meet this commitment. This implementation guide describes how the standards should be applied with regard to multimedia content. For the purposes of this document, "multimedia" includes any audio, video or audio-video content presented over the Internet.

There are a number of possible combinations for multimedia files such as:

• audio only (for example, the audio track of a speech, or a live or pre-recorded radio announcement/advertisement);
• video only (for example, live or pre-recorded video of a scenic spot);
• audio/video (for example, audio and visual tracks of an individual delivering a speech, or a live or pre-recorded television advertisement); and
• animation (for example, computer-rendering of how to carry out a physical task).

Each implementation would be subject to the same CLF standards and requirements but the way compliance is achieved and the ease of compliance differs based on the approach.

Definitions

Definitions to be used in the interpretation of this implementation guide are located in Appendix B and on the CLF 2.0 Web site.

Guidance

Accessibility

The institution ensures that content can be easily accessed by the general public, including persons with disabilities, by complying with the accessibility provisions of the World Wide Web Consortium’s Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 1.0 and Common Look and Feel. In particular, an institution will provide:

• a text equivalent for audio and video content (for example, a transcript) (WCAG 1.0 Checkpoint 1.1);
• an auditory description of the important information of a visual track (WCAG 1.0 Checkpoint 1.3); and
• equivalent alternatives (for example, captions and auditory descriptions of the visual track) synchronized with the presentation (WCAG 1.0 Checkpoint 1.4).

Third-party symbols

The institution respects its obligation to avoid creating a real or perceived competitive advantage by not displaying third-party symbols representing the multimedia players being used to deliver content.

Official languages

The institution respect its official languages obligations by ensuring that all multimedia content as well as the alternative formats are available in both English and French for offices that are designated bilingual in terms of service to the public. For live events, simultaneous translation must be provided and for pre-recorded content, two-language versions must be provided. Transcripts and captioning must be available in both languages. In the case of podcasts, entries in podcatcher software directories (for example, iTunes and Podcast Alley) must respect the official languages obligations of the office responsible for creating the content.

A full citing of each relevant requirement or directive appears in Appendix A.

A glossary of multimedia terms is available in Appendix B.

Related policies

The institutions in question must also apply the following policy instruments:

• Common Look and Feel Standards for the Internet, Part 1: Standard on Web Addresses;
• Common Look and Feel Standards for the Internet, Part 2: Standard on the Accessibility, Interoperability and Usability of Web sites;
• Common Look and Feel Standards for the Internet, Part 3: Standard on Common Web Page Formats; and
• Common Look and Feel Standards for the Internet, Part 4: Standard on Email

Institutions must also respect the obligations set out in the Directive on the Use of Official Languages on Web Sites.

Enquiries

For more information, please contact:

Appendix A

Common Look and Feel Standards Pertaining to Multimedia Content

Part 2, Requirement 1 – Compliance with World Wide Web Consortium Priority 1 and Priority 2 checkpoints

• Checkpoint 1.1 - Provide a text equivalent for every non-text element.
  • 1.1l - a text equivalent for stand-alone audio files.
  • 1.1m - a text equivalent for audio tracks of video.
  • 1.1n - a text equivalent for video.
  
  
• Checkpoint 1.3 - Until user agents can automatically read aloud the text equivalent of a visual track provide an auditory description of the important information of the visual track of a multimedia presentation.
  
  
• Checkpoint 1.4 - For any time-based multimedia presentation (e.g., a movie or animation), synchronize equivalent alternatives (e.g., captions or auditory descriptions of the visual track) with the presentation.
  
  
• Checkpoint 11.1 - Use W3C technologies when they are available and appropriate for a task and use the latest versions when supported.

Part 2, Requirement 3 - Primary format of documents on Web sites

Part 2, Requirement 4 - Offering information in multiple formats

Synchronized Multimedia Integration Language (SMIL), W3C technology that: "…define[s] an XML-based language that allows authors to write interactive multimedia presentations. Using SMIL 2.1, an author can describe the temporal behavior of a multimedia presentation, associate hyperlinks with media objects and describe the layout of the presentation on a screen".

Part 3, Requirement 11 - Third-party symbols and hyperlinks

Directive on the Use of Official Languages on Web sites

Appendix B

Glossary of Multimedia Terms

Audio or video on demand is the method of distributing pre-recorded multimedia files, such as audio programs or music videos, over the Internet. The viewer can either "stream" content, allowing viewing while the video is being downloaded, or "download" it in which the program is brought in its entirety to a computer before viewing starts.

Podcasting is the method of distributing multimedia files, such as audio programs or music videos, over the Internet using either the RSS or Atom syndication formats, for playback on mobile devices.

Webcasting is the method of distributing multimedia files, such as audio programs or music videos, live over the Internet.