Microsoft Teams integrates robust accessibility features to ensure inclusivity across various communication scenarios. Users benefit from live captioning during meetings, enhancing accessibility for individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing by providing real-time text representation of spoken dialogue. For more detailed accessibility needs, Teams supports Communication Access Realtime Translation (CART) services, facilitating accurate live transcriptions. Furthermore, the platform offers a dedicated sign language view, enabling participants to spotlight a sign language interpreter's video feed alongside meeting content.
Captioning
Live Captions
Teams can detect what’s said in a meeting and present real-time captions. Several caption customization options exist if you're using the desktop app for Windows or Mac. The application does not save captions. If you'd like a transcript of the meeting, turn on transcription. You'll be able to download the transcript after the meeting.
Communication Access Real-time Translation (CART)
Communication access real-time translation (CART) is a service in which a trained CART captioner listens to the speech and instantaneously translates all speech to text. The CART captioner uses a special phonetic keyboard or stenography method to produce an accurate translation that is then broadcast to the recipients on a screen, laptop, or other device. CART is also sometimes called open captioning, real-time stenography, or real-time captioning.
As a meeting organizer, you can set up and offer CART captioning to your audience instead of the Microsoft Teams built-in live captions that are automatically generated.
As a CART captioner, you'll need a CART caption link from the meeting organizer and a CART captioning solution or software to connect to and provide CART captions in a Microsoft Teams meeting.
Sign Language View
Sign Language View is a meeting experience in Microsoft Teams on Windows, Mac, and the web that helps signers—people who are deaf or hard of hearing, sign language interpreters, and others who use sign language—prioritize one another in a consistent on-screen location throughout every meeting.
Sign Language View provides a more predictable, static meeting experience that allows users to prioritize up to two other signers’ video streams for placement on center stage. When Sign Language View is enabled, the prioritized video streams appear at the right aspect ratio and at the highest available quality. You can enable Sign Language View either on the fly during a meeting or as a setting that persists across all your calls.
Transcription
You can start a live transcription of the proceedings during any Teams meeting. The text appears alongside the meeting video or audio in real-time, including the speaker's name (unless they chose to hide it) and a time stamp.
Live transcription can make your meeting more productive and inclusive for participants who are deaf or hard-of-hearing or have different levels of language proficiency. Participants in noisy places will also appreciate the visual aid.
Further Reading