Federal agencies and contractors streaming live video must meet Section 508 captioning requirements. StreamTranslate provides the real-time captioning solution — our industry-leading speech AI accuracy via OBS, WCAG 2.0 AA compliant.
Get Section 508 Compliant CaptionsSection 508 of the Rehabilitation Act (29 U.S.C. § 794d) requires that federal agencies' electronic and information technology be accessible to people with disabilities — including employees and members of the public. The 2017 refresh of Section 508 standards adopted WCAG 2.0 Level AA as the technical baseline, which includes Success Criterion 1.2.4 — Captions (Live).
For federal agencies that stream live video content — town halls, press conferences, training sessions, congressional hearings, agency webcasts — real-time captions are required. The captions must accurately represent the spoken content and be synchronized with the audio/video.
Contractors and vendors providing ICT products or services to federal agencies are also subject to Section 508 when their products are used by agencies. If you're building a streaming platform or live event solution for a federal client, Section 508 captioning compliance is a requirement, not a recommendation.
Section 508 adopts WCAG 2.0 Level AA — including SC 1.2.4 (Captions Live) — as the technical standard for live video accessibility.
Live streams by federal agencies must include synchronized captions. Post-stream captions added later do not satisfy Section 508 for live content.
our industry-leading speech AI real-time captions via OBS browser source meet Section 508 requirements for live synchronized media.
StreamTranslate integrates with OBS to add real-time our industry-leading speech AI captions to any live streaming workflow. For federal agencies, this means captions can be added to streams going out via YouTube Live, Webex Events, Zoom Webinars, Microsoft Teams Live Events, or any RTMP-compatible platform.
The implementation is straightforward: set up OBS as your streaming encoder (or use OBS as a virtual camera source for Teams/Zoom), add StreamTranslate as a Browser Source, and all live audio is captioned in real time. The captions are embedded in the video output, visible to all viewers without any additional steps on their end.
For agencies that need captions in multiple languages — international broadcasts or multilingual workforces — StreamTranslate supports 125+ languages through our industry-leading speech AI's translation capabilities. English speech can be captioned simultaneously in Spanish, French, Arabic, or any of the 125+ supported languages.
For procurement or implementation questions, see the technical setup guide or contact us about volume pricing for government and institutional plans.
Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act requires federal agencies and contractors to make electronic and information technology accessible. For live streaming, this means providing real-time captions.
Federal agencies, federally funded programs, and contractors working with federal agencies must comply with Section 508 when distributing live video content.
Section 508 references WCAG 2.0 Level AA, which includes SC 1.2.4 (Captions Live). Live synchronized media must include real-time captions that are accurate and synchronized.
Yes. StreamTranslate provides real-time, synchronized captions via OBS browser source using our industry-leading speech AI, meeting the WCAG 2.0 AA baseline required by Section 508.
Federal agencies can use StreamTranslate with OBS to add real-time our industry-leading speech AI captions to any live stream — compatible with Webex, Zoom, Teams, and direct RTMP streaming.