How to Choose an Audio Description Provider: A Buyer's Guide

Choosing an audio description provider is a decision that impacts your content’s accessibility, your regulatory compliance, and your brand reputation. With the market evolving rapidly — from traditional manual providers to AI-powered solutions — here is how to evaluate your options.

Key Evaluation Criteria

1. Quality Standards

What to evaluate:

• Does the provider follow recognized AD guidelines (ITC, ACB, ISO)?
• Can they provide sample descriptions for review?
• Do they have a quality assurance process?
• How do they handle complex content (fast-paced action, multiple speakers, visual symbolism)?

Questions to ask:

• “Can I review sample AD for content similar to mine?”
• “What is your QA process before delivery?”
• “How do you handle content where dialogue gaps are very short?“

2. Scalability

What to evaluate:

• How much content can they process per month?
• Can they scale up for large back-catalog projects?
• Do they have capacity constraints during peak periods?

Questions to ask:

• “What is your maximum monthly throughput in finished hours?”
• “Can you handle a 1,000-hour back-catalog project alongside ongoing new releases?”
• “What happens if I need to double my volume next quarter?“

3. Language Support

What to evaluate:

• Which languages do they support for AD?
• Is multi-language AD generated simultaneously or sequentially?
• What is the cost per additional language?

Questions to ask:

• “How many languages can you generate AD for from a single content analysis?”
• “What is the marginal cost per additional language?”
• “Do you support [specific languages relevant to your markets]?“

4. Turnaround Time

What to evaluate:

• Standard delivery timeline
• Rush delivery options and pricing
• Whether turnaround scales linearly with volume

Questions to ask:

• “What is your standard turnaround for a 1-hour episode?”
• “Can you deliver AD before our content launch date if we provide content 48 hours in advance?”
• “How does turnaround change if I submit 50 hours in one batch?“

5. Cost Structure

What to evaluate:

• Per-minute pricing (industry range: $2–50 per finished minute)
• Volume discounts
• Multi-language pricing
• Setup or platform fees
• Hidden costs (revision fees, format conversion, rush charges)

Questions to ask:

• “What is your all-in cost per finished minute at my expected volume?”
• “Are revisions included or charged separately?”
• “Is there a minimum commitment or setup fee?“

6. Technology and Integration

What to evaluate:

• API availability for automated workflows
• File format support (video formats, AD delivery formats)
• Integration with your existing MAM or distribution platform
• Dashboard and reporting capabilities

Questions to ask:

• “Do you have an API I can integrate into my delivery pipeline?”
• “What file formats do you accept and deliver?”
• “Can AD generation be triggered automatically when new content is ingested?“

7. Compliance Expertise

What to evaluate:

• Understanding of relevant regulations (EAA, ADA, CVAA, Ofcom)
• Ability to certify compliance
• Documentation and audit trail

Questions to ask:

• “Are you familiar with [specific regulation] requirements?”
• “Can you provide compliance documentation for regulatory audits?”
• “Do you track and report on AD coverage metrics?”

Red Flags

Watch for these warning signs when evaluating providers:

• No sample available: Any reputable provider should be able to demonstrate their quality
• Vague pricing: If they cannot provide a clear per-minute cost, expect surprises
• No QA process: Quality without oversight degrades over time
• Single-language only: Multi-market operations need multi-language capability
• Manual-only at scale: If your library is thousands of hours, manual-only providers cannot realistically achieve full coverage
• No API or automation: Modern workflows require programmatic integration

Traditional vs. AI-Powered Providers

Making Your Decision

The right provider depends on your specific needs:

• Small volume, prestige content: Traditional manual AD from an experienced provider
• Large library, compliance-driven: AI-powered solution with optional human review
• Mixed needs: A provider that offers both AI and human options, allowing you to match the approach to the content

The most important thing is to start. Every day without audio description is a day your content is not accessible to millions of potential viewers.