Welcome to Prime Video’s Caption Requirements Overview.
Captions, also called timed text, are essential for
accessibility and are mandatory for certain territories.
In this video, we’ll cover caption types, technical
requirements, and common errors to avoid.
There are three types of timed text.
Captions show everything you hear - what people say plus background sounds like door slams or music.
Subtitles show only what people are saying- just the
dialogue.
Forced Narratives automatically appear when someone
speaks a different language
or there’s important text on screen.
For example, if you’re watching an English movie
and a character suddenly speaks Japanese,
forced narratives translate that Japanese dialogue for you.
Prime Video accepts multiple caption formats.
Frame rates must match your video file, and all captions
must start with a zero-hour timecode.
Check the territory-specific requirements based on your selected region.
For example, English captions are mandatory for titles publishing in India and the US.
All spoken dialogue must be captioned throughout
your video.
If music contains lyrics, caption them verbatim.
Ensure your captions are properly synced.
They should appear on screen at the same time as
the corresponding audio.
Position captions appropriately to avoid overlapping
with on-screen text or graphics when possible.
All caption timecodes must use the format: hour, minute, second, followed by millisecond.
Always use the comma before milliseconds, not a period.
Common caption errors include selecting the wrong
language,
captions that are consistently out of sync or gradually drift out of sync,
improperly formatted timecodes, and missing dialogue.
For more information, go to the Help Topics page.
That’s all for now.
Thank you for watching.
