Online News Videos: The UX of Subtitle Position
Michael Crabb, Rhianne Jones, Mike Armstrong, Chris J. Hughes · 2015 · ASSETS '15: Proceedings of the 17th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers & Accessibility · doi:10.1145/2700648.2809866
Summary
This BBC-funded research investigates whether repositioning subtitles from their traditional placement within a video to below the video frame improves user experience for online news content. The study addresses a gap in captioning research: while television subtitling has received extensive attention, the shift to online video consumption—where videos are often displayed at smaller sizes within web pages—creates new design considerations. When subtitles overlay small video frames, they can obscure a significant portion of the visual content, potentially degrading the viewing experience for the 8+ million UK subtitle users. The researchers conducted a lab study with 26 participants (ages 22-67) who use subtitles daily due to hearing impairments. Participants viewed BBC news clips in a 2x2 design varying subtitle position (within video at bottom vs. below video) and video size (half-width vs. two-thirds width). User experience was measured using a validated 7-factor framework covering aesthetics, attention, involvement, familiarity, perceived usefulness, perceived usability, and endurability. Qualitative data was gathered through semi-structured interviews and conversation prompts. Additional subtitle positions (top of video, above video) were explored, along with user-controlled positioning.
Key findings
Placing subtitles below the video rather than within it produced a statistically significant improvement in overall user experience (p = .025, medium effect size). Video size had no significant effect on UX scores. The largest improvements when subtitles were below the video appeared in involvement, endurability, and familiarity factors—participants felt more engaged because content was not obscured. Qualitative analysis revealed strong support for user-controlled subtitle positioning. Participants' preferences varied based on personal factors including type of corrective lenses worn (bifocal users preferred below; varifocal users preferred above), situational context (e.g., children blocking the screen), and content being watched. Some participants noted that despite never having seen below-video subtitles before, this positioning felt "more natural" and "more familiar" than traditional overlay positioning—a counterintuitive finding. An important secondary finding was the "discourse of gratitude" among some deaf participants who felt that having any subtitles was an improvement, leading to lowered expectations about subtitle quality and positioning. This suggests some subtitle users may not advocate for improvements they would genuinely benefit from.
Relevance
This research challenges a long-standing convention in captioning: that subtitles must appear within the video frame. For web developers and accessibility practitioners, the key takeaway is that online video presents design opportunities not available on traditional television—the surrounding page space can be used for subtitles without obscuring content. The findings support providing users with controls to reposition subtitles according to their preferences, aligning with broader personalization principles in accessibility. The study was conducted with BBC content following their Global Experience Language guidelines, lending practical credibility. However, the research was limited to news content in a lab setting, so findings may not generalize to entertainment genres or home viewing contexts. The identification of lowered user expectations among some deaf viewers is a valuable insight for user research—practitioners should probe beyond initial satisfaction responses when evaluating accessibility features.
Tags: subtitles · captions · deaf accessibility · user experience · video accessibility · personalization · online media · web video · hearing impairment