Dialog+: The Game Changer for Easier-to-Follow TV Dialogue

In addition to providing technological solutions for audio description, VIDEO TO VOICE is actively involved in other fields surrounding accessibility for digital media. For some time, VIDEO TO VOICE has been working in close partnership with the Fraunhofer Institute for Integrated Circuits (IIS) on topics such as automated mixing and MPEG-H Audio. The following article provides a fascinating glimpse at Dialog+, a production technology developed by Fraunhofer IIS to make TV dialogue easier to understand.

It's a frustration many of us have experienced while watching TV: We can't quite hear what the actor is mumbling during an important scene, so lose track of the plot for the rest of the show. Likewise, when the music, sound effects or background noises are too loud, the dialogue becomes difficult to follow, prompting us to turn up the volume to an uncomfortable level or switch over.  

To combat this issue, the Fraunhofer Institute for Integrated Circuits (IIS) teamed up with public broadcasters in developing Dialog+ – an innovative AI-based solution for making TV dialogue easier to understand. In essence, Dialog+ provides viewers with an enhanced version of the dialogue which they can select as an alternative to the original audio mix.

In late 2020, German television networks Westdeutscher Rundfunk (WDR) and Bayerischer Rundfunk (BR) conducted viewer testing to see how Dialog+ would be received. But before we examine the results, let's take a closer look at why TV dialogue is difficult to follow in the first place.

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