Closed captioning for live events: how it works
One laptop and a room microphone are the whole setup. Inclutra transcribes what is said, pushes it to a stage display for the room, and generates a QR code attendees scan to read along on their own device. Nothing to install, no account needed for attendees.
- A stage display shows large captions the room reads together.
- Attendees scan a QR code and read on their own phone or tablet.
- Everything runs from one laptop, with no captioning encoder or dedicated operator.
- The transcript is saved when the recording ends.
Live event captioning software vs human captioners
Professional CART captioners and schriftdolmetscher still produce the most accurate output, and for legal proceedings or high-stakes settings they remain the right call. Automated captioning wins on cost, availability and repeatability. It can run on every session of a multi-track conference, where hiring a captioner per room usually cannot.
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Multilingual captions: live translation for events
Attendees pick their own language on their own device, so one microphone can serve an audience that does not share a language. This is where in-meeting tools like Zoom and Teams tend to run out. Their captions are built for the person on their own laptop in the call, not for a room full of people.
- Each attendee selects their language independently.
- Original transcript and translations run side by side.
- No per-attendee licence and no app install.
Accessibility compliance: the EAA and the Austrian BaFG
Under the European Accessibility Act and its national implementations, including the Austrian Barrierefreiheitsgesetz, accessibility is something you have to be able to describe and evidence, not just switch on. A saved transcript and a documented captioning workflow answer the procurement question that a toggle in a meeting client does not.
- Transcripts you can retain and hand over.
- A repeatable workflow you can write into an accessibility statement.
- EU-hosted, with data processing documented.
What to prepare
Check the microphone, venue Wi-Fi, display placement, and whether attendees should receive only the original transcript or selected translations as well. A short sound check with the actual room mic is the single highest-value thing you can do on the day.
Frequently asked questions
What does live captioning cost for an event?
Inclutra is priced as a subscription rather than per event or per hour, so the cost does not scale with the number of sessions or attendees. That is the main difference from booking human captioners, who are typically priced per hour per room, so a multi-track conference multiplies that cost by the number of rooms.
How accurate is automated live captioning?
For a single speaker on a good microphone in a quiet room, modern automated captioning is genuinely strong. Accuracy drops with cross-talk, strong accents, poor microphones, and dense domain jargon or product names. For settings where accuracy carries legal weight, a professional CART captioner or schriftdolmetscher remains the right choice, and many organisations combine the two.
Can attendees read captions on their own phone?
Yes. Attendees scan a QR code and the live transcript opens in their browser. There is no app to install, no account to create and no licence per attendee. They can also adjust text size and switch between light and dark for readability.
Do you support hybrid events alongside Zoom or Teams?
Yes. Inclutra captions the room rather than the video call, so it works whether people are in the room, watching a stream, or both. This matters because Zoom's and Teams' own captions are per-participant in the client, so they do not put anything on a screen the room can read together.
Which languages are supported for live captions and translation?
The major European and world languages for both transcription and translation, with attendees choosing their own target language independently. Check the current list against your specific source and target languages before an event, since coverage is not symmetric across every pair.
Is live captioning required under the European Accessibility Act?
The EAA and its national implementations set accessibility obligations for a broad range of services, and captioning is one of the common ways organisations meet them for live content. Whether it is strictly required depends on your sector, your service and your national implementation. This is not legal advice, and the practical point is that you need to be able to evidence what you provide.