Videos

Videos need to be prepared so that they meet Section 508's requirements for accessibility. This page explains the requirements and best practices for preparing videos for EERE or YouTube.

Requirements

The following standards are required for all EERE videos.

Determine Whether Your Video Will be Hosted on YouTube or EERE

Your video can live in one of two places: On the Department of Energy's YouTube channel or on the EERE website.

The YouTube channel is managed at the Department level. They only accept public-facing, high-quality, general-interest videos. If you want to host your video on the DOE YouTube channel, please contact John Chu. If your video is appropriate for the DOE YouTube Channel, it will be posted.

It can take up to 5 business days for a video to be posted on YouTube.

If your video does not meet the DOE's requirements for the YouTube channel, you must host it on EERE.

Requirements for Videos Hosted on YouTube

To host your video on YouTube, you must:

Contact John Chu and ask if your video can be hosted on the YouTube channel.
If it's accepted, format your video according to DOE's YouTube requirements.
Send your video to John Chu.
Caption the video. Send a transcript in Word to John Chu.
After it's posted, embed the YouTube video on your website using the YouTube embed code.
Create a text version and link to it beneath your embedded video.

All videos embedded on EERE must include a text version and captioning. Both are required to meet Section 508. You may post a video if one of these is present. If you post a video with only one of these, plan to add the other within a month or two.

Requirements for Videos Hosted on EERE

EERE videos use the JW Player with a custom-designed skin. The JW Player supports both Flash and HTML5 rendering modes, and works seamlessly with JavaScript interactions and various video player plugins. See the JW Player's technical documentation to review its full capabilities.

Follow these instructions to place a video in the EERE video skin:

Place video file in your local directory's /media/ folder. The video should be uploaded in MP4 format with the H264 video codec and AAC audio codec. See the recommended compression and formatting options for optimal results.
Create a poster file and place it in your local directory's /media/includes/ folder. A "poster file" is the image displayed before the video is played. It should be an image of a frame from the video. It should be the same size as your video.
Upload your XML caption file.
Update the video embed code. Fill in the locations of your files and update the code with the correct width and height of your video. The basic embed code is listed below. It may be helpful to refer to the JW Player technical documentation.
Use the embed code to embed the video on your website.
Create a text version and link to it beneath your embedded video.

Embedding EERE-Hosted Videos

You will need to change the bolded sections to point to your files:

<div id="container">Loading the player ...</div>
<script type="text/javascript">
jwplayer("container").setup({
'flashplayer': '/includes/media/player.swf',
'file': '/your_site/media/video.mp4',
'image': '/your_site/media/includes/poster.jpg',
'height': '300',
'width': '400',
'skin': '/includes/media/whotube/whotube.xml',
'controlbar': 'bottom',
'plugins':'/includes/media/captions-1.swf',
'captions.file':'/your_site/media/includes/captions.xml',
'captions.state': 'true',
'captions.back': 'true',
'captions.fontsize':'12',
'screencolor':'0x000000',
'backcolor': '0x999999',
'id':'playerID',
'stretching': 'fill',
'autostart': 'false',
'abouttext': 'EERE',
'aboutlink': 'http://www.eere.energy.gov/',
'dock': 'false',
'volume': '100'
})
</script>

Captioning for EERE-Hosted Videos

The video captions must be XML-based. They should not be a part of the video. There are many kinds of captioning software available to assist you with this task. Here are two recommended captioning software packages:

MAGpie (For PC)
MovCaptioner (For Mac)

The software will help you generate an XML file that you can load into your website's /media/includes/ folder. Adjust the video embed code to point to the XML file.

Embed Videos on Pages

Your video should be embedded on a page with content that supports the topic of the video or the video itself. Do not place videos in pop ups or link to them directly.

Don't Start Videos Without User Input

You should never set up a video to automatically play when the page is opened.

Best Practices

These standards are not required, but are encouraged for all site owners who would like a higher quality product for their sites.

Compression

Compression is a process where video files are reduced in size through the removal of unnecessary and redundant audio and video data. While there is a small loss in quality, a compressed video does provide sufficient quality for the Web and reduces the file size for faster delivery. When possible, compress your video to no more than 50 MB.

Formatting

If possible, your video should be:

The MP4 container format, containing video encoded with the H.264 codec and audio encoded with the AAC codec. See the full list of supported video and audio formats.
No larger than 50 MB
At a bit-rate that does not exceed 600-700 Kbps. All videos should ideally be under 500Kbps.

Include a Link to Download Your Video

If you want to ensure that your video can be viewed on older browsers and devices, then include a link underneath your video that allows users to download the video. This can be on the same line as your text version. You can provide a download link to any format you like.

Length

All videos should be 7 minutes long or less. Studies show that viewers watching videos online have an attention span of approximately 3-5 minutes. Make short videos, or break long videos into shorter segments whenever possible.

Designing for the EERE Identity

Clearly show DOE's, EERE's, and/or the EERE office's ownership of your video through the content, dialogue, or by attaching a watermark.