1.4.2 Audio Control (A)

Individuals who use screen reading software can find it hard to hear the speech output if there is other audio playing at the same time. In particular, the problem occurs if audio is played automatically, meaning that it is not as a direct result of a user action.

Examples of audio that plays automatically include music that starts playing once a page is loaded, once the user opens a modal window, and generally any time audio is played when the user was not expecting it. Conversely, audio that starts playing when the user activates a clearly marked "Play" button on a page would be an example of audio that does not count as playing automatically, since it's the direct result of a clear user action.

To pass this success criterion in the case of audio that does play automatically and lasts for more than 3 seconds, the page must either provide a mechanism to pause or stop the audio (such as an easily reachable pause button) or a mechanism to control the volume of the audio (such as an easily reachable volume slider or mute button). The latter needs to be independently from the overall system volume - i.e. the operating system's volume control does not count as an adequate mechanism, as this would not allow to turn down/mute the automatically playing audio without also affecting the volume of any assistive technologies / screen readers that the user may be using.

Note: if an audio clip or sound cue does not last for more than 3 seconds, but is nonetheless repeated/looped (with or without a pause between repetitions), it is still considered as overall lasting for more than 3 seconds.

Note: if the page does not contain any audio that plays automatically, or if the audio that plays automatically does not last for more than 3 seconds (without any further repetition), this criterion is marked as not applicable.