This document discusses auto-translation, synthetic voices, and virtual voiceovers used in news production. It notes that the BBC World Service saw record growth in unique visitors to their language sites in November 2015. It then outlines three key areas for analyzing auto-translation technologies: computer-assisted translation, text-to-speech voice synthesis, and editorial considerations and audience feedback. The document provides examples of how these technologies work and both the positives and limitations experienced.

1. Auto-translation, synthetic
voices and virtual voiceover in
news production
Dmitry Shishkin, Digital Development Editor,
BBC World Service, @dmitryshishkin
News: Rewired, London, March 2016

3. 90 million
unique visitors made November 2015 a record month for
WS language sites

4. 42 million
unique visitors made November 2012 – we’ve grown
100% in 3 years

5. 1 billion
more people will be online by 2020 – coming mainly
from Africa, Middle East and Asia – all on mobile
phones
Source: Benedict Evans, A16z

7. How does it actually work end to end?

8. OK, but how do English language voices sound?

9.  Computer assisted translation
 Text to speech voice synthesis
 Editorial considerations, audience
feedback
3 key areas to analyse

10. Computer assisted translation

11.  Google Translate: not perfect, but
workable, a good starting point
 Positives: good with names,
geographical and personal
 Limitations: word order, morphology,
no cultural awareness
Computer assisted translation

12. Text to speech synthesis

13.  Single editor produces multiple
voices = scalability
 Voices are actually very good and
getting better
 Editors are not dependant on studios
and recoding equipment
Text to speech synthesis

14.  Incredible pushback to start with,
‘robots invasion’, quality acceptance
later on
 Overwhelmingly positive reaction
from Japanese users
 Russian next, to be followed by
Spanish, Portuguese, Korean
Editorial considerations, audience feedback

15. Editorial considerations, audience feedback
 “I had no idea this kind of thing existed. I got a
real sense of the future. I have just one word:
…awesome!”
 “As I can't speak English, I've been waiting for a
site like this. I know it's a computer voice, but
it's easy to understand, so thank you”
 “It would be great if you could display the
original English text, while the voices read in
Japanese”

16. Thank you – any questions?
Dmitry Shishkin, Digital Development Editor,
BBC World Service, @dmitryshishkin
News: Rewired, London, March 2016