Use a screen reader to play videos in Microsoft Stream

This article is for people who use a screen reader program such as Windows Narrator, JAWS, or NVDA with Microsoft 365 products. This article is part of the Microsoft 365 screen reader support content set where you can find more accessibility information on our apps. For general help, visit Microsoft Support.

Use Microsoft Stream with your keyboard and a screen reader to play and respond to videos. We have tested it with Narrator, NVDA, and JAWS, but it might work with other screen readers as long as they follow common accessibility standards and techniques. You'll also learn how to save videos to your watchlist so you can return to them later.

Notes: 

  • New Microsoft 365 features are released gradually to Microsoft 365 subscribers, so your app might not have these features yet. To learn how you can get new features faster, join the Office Insider program.

  • To learn more about screen readers, go to How screen readers work with Microsoft 365.

  • When you use Microsoft Stream, we recommend that you use Microsoft Edge as your web browser and Narrator as your screen reader.

    If you use Chrome or Firefox as your web browser, we recommend that you use JAWS or NVDA as your screen reader.

In this topic

Play a video

  1. In Microsoft Stream, navigate to the video you want and press Enter to open it. The video begins playback automatically.

  2. To move the focus to the video player, press the Tab key or Shift+Tab until you hear: "Video player."

  3. With Narrator, to pause playback, press Spacebar. To resume playback, press Spacebar again.

    With NVDA and JAWS, to pause playback, press the Tab key or Shift+Tab until you hear "Pause," and then press Spacebar. To resume playback, press the Tab key or Shift+Tab until you hear "Play," and then press Spacebar.

Like a video

Show your appreciation for a video by liking it.

  1. In Microsoft Stream, navigate to the video you want and press Enter to open and play it.

  2. To move to the Details area, press H until you hear the name of the video.

  3. Press the Tab key until you hear: "Like button."

  4. To like the video, press Spacebar.

Note: To unlike a video you previously liked, repeat the above steps until you hear "Unlike button," and press Spacebar.

Comment on a video

You can share your thoughts or ask a questions about a video by posting a comment to it.

  1. In Microsoft Stream, navigate to the video you want and press Enter to open and play it.

  2. To move to the comments area, press H until you hear the number of comments on the video.

  3. Press the Tab key. You hear: "Post a new comment."

  4. Type your comment.

  5. To post your comment, press the Tab key until you hear "Post," and then press Enter.

Tip: To refer to specific points in the video, you can include timecodes in HH:MM:SS format in your comment. You may need to ask a colleague to help you find the timecode for the point you want.

Set the playback speed

You can increase or decrease the playback speed of a video.

Note: This feature is not currently available on browsers that require Flash for playback, such as Internet Explorer 11 on Windows 7.

  1. During video playback, press the Tab key or Shift+Tab until the focus is on the video player. You hear: "Video player."

  2. Press the Tab key until you hear "Settings," and press Enter. The Settings menu opens.

  3. Press the Up or Down arrow key until you hear "Playback speed," and press Enter.

  4. Use the Up and Down arrow keys to select the speed you want, and press Enter. The Settings menu closes.

Change the sound volume

You can adjust the volume of the video during playback.

  1. During video playback, press the Tab key or Shift+Tab until the focus is on the video player. You hear: "Video player."

  2. Do either of the following:

    • To adjust the volume, with Narrator, use the Up and Down arrow keys.

      With NVDA and JAWS, to adjust the volume, press the Tab key or Shift+Tab until you hear "Volume level slider," and then use the Up and Down arrow keys.

    • To mute or unmute the sound, with Narrator, press M.

      With NVDA and JAWS, to mute the sound, press the Tab key or Shift+Tab until you hear "Mute," and press Spacebar. To unmute the sound, press the Tab key or Shift+Tab until you hear "Unmute," and press Spacebar.

Add a video to the watchlist

You can save videos to a personal watchlist, to easily find them again later.

  1. In Microsoft Stream, open the video list, such as a channel or group page, that contains the video you want to add to your watchlist.

  2. Press the Tab key until you hear the name of the video you want.

  3. To add the video to the watchlist, press the Tab key until you hear "Add to watchlist," and press Enter.

Manage the watchlist

You can access and manage the videos on your personal watchlist.

  1. In Microsoft Stream, press the Tab key or Shift+Tab until you hear "My content," and press Enter to open the menu.

  2. To open your watchlist, press the Down arrow key until you hear "Watchlist," and then press Enter.

  3. Do one or both of the following:

    • To open a video from the watchlist, press the Tab key until you hear the name of the video you want, and press Enter.

    • To remove a video from the watchlist, press the Tab key until you hear the name of the video you want to remove. Press the Tab key until you hear "Remove from watchlist," and press Enter.

See also

Use a screen reader to find content in Microsoft Stream

Use a screen reader to share a video in Microsoft Stream

Use a screen reader to share Microsoft Stream content in O365 apps

Basic tasks using a screen reader with Microsoft Stream

Keyboard shortcuts in Microsoft Stream

Use a screen reader to explore and navigate Microsoft Stream

Use Microsoft Stream with VoiceOver, the built-in iOS screen reader, to play and respond to videos. You'll also learn how to save videos to your watchlist so you can return to them later.

Notes: 

  • New Microsoft 365 features are released gradually to Microsoft 365 subscribers, so your app might not have these features yet. To learn how you can get new features faster, join the Office Insider program.

  • This topic assumes that you are using the built-in iOS screen reader, VoiceOver. To learn more about using VoiceOver, visit Apple accessibility.

  • For the full experience, use Microsoft Stream on the web. In your browser, go to https://msit.microsoftstream.com/.

In this topic

Play a video

  1. In Microsoft Stream, navigate to the video you want and double-tap the screen to open it. The video begins playback automatically.

  2. To pause or resume playback, swipe right or left until you hear "Pause/Resume," and double-tap the screen.

  3. To close the video, swipe right or left until you hear "Dismiss," and double-tap the screen.

Like a video

Show your appreciation for a video by liking it.

  1. In Microsoft Stream, navigate to the video you want and double-tap the screen to open it.

  2. To like the video, swipe right until you hear "Video unliked. Tap to like video," and double-tap the screen. You hear: "Video liked."

Notes: 

  • To unlike a video you previously liked, repeat the above steps until you hear "Video liked. Tap to unlike video," and double-tap the screen. You hear: "Video unliked."

  • If you do not hear "Video unliked" or "Video liked," switch to the Description tab. Swipe left or right until you hear "Description tab," and double-tap the screen.

Comment on a video

You can share your thoughts or ask a questions about a video by posting a comment to it. You can also read the existing comments on a video.

  1. In Microsoft Stream, navigate to the video you want and double-tap the screen to open it.

  2. Swipe right until you hear "Comments tab," and double-tap the screen.

  3. To browse the existing comments on the video, swipe right repeatedly. VoiceOver reads the comments as you land on them.

  4. To add a comment, swipe right to until you hear "Add a new comment," and double-tap the screen.

  5. Use the on-screen keyboard to type your comment.

  6. To submit the comment, swipe left or right until you hear "Post," and double-tap the screen.

Tip: To refer to specific points in the video, you can include timecodes in HH:MM:SS format in your comment. To find the timecode, pause playback at the point you want, and swipe right until you hear "Video position," followed by the current time in the video.

Set the playback speed

You can increase or decrease the playback speed of a video.

  1. During video playback, swipe right until you hear "Playback settings," and double-tap the screen. The Playback settings menu opens.

  2. To open the playback speed options, swipe right until you hear "Speed," followed by the current playback speed, and double-tap the screen.

  3. Swipe right until you hear the playback speed you want, and double-tap the screen. The Speed menu closes. Playback resumes at the new playback speed.

Make a video available offline

You can download videos to your device, to enable watching them later when you're not connected to the Internet.

  1. In Microsoft Stream, navigate to the video you want to download.

  2. Swipe right until you hear "Menu button," and double-tap the screen.

  3. Do one or more of the following:

    • To download the video to your device, swipe right until you hear "Make available offline," and double-tap the screen. You hear: "Download started."

    • To pause or resume a download, swipe right until you hear the relevant option, and double-tap the screen.

    • To cancel a download or remove a downloaded video, swipe right until you hear the relevant option, and double-tap the screen. To confirm, swipe right until you hear "Remove," and double-tap the screen. You hear: "Offline video removed."

  4. To access the list of downloaded videos, in the My content tab, swipe right or left until you hear "Offline tab," and double-tap the screen.

Add a video to the watchlist

You can save videos to a personal watchlist, to easily find them again later.

  1. In Microsoft Stream, navigate to the video you want to add to your watchlist.

  2. Swipe right until you hear "Menu button," and double-tap the screen.

  3. Swipe right until you hear "Add to watchlist," and double-tap the screen. You hear: "Video added to watchlist."

Manage the watchlist

You can access and manage the videos on your personal watchlist.

  1. In the My content tab, swipe right or left until you hear "Watchlist tab," and double-tap the screen.

  2. Do one or both of the following:

    • To play a video in the watchlist, swipe left or right until you hear the video you want, and double-tap to open it.

    • To remove an item from the watchlist, swipe left or right until you hear the video you want to remove, then swipe right until you hear "Menu button," and double-tap the screen. Swipe right until you hear "Remove from watchlist," and double-tap the screen. To confirm, swipe right until you hear "Remove," and double-tap the screen. You hear: "Video removed from watchlist."

See also

Use a screen reader to find content in Microsoft Stream

Use a screen reader to share a video in Microsoft Stream

Use a screen reader to share Microsoft Stream content in O365 apps

Basic tasks using a screen reader with Microsoft Stream

Use a screen reader to explore and navigate Microsoft Stream

Use Microsoft Stream with TalkBack, the built-in Android screen reader, to play and respond to videos. You'll also learn how to save videos to your watchlist so you can return to them later.

Notes: 

  • New Microsoft 365 features are released gradually to Microsoft 365 subscribers, so your app might not have these features yet. To learn how you can get new features faster, join the Office Insider program.

  • This topic assumes that you are using the built-in Android screen reader, TalkBack. To learn more about using TalkBack, go to Android accessibility.

  • For the full experience, use Microsoft Stream on the web. In your browser, go to https://msit.microsoftstream.com/.

In this topic

Play a video

  1. In Microsoft Stream, navigate to the video you want and double-tap the screen to open it. The video begins playback automatically.

  2. To pause or resume playback, swipe right or left until you hear "Pause button" or "Resume button", and double-tap the screen.

  3. To close the video, swipe right or left until you hear "Dismiss," and double-tap the screen.

Like a video

Show your appreciation for a video by liking it.

  1. In Microsoft Stream, navigate to the video you want and double-tap the screen to open it.

  2. To like the video, swipe right until you hear "Video unliked. Tap to like video," and double-tap the screen. You hear: "Video liked."

Notes: 

  • To unlike a video you previously liked, repeat the above steps until you hear "Video liked. Tap to unlike video," and double-tap the screen. You hear: "Video unliked."

  • If you do not hear "Video unliked" or "Video liked," switch to the Description tab. Swipe left or right until you hear "Description tab," and double-tap the screen.

Comment on a video

You can share your thoughts or ask a questions about a video by posting a comment to it. You can also read the existing comments on a video.

  1. In Microsoft Stream, navigate to the video you want and double-tap the screen to open it.

  2. Swipe right until you hear "Comments tab," and double-tap the screen.

  3. To browse the existing comments on the video, swipe right repeatedly. TalkBack reads the comments as you land on them.

  4. To add a comment, swipe right to until you hear "Add a new comment," and double-tap the screen.

  5. Use the on-screen keyboard to type your comment.

  6. To submit the comment, swipe left or right until you hear "Post," and double-tap the screen.

Tip: To refer to specific points in the video, you can include timecodes in HH:MM:SS format in your comment. To find the timecode, pause playback at the point you want, and swipe right until you hear "Current playback position," followed by the current time in the video.

Set the playback speed

You can increase or decrease the playback speed of a video.

  1. During video playback, swipe right until you hear "Playback settings," and double-tap the screen. The Playback settings menu opens.

  2. To open the playback speed options, swipe right until you hear "Speed," followed by the current playback speed, and double-tap the screen.

  3. Swipe right until you hear the playback speed you want, and double-tap the screen. The Speed menu closes.

Make a video available offline

You can download videos to your device, to enable watching them later when you're not connected to the Internet.

  1. In Microsoft Stream, navigate to the video you want to download.

  2. Swipe right until you hear "Menu," and double-tap the screen.

  3. Do one or more of the following:

    • To download the video to your device, swipe right until you hear "Make available offline," and double-tap the screen. You hear: "Download started."

    • To pause or continue a download, swipe right until you hear the relevant option, and double-tap the screen.

    • To cancel a download or remove a downloaded video, swipe right until you hear the relevant option, and double-tap the screen. To confirm, swipe right until you hear "Remove," and double-tap the screen.

  4. To access the list of downloaded videos, in the My content tab, swipe right or left until you hear "Offline tab," and double-tap the screen.

Add a video to the watchlist

You can save videos to a personal watchlist, to easily find them again later.

  1. In Microsoft Stream, navigate to the video you want to add to your watchlist.

  2. Swipe right until you hear "Menu," and double-tap the screen.

  3. Swipe right until you hear "Add to watchlist," and double-tap the screen. You hear: "Video added to watchlist."

Manage the watchlist

You can access and manage the videos on your personal watchlist.

  1. In the My content tab, swipe right or left until you hear "Watchlist tab," and double-tap the screen.

  2. Do one or both of the following:

    • To play a video in the watchlist, swipe left or right until you hear the video you want, and double-tap to open it.

    • To remove an item from the watchlist, swipe left or right until you hear the video you want to remove, then swipe right until you hear "Menu," and double-tap the screen. Swipe right until you hear "Remove from watchlist," and double-tap the screen. To confirm, swipe right until you hear "Remove," and double-tap the screen. You hear: "Video removed from watchlist."

See also

Use a screen reader to find content in Microsoft Stream

Use a screen reader to share a video in Microsoft Stream

Use a screen reader to share Microsoft Stream content in O365 apps

Basic tasks using a screen reader with Microsoft Stream

Use a screen reader to explore and navigate Microsoft Stream

Technical support for customers with disabilities

Microsoft wants to provide the best possible experience for all our customers. If you have a disability or questions related to accessibility, please contact the Microsoft Disability Answer Desk for technical assistance. The Disability Answer Desk support team is trained in using many popular assistive technologies and can offer assistance in English, Spanish, French, and American Sign Language. Please go to the Microsoft Disability Answer Desk site to find out the contact details for your region.

If you are a government, commercial, or enterprise user, please contact the enterprise Disability Answer Desk.

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