Mobile app facilitates creation of much-needed audio books for the blind

With the only requirement being a smart phone or tablet installed with the Read for the Blind app, anyone can contribute to a better life for the blind, who currently face a major shortage of audio-based reading material.

The project is a collaboration between several leading business organisations: Samsung, Siam Commercial Bank, AIS (Advanced Info Service) and Google. 

It targets the production of 3,000 audio book titles and 30,000 audio articles from an estimated 200,000 app downloaders within one year.

The main technology used to develop the app is Voice Recorder, which records users’ reading before the audio files are uploaded to the Thai Blind People’s Foundation’s servers for conversion to DAISY 3 books, in order to achieve the audio quality and standard needed by the blind. 

With this audio book format, the blind and their carers can search and regulate the reading voices, make duplicates more easily, and place bookmarks in the audio books for continued reading at a later time.

The app also allows users to share the audio book they read on social networks such as Facebook, where the link is https://www.facebook.com/readfortheblind https://www.facebook.com/readfortheblind.

Wichai Pornpratang, vice president, Telecommunications Business, at Thai Samsung Electronics, said that as the developer of the Read for the Blind app, Samsung had leveraged innovation and technology to bring about not only the latest innovation, but also the first-ever capability to create audio books with the use of a smart-phone app.

“Reading an audio book for the blind through a smart-phone app is an easy way that we can be benevolent, and it will truly redefine social contribution. People nationwide are encouraged to download the Read for the Blind app free of charge from Google Play Store and App Store. 

“They are also given the freedom to choose favourite books both for their own reading and to help create audio books for the blind,” he said.

Samsung has already granted the rights to the application to the Thai Blind People’s Foundation, giving the foundation an opportunity to add to the development and take full advantage of the app.

Wirat Sritulanont, president of the Thai Blind People’s Foundation, said that the National Library for the Blind and Print Disabled currently served the blind with a limited number of just 5,000 audio books, because audio-book production involved a number of complicated processes. 

People who volunteer to record their reading voice must be able to devote time and do the reading on a regular basis, he said. 

However, the emergence of the Read for the Blind project will remove many obstacles to audio-book production and is expected to boost productivity to meet the needs of the blind. 

It will additionally build public awareness of reading for the blind and the print-disabled in Thailand, who are still underprivileged, he said. 

Their privation has been obstructing their well-being and self-development potential for a long time, he added.