With over 39 million cloud-calling users and 650 million active monthly meeting participants, Cisco Webex is a leading player in the video conferencing industry. What makes it even more effective is the Webex transcription feature, however, many people don’t know how to get around it.
In this guide, we’ll cover what Webex meeting has in stock for users seeking to transcribe their meetings and how to surmount the transcription limitation that Webex doesn’t cater to.
Does Webex have a transcribe feature?
Yes, Webex provides transcription capabilities for Webex Meetings, Webex Webinars, and Webex Events (classic). Although it is only available in the English language.
If you are the host, you can get a Webex transcript post-meeting from the audio of recorded meetings or events.
While Webex transcription is generally accurate, it may not always provide 100% precision. Factors such as background noise, multiple speakers, or strong accents can affect transcription quality.
How to turn on Webex transcription?
Turning on transcription on Webex is a fairly straightforward process.
Site administrators can enable this feature for all hosts or specific users, or even allow individual users to activate it for themselves. Let's delve into the steps for each scenario.
Enable Webex transcription for everyone
As the site administrator, sign in to your Webex admin account dashboard and go to Common Site Settings.
Click on Options and scroll down to Site Options from the resulting menu.
Next, toggle on Create Recording Transcripts for All Hosts’ MP4 Recordings.
Voila, the automated transcription is now turned on for all users. However, you can also toggle on the radio button next to Allow Hosts to Turn Off Recording Transcripts in My Webex Preferences, so each meeting host can decide whether to create a transcript for their meeting or not.
Once the admin grants the permission, individual hosts can activate transcription for their meetings by simply navigating to Preferences > Recording > Create recording transcripts for all my MP4 recordings.
If you can’t see this option, your site administrator has chosen to create transcripts automatically for all recordings or prevent you from creating them.
Enable transcription for specific users
If you're a site administrator, you can enable transcription for specific users by following similar steps but selecting the desired users instead of the entire user base.
Log in to Webex Site Administration and go to User Management on the left panel.
Select Edit User, then search and click on the name of the user (or users) for whom you want to turn on transcripts.
Scroll to the Privileges > General section and tick the checkbox next to Create Recording Transcripts for All of This User's MP4 Recordings.
You can also turn on transcription for new users when creating their accounts by following the same steps. The only difference is you need to select Add User instead of Edit User.
How to get transcripts from a Webex recording?
Now you should have your Webex meeting recorded following the step above.
The transcripts will appear at the side of the recording when you replay it, and you can search for text in the transcript to locate the exact information you need.
If you're the meeting host or the host gave you edit privileges for the content, you can download the transcript by following these steps:
Sign in to User Hub and select Recordings from the navigation panel.
Choose the recording you want, then click Download.
Under the Transcript tab, select the file format you want. You can download the transcript in WebVTT (.vtt) or text (.txt) format.
How to live transcribe a Webex meeting?
While Webex's transcription feature is undoubtedly helpful for post-meeting reference and documentation, it doesn't quite hit the mark for real-time collaboration.
You may want to highlight a particular point, make corrections, or mark action items while still in the meeting – having a real-time meeting transcript makes all that possible. How?
With a meeting transcription tool like Airgram, Webex live transcription is simple. You are no longer confined to static documents created after the fact; the transcripts are dynamic and evolving alongside the meeting.
More so, Airgram transcription comes with speaker identification and timestamps, therefore you’ll always know who says what and when in your meetings. That said. Let’s see how to transcribe a Webex meeting live step by step using Airgram.
Log in to your Airgram account or create a new one for free.
On your dashboard homepage, click Quick record at the top right corner, then select Webex from the meeting tool dropdown list.
The Record & transcribe Webex window will pop up. Select your transcription language, input your Webex meeting link, and click the Start recording button.
Airgram assistant will join your meeting and wait in the lobby. Once you admit it in, it will start recording and transcribing your meeting in real-time.
On top of real-time transcription, Aigram can make your Webex meeting more engaging and productive using these features:
Collaboration on meeting transcript: Using the integrated Notepad, participants can work together on meeting notes and get feedback without resorting to constant emails or extra meetings.
AI meeting summary: Aigram uses GPT-4 to extract key insights from meeting transcripts and provide a meeting summary in seconds.
Working app integrations: Export your meeting notes and transcript to your workspace applications, like Slack, Google Docs, HubSpot, and more, with just a few clicks.
Meeting transcript on autopilot: Can't make it to a scheduled meeting? Let Airgram's AI assistant stand in for you and generate a complete transcript so you can catch up on the meeting's content.
Frequently asked questions about Webex transcription
1. How long does it take to get a Webex recording transcribed?
According to Webex's official document, you’ll wait approximately twice the duration of your meeting to get a Webex recording transcribed. If your meeting was an hour long, you’ll get the transcript within 2 hours. But sometimes, it may take longer (up to 24 hours).
If you want to access the full transcript immediately after the meeting ends, try the Airgram meeting assistant.
2. Is Webex transcription free?
Yes. Webex's built-in transcription feature is available to all users. Whether you are using a free or paid Webex account, you can record and transcribe your meeting without extra cost.
Free users, however, are limited to meeting lengths of up to 40 min.
3. Why don't I see my transcripts?
You’ll not see transcripts in Webex if the transcription feature is disabled for your account or the audio quality is poor due to background noises or accents.
Michael started his career as a product manager and then developed a passion for writing. He has been writing on technology, remote working, productivity, etc., hoping to share his thoughts with more people.
