100 points to know about...
Digital accessibility

Over time, the legal consequences to ignore the accessibility requirements increased as more specific accessibility laws and policies were adopted in countries throughout the world:

• The Convention on the Rights of People with Disabilities (CRPD) is a comprehensive human rights document that includes a direct reference to the rights of all people to have equal access to communications technology. Passed by the General Assembly of the United Nations, more than 175 countries ratified it by 2018.

• The main pieces of legislation in the EU are : the European Accessibility ACT (EAA) and the European Web Accessibility Directive.

• In the U.S., two main laws govern the accessibility of websites: the ADA and Section 508.

While Section 508 refers mainly to government agencies, the ADA also covers private employers with 15 or more employees and businesses that operate for the benefit of the public.

Let´s have a more detailed look at the European legislation.

The European Accessibility Act

On June 7th, 2019, the European Union formally adopted the European Accessibility Act (EAA). The main goal of the EAA is to create a standard set of accessibility guidelines for EU member states. While many EU Member States already have some form of accessibility legislation, there is no EU law on accessibility. The EU member states have two years to translate the act into their national laws and four years to apply them.

The EAA also applies to any business’ product or service sold or in use within the Eurozone, not just EU member state businesses.

The EAA covers products and services that are the most important for people with disabilities and the increasing ageing population, such as:

• Computers and operating systems
• ATMs, ticketing and check-in machines
• Smartphones
• TV equipment related to digital television services
• Telephone services and related equipment
• Access to audio-visual media services such as television broadcast and related consumer equipment
• Services related to air, bus, rail, and waterborne passenger transport
• Banking services
• E-books
• Online shopping websites and mobile applications

The European Web Accessibility Directive

On October 26th, 2016, the EU Parliament and the Council of the European Union passed the European Web Accessibility Directive. The Directive aims to create a more standardised and harmonised framework around the accessibility of websites and mobile applications of public sector bodies.
It is important to note that although the EU Web Accessibility Directive applies to public-sector websites and apps, it will also affect private organisations. Organisations that regularly do business with or provide products/services that impact public-facing government sites and apps may need to comply.

Some similarities and differences between the two acts worth noting

Similarities include:

• Market surveillance authorities will monitor the law’s compliance
• There are opportunities for the consumer to appeal against lack of accessibility
• Member States may demand fines for those who do not comply with the law
• Member States should report the status of web accessibility compliance to the Commission
• Both pieces of legislation attempt to harmonise accessibility standards across the Member States

Differences include:

• The EAA applies to hardware, software, web (only for e-commerce, transportation, and banking verticals), and mobile (only for e-commerce, transportation, and banking verticals). The EU Web Accessibility Directive applies to web and mobile accessibility for government agencies.
• The EAA applies to both public and private businesses, while the Web Accessibility Directive applies to government-funded agencies and their third-party vendors.
• The EU Web Accessibility Directive is actively being enforced, while the EAA won’t be enforced until 2025.
• Both pieces of legislation point to the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) for web accessibility requirements, although the Web Accessibility Directive references WCAG 2.1 directly. To learn more about WCAG, refer to Notion 8 of this module.

Summing up, more and more countries worldwide have adopted a legal footing to ensure web accessibility. If you are unsure which guidelines to follow, a helpful piece of advice is: if there is a physical business that must legally meet accessibility requirements for public access, their website version should, too.