Access For All

A new international research report commissioned by ACCAN (Australian Communication Consumer Action Network) reports on 16 high-speed broadband applications that can provide enormous benefits to people with disabilities. The report was conducted between November 2009 and January 2010 and discusses the uses of broadband applications in Europe, the United States and Japan. “This is ground-breaking research into how the innovative use of high speed broadband can deliver potentially life-transforming services for consumers with disabilities,” Allan Asher, CEO of ACCAN said. “If Australia were to adopt these uses it would set the standard in international best practice with this platform.”
Download the report here.

The FCC (Federal Communications Commission – USA) released “A Giant Leap and a Big Deal: Delivering on the Promise of Equal Access to Broadband for People with Disabilities“. It is the second paper in a series of working papers that are being released in conjunction with the USA’s National Broadband Plan, and it is the first time the Commission has issued a working paper addressing accessibility and technology issues.
References are being made to EU backed initiatives such as the ÆGIS and Reach112 projects.

The 4th European eAccessibility Forum – eAccessibility of Public Services in Europe will take place on 12 April 2010 in Paris, France. It will provide a unique opportunity to discuss the complementary aspects involved in making an accessible Information Society a reality in Europe. It will provide an opportunity to hear at first-hand about experiences from users with disabilities, public organizations and industry. The speakers are specialists involved in organizations representing users and consumers with disabilities, research organizations and companies operating at a European level or worldwide. The conference will also consider the harmonization of good practices over Europe.
More information at the event website.

The 4th European eAccessibility Forum “eAccessibility of Public Services in Europe” will take place in Paris (France) on 12 April 2010. It will provide a unique opportunity to discuss the complementary aspects involved in making this objective a reality in Europe. It will provide an opportunity to hear at first-hand about experiences from users with disabilities, public organisations and industry. The speakers are specialists involved in organisations representing users and consumers with disabilities, research organisations and companies operating at a European level or worldwide. The conference will also consider the harmonisation of good practices over Europe.
More information as well as registration form.

Some 30% of European citizens (some 150 million people) experience some form of social exclusion, for example relating to poor health or a disability, lack of finance, low educational attainment, poor housing, or ethnic discrimination. The demand for public services from these groups can be significant, especially in times of economic uncertainty when there is significant pressure on government financial resources.
However, these groups contain people who have been least likely to access government services online, and who tend to rely on single channels when accessing services, usually involving human agents.
Socially excluded people often have limited education, technical skills, and financial means, and they can find it difficult to articulate their complex needs to service providers, or to engage with the processes of providing evidence that they qualify to receive services. Simply
directing socially excluded people to the electronic channels of eGovernment (swapping the human channel for an electronic channel) does not in itself guarantee that they will access relevant services more effectively and efficiently.
This study, launched by the European Commission, analyses the state of the art of multichannel delivery of public services throughout Europe, and the progress made towards achieving the goal to ensure that ‘no citizen is left behind’. It provides useful recommendations and identifies further actions which will be needed over the next few years.