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Here's what's happening in accessibility news. We provide these news briefs for your information and convenience, and we don't endorse or recommend any of these publications or products. Check back for updates every weekday.
February 20, 2023,Digital Journal:
Latest Study on Industrial Growth of Website Accessibility Software Market 2023-2029. A detailed study accumulated to offer the Latest insights about acute features of the Website Accessibility Software market. The report contains different market predictions related to revenue size, production, CAGR, Consumption, gross margin, price, and other substantial factors. While emphasizing the key driving and restraining forces for this market, the report also offers a complete study of the future trends and developments of the market. It also examines the role of the leading market players involved in the industry including their corporate overview, financial summary, and SWOT analysis.
The Major Players Covered in this Report: Google, Siteimprove, DYNO Mapper, Deque, BoIA, Crownpeak, Level Access, DubBot, Monsido & Silktide
Website Accessibility Software Market Study guarantees you to remain/stay advised higher than your competition. With Structured tables and figures examining the Website Accessibility Software, the research document provides you with a leading product, submarkets, revenue size, and forecast for 2029. Comparatively, it also classifies emerging as well as leaders in the industry.
February 18, 2023,WP Tavern:
In November 2022, Meetup.com raised concerns with the WordPress community (and the broader community of accessibility professionals) after it added an accessibility overlay to its website, powered by EqualWeb. Accessibility advocates and professionals unequivocally discourage the use of overlays as they are often marketed as a quick fix for making websites ADA compliant and immune from legal action when the accessibility issues persist underneath.
Meetup.com removed the accessibility overlay in response to the WordPress community’s concerns and committed to focus on direct improvements to the Meetup.com platform. WordPress’ Accessibility team reports that the company is following through with this undertaking and has completed an assessment with Deque, a well-respected accessibility consultancy.
The assessment identified 732 issues that need to be resolved, which Meetup.com plans to address through two phases. Approximately 40% of the issues are related to design and color contrast. These will be resolved in the first phase with the help of an external consultant who will guide Meetup.com’s engineers and staff to fix issues and ensure ongoing compliance. In the second phase, the company will tackle the remaining issues which center on web remediation. These include problems with the site’s component library and website components.
February 16, 2023,GOVCIO:
The new site leveraged human-centered design concepts to build out self-service capabilities and improve accessibility. SSA analyzed customer data and conducted user research to inform where the gaps were, test designs and implement iterative changes on the site.
The agency conducted more than 75 focused research and testing sessions and partnered with the U.S. Digital Service in 2020 to enhance user experience. In April 2022, SSA launched its beta website. During that period, there were more than 200,000 visitors who visited the site and SSA recieved more than 7,000 written feedback responses.
February 15, 2023,Spiceworks:
Historically, businesses haven’t prioritized accessibility because it was a problem that seemed (and often was) too niche, too expensive, too complicated, and too time-consuming to tackle.
But the times, and technology, have changed. Today, business leaders who deprioritize accessibility may do so with outdated assumptions and incorrect information.
February 14, 2023,Search Engine Journal:
Statistics show the importance of accessible websites for the 15% of the population living with disabilities and for customer consideration.’
The rise in ADA lawsuits and high errors on websites further emphasize this need.
So, one great key is to find ways to improve your website’s accessibility.
February 12, 2023,MIT News:
Recent alumnus James Hermus wants to help others overcome obstacles imposed by disabilities.
By the time Hermus was in high school, he had to become a strong self-advocate. In order to access advanced courses, he needed to be able to read more and faster, so he sought out adaptive technology — Kurzweil, a text-to-audio program. This, he says, was truly life-changing. At first, to use this program he had to disassemble textbooks, feed the pages through a scanner, and digitize them.
After working his way to the University of Wisconsin at Madison, Hermus found a research opportunity in medical physics and then later in biomechanics. Interestingly, the steep challenges that Hermus faced during his education had developed in him “the exact skill set that makes a successful researcher,” he says. “I had to be organized, advocate for myself, seek out help to solve problems that others had not seen before, and be excessively persistent.”
While working as a member of Professor Darryl Thelen's Neuromuscular Biomechanics Lab at Madison, Hermus helped design and test a sensor for measuring tendon stress. He recognized his strengths in mechanical design. During this undergraduate research, he co-authored numerous journal and conference papers. These experiences and a desire to help people with physical disabilities propelled him to MIT.
In September 2022, Hermus completed his PhD in mechanical engineering from MIT. He has been an author on seven papers in peer-reviewed journals, three as first author and four of them published when he was an undergraduate. He has won awards for his academics and for his mechanical engineering research and has served as a mentor and an advocate for disability awareness in several different contexts.
February 11, 2023,Make Use Of:
On paper, elementary OS 7 was not a substantial release. The developers didn't drastically overhaul the desktop or introduce game-changing new features. In many ways, elementary OS 7 was about refinement.
But it's a refinement that Linux needs. These are the little touches that turn a Linux-based OS from being powerful to being approachable. Despite its flaws, elementary OS is one of the most accessible versions of Linux, and here's why.
February 10, 2023,Mountaineer News:
Doug Cumpston, program manager for the West Virginia Assistive Technology System in the Center for Excellence in Disabilities, will present “Assistive Technology: Helping People Overcome Barriers” from 6-7 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 14, on Zoom.
February 9, 2023,Digit News:
The acquisition is in the hopes of putting inclusivity at the heart of development and design.
Nile, an Edinburgh-based strategic design company, have announced the acquisition of Dig Inclusion and its flagship accessibility prodcut, Hugr.
Early in the field of accessibility, Dig Inclusion is dedicated to making digital media inclusive for everyone.
In acquiring the company, Nile hopes this will help drive the change necessary to make the online world more accessible for everyone, and have a long term impact on future generations.
February 9, 2023,University of Massachusetts:
UMass Amherst Information Technology and campus partners are hosting the second annual Digital Equity and Inclusion Week. Between Feb. 13 and 17, members of the campus community have a wide range of opportunities to explore the role of digital accessibility in teaching, learning, living and working at UMass Amherst.
February 9, 2023,Times Now:
WhatsApp has been ranked India’s most accessible app for persons with disabilities, according to a recent report titled ‘Making the Digital Ecosystem Disabled Friendly,’ which evaluated the most popular apps across categories like messaging, online payments, transport, e-commerce and food delivery.
The Vidhi Centre for Legal Policy along with I-Stem and Mission Accessibility conducted a first of its kind evidence-based evaluation of the accessibility of ten of the most widely used apps in India. WhatsApp emerged as the only app that was rated as ‘highly accessible’ based on the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) which serve as the global benchmark for determining if, and to what extent, a website is disabled friendly. Other apps audited in the report include PhonePe, PayTM, Swiggy, Zomato, Amazon, Flipkart, Telegram, Uber and Ola.
February 9, 2023,Nation's Restaurant News:
Another way that generative AI is helping companies to evolve and respond to guest needs is through accessibility. Although the Americans with Disabilities Act makes certain accessibility requirements for making websites available to people with blindness, deafness, or have other physical or mental limitations, oftentimes company websites are not compliant. Equally AI is a company that utilizes AI to analyze company websites and figure out where they are not in compliance with federal law and give solutions for fixing the issue. Where ChatGPT comes into play is to simplify the HTML solutions for web developers and teach users how to fix any digital accessibility issues, almost like a computer programming teacher combined with a digital personal assistant, Equally AI cofounder and CEO Ran Ronen said.
February 9, 2023,Forbes:
In a blog post published on their website on Thursday, popular password manager company 1Password announced the forthcoming transition to using passkeys with their software. The move, due sometime this summer, is designed to effectively eradicate password use to get into in the app. This is particularly noteworthy considering the entire premise of the company up until now. It’s a big change.
Rob Pegoraro at PC Mag was first to report 1Password’s announcement.
“[As] convenient as biometrics [authentication] are today, they don’t actually replace the password; they only mask it,” wrote 1Password’s Steve Won in today’s post. “That’s why 1Password asks you to type in your password periodically in order to ensure that you have it memorized. Passkeys also use biometrics, but they allow us to go farther and eliminate the underlying password entirely. If you’re curious to learn how exactly they work, you can explore our passkey explainer. But in a nutshell, passkeys are built on the same security foundation as our Secret Key—public key cryptography—but without requiring a password. This ensures strong security properties, while being a heck of a lot more convenient to use.”
February 9, 2023,Digital Journal:
Give the ADA Compliance Course to your developer; it tells them exactly what to do, Kris Rivenburgh said.
Rivenburgh, an attorney and the author of The ADA Book, created the ADA Compliance Course to prevent ADA website lawsuits.
The course trains your web personnel to find and fix accessibility issues as they go through the lessons.
I designed this course as an SOP or step-by-step instructions that website owners can give to their web team, Rivenburgh said.
The course, announced on The ADA Book YouTube channel in January, isn't simply a recitation of the 50 success criteria found in the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1 AA technical standards.
February 9, 2023,Forbes:
In a blog post published on their website on Thursday, popular password manager company 1Password announced the forthcoming transition to using passkeys with their software. The move, due sometime this summer, is designed to effectively eradicate password use to get into in the app. This is particularly noteworthy considering the entire premise of the company up until now. It’s a big change.
Rob Pegoraro at PC Mag was first to report 1Password’s announcement.
“[As] convenient as biometrics [authentication] are today, they don’t actually replace the password; they only mask it,” wrote 1Password’s Steve Won in today’s post. “That’s why 1Password asks you to type in your password periodically in order to ensure that you have it memorized. Passkeys also use biometrics, but they allow us to go farther and eliminate the underlying password entirely. If you’re curious to learn how exactly they work, you can explore our passkey explainer. But in a nutshell, passkeys are built on the same security foundation as our Secret Key—public key cryptography—but without requiring a password. This ensures strong security properties, while being a heck of a lot more convenient to use.”
February 8, 2023,Boise State University:
The Office of Institutional Compliance and Ethics announced Mike Gibson will be the university’s new deputy ADA coordinator for digital accessibility effective March 6, 2023.
Gibson will be responsible for leading the university’s digital accessibility compliance efforts by providing advice to campus on digital access strategies, reporting and training. He will lead the evaluation of high-risk digital information and services being developed, implemented or considered for purchase on campus. Gibson brings over 15 years of experience working for the Boise State Educational Access Center and has experience designing and implementing technology training and solutions for individuals with disabilities, including expertise in the university’s obligations under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act and the ADA.
February 8, 2023,Digital Journal:
As a leader in workplace diversity and equity, the software testing company has made accessibility a core tenant of their business by investing in neurodiverse and disabled team members. The addition of these new braille displays to the Iterators testing team will grant visually impaired employees greater access and input to the company's digital assets and projects.
February 8, 2023,Applause:
There were a few key reasons the media company prioritized accessibility for its pilot:
Broadening its audience - Accessibility would allow the media company to serve a wider audience and be better positioned to achieve the long-term subscriber goal, as limited accessibility could mean missing out on 15% of users with disabilities, who wield significant buying power.
Fine and lawsuit risk mitigation - Pursuing accessibility excellence would help avoid fines and legal action. Non-compliance with CVAA (Twenty-First Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act) can result in fines up to $100,000 for each offense, with some fines continuing daily until resolution. In addition, ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) web-related lawsuits continue at a significant pace.
Improved user experience for all subscribers - Optimizing the UI/UX for accessibility benefits all users, regardless of abilities.
Better brand image - Creating frictionless digital experiences for all customers helps improve customer loyalty.
February 7, 2023,The Hub:
Additional ideas selected for this year's Diversity Innovation Grants include:
A series of digital accessibility workshops for students, which received the second highest number of votes, proposes a series of workshops related to digital accessibility and designed to give students the tools to enhance their ability to create digitally accessible content.
