The Federal Communications Commission has issued the agency’s first ever working paper addressing accessibility and technology issues. Part of a series of working papers released in conjunction with the National Broadband Plan, the paper considers the numerous barriers to broadband usage faced by people with disabilities, including inaccessible hardware, software, services, and web content and expensive specialised assistive technologies.
The paper, written by Elizabeth Lyle, a Policy Advisor to the Omnibus Broadband Initiative, recognises the importance of removing barriers to accessibility by promoting industry innovation and building upon ongoing public and private sector collaborative efforts. At the same time, the paper identifies gaps that must be addressed to accelerate the adoption rate by people with disabilities, including improve implementation and enforcement of existing accessibility laws; gather and analyse more information about disability-specific broadband adoption issues; coordinate accessibility policy and spending priorities; update accessibility regulations; update subsidy programmes and ensure the availability of training and support; and update government approach to accessibility problem solving.
The paper builds upon the three broad recommendations from the National Broadband Plan. This includes the creation of a Broadband Accessibility Working Group (“BAWG”) within the Executive Branch; the establishment of an Accessibility and Innovation Forum at the FCC; and the modernisation of accessibility laws, rules, and related subsidy programmes by the FCC, the Department of Justice (DOJ), and Congress.
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