If your website is not "readable" by software which allows visually-impaired user to navgate the internet, you could be involved in the next wave of ADA/accessibility lawsuits. Especially if you offer "internet only" promotions, if the visually-impaired can't access the products and services you provide, your website could be a lawsuit waiting to happen.
|
|
|
Recently, a Federal judge in California certified a class action lawsuit against Target Corporation involving claims by the National Federation of the Blind that the website Target.com was not readily accessible to visually-impaired users. [view decision] Other lawsuits have decided the issue on both sides, but many think that it is only a matter of time before private, commercial websites will need to be fully accessible to the visually-impaired to avoid a lawsuit. Remember, the ADA was passed at a time when commercial websites were the exception, rather than the rule. As more products and information are available exclusively on the web, it is easy to understand why the visually-impaired consider these items inaccessible, especially when it can be so easy to fix the problems.
|
Programs like "JAWS for Windows" and other software can read out text on a web page, but only if that text exits. For example, if there is just a picture of a sweater and a price, a visually-impaired user might not be able to determine what is being sold for the price. But if a description of the sweater is posted next to the price (in standard HTML text), then the program can probably read the description, which is hopefully complete enough to allow the visually-impaired user to determine if s/he wants the product.
| |
|
