From: "Gary Peterson" <[log in to unmask]>
To: "Kelly Pierce" <[log in to unmask]>
Cc: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Sunday, December 30, 2001 12:29 PM


Kelly,

Do you have any idea at this time as to when banks will start getting
the message here?  Do you think they are waiting to see what kind of
responce Bank 1 gets before doing anything?

Hello Gary,

talking ATM's have been a reality in the United States since only
November 1, 1999.  In the following 26 months to the present, there are
now more than 1,200 talking ATM's in the United States.  They are in more
than half of the states and the majority of the 10 largest American Banks
have initiated talking atm deployments.  In your area of Santa Cruz,
California (I checked your server location), there is a Wells Fargo
talking ATM.  In the next couple of years, all Wells Fargo and Bank of
America atm locations in California will have at least one talking atm.

You suggest that most of the banks that have deployed talking ATM's have
done so in a structured legal context.  This is indeed correct.  We are
continuing to work with the individual financial institutions on more
features and functionality.  There are several ongoing efforts to expand
the reach of talking ATM's to more banks and independent owners of ATM's.
The U.S. Access Board has proposed changes to the Americans with
Disabilities Act that would explicitly require a talking ATM at every
location.  Current guidelines require that ATM's be "independently usable
to persons with vision impairments."  While some claim the current
language describes many other solutions in addition to talking atm's, the
proposed changes will be crystal clear in their expectation.  The Access
board is expected to release its final rule sometime in 2002.

In the next few years, it is expected that many banks will be upgrading
their ATM networks to meet higher security standards and the needs of a
new operating system.  As industry gears up for these and other changes,
it is likely that audio assistance for the blind will be integrated into
atm machines and the operations of vendors and processors.

The largest manufacturer of ATM's for non-bank owners, triton Systems,
just demonstrated a talking atm as part of its new line of ATM machines.

Usage is important, but the issue of talking ATM's is fundamentally about
civil rights.  Blind persons have a right to use and access banking
services on the same terms as the rest of society does.  Most technology
and new accommodations have slow pick ups.  When ATM's were introduced
more than 30 years ago, there was slow adoption throughout the 1970s.
When lifts were added to buses, there was a slow but steady rise in
usage, but there was little usage at first.  Outreach and education by
the banks and the disability community will be useful for adoption.

Kelly