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Date: | Tue, 20 Apr 2010 11:52:28 -0500 |
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Below is a very interesting and exciting excerpt from a
presentation that
Assistant Attorney General Tom Perez made last week at a law
symposium at
NFB's head quarters.
Eric
*** Excerpt***
Technology has revolutionized our economy and culture. It has
made
communicating, obtaining information, entertainment, education
and goods
easier and more efficient. But many of these technologies, from
Web sites to
cell phones, from ticket kiosks to TV set-top devices, are either
in whole
or in part inaccessible to persons who are blind and other people
with
disabilities.
And though we have seen some voluntary efforts by companies once
the matter
is brought to their attention, far too many companies choose to
forgo what I
believe must be a profitable investment in making their products
and
services accessible to all consumers. We have a population that
is aging,
and making products accessible will only increase their customer
base.
The technology to make electronics accessible exists, and is
relatively
affordable to implement.
Let me be clear. It is and has been the position of the
Department of
Justice since the late 1990s that Title III of the ADA applies to
Web sites.
We intend to issue regulations under our
Title III authority in this regard to help companies comply with
their
obligations to provide equal access.
Companies that do not consider accessibility in their Web site or
product
development will come to regret that decision, because we intend
to use
every tool at our disposal to ensure that people with
disabilities have
equal access to technology and the worlds that technology opens
up.
VICUG-L is the Visually Impaired Computer User Group List.
Archived on the World Wide Web at
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