Standards and legislation, Standards, Mandate 376 – en 301 549 – HP P22 G5 21.5" Monitor User Manual

Page 51: Web content accessibility guidelines (wcag), Legislation and regulations

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Microsoft Accessibility information (Windows and Microsoft Office)

Google Products accessibility information (Android, Chrome, Google Apps)

Standards and legislation

Countries worldwide are enacting regulations to improve access to products and services for persons with

disabilities. These regulations are historically applicable to telecommunications products and services, PCs

and printers with certain communications and video playback features, their associated user documentation,

and their customer support.

Standards

The US Access Board created Section 508 of the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) standards to address

access to information and communication technology (ICT) for people with physical, sensory, or cognitive

disabilities.

The standards contain technical criteria specific to various types of technologies, as well as performance-

based requirements which focus on functional capabilities of covered products. Specific criteria cover

software applications and operating systems, web-based information and applications, computers,

telecommunications products, video and multimedia, and self-contained closed products.

Mandate 376 – EN 301 549

The European Union created the EN 301 549 standard within Mandate 376 as an online toolkit for public

procurement of ICT products. The standard specifies the accessibility requirements applicable to ICT products

and services, with a description of the test procedures and evaluation methodology for each requirement.

Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG)

Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) from the W3C's Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI) helps web

designers and developers create sites that better meet the needs of people with disabilities or age-related

limitations.

WCAG advances accessibility across the full range of web content (text, images, audio, and video) and web

applications. WCAG can be precisely tested, is easy to understand and use, and allows web developers

flexibility for innovation. WCAG 2.0 has also been approved as

ISO/IEC 40500:2012.

WCAG specifically addresses barriers to accessing the web experienced by people with visual, auditory,

physical, cognitive, and neurological disabilities, and by older web users with accessibility needs. WCAG 2.0

provides characteristics of accessible content:

Perceivable (for instance, by addressing text alternatives for images, captions for audio, adaptability of

presentation, and color contrast)

Operable (by addressing keyboard access, color contrast, timing of input, seizure avoidance, and

navigability)

Understandable (by addressing readability, predictability, and input assistance)

Robust (for instance, by addressing compatibility with assistive technologies)

Legislation and regulations

Accessibility of IT and information has become an area of increasing legislative importance. These links

provide information about key legislation, regulations, and standards.

Standards and legislation

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