Cutting costs on accessibility is cutting costs at the expense of society - Issue 08/2025

Externalizing costs is a cumbersome term for a simple thing: Someone is saving at the expense of others. Digital accessibility is a good example: If an individual can't order online, they have to find workarounds, such as buying locally at a significantly higher price or requiring the time of someone else to provide support. If you can't make a transfer online, you have to go to the nearest bank branch, which is often far away.

Now, this seems reasonable from a business perspective, until you do the math: The customer chooses Shop X because it's accessible and not Shop Y because it isn't. So, you've saved money on accessibility in the short term, only to lose out to the competition in the long run.

Interesting Articles

This article is about the accessible design of labels for UI elements.

Designing Accessible Labels

In web applications, keyboard focus often needs to be controlled. This article focuses on common mistakes.

Focus Management – Common Mistakes and Recommendations

In France, the first complaints have already been received under the European Accessibility Act.

Are European Retailers Ready for Digital Accessibility?

This guide helps with testing apps for accessibility.

Practical guide to mobile accessibility testing

Color should not be used as the sole identifying feature for information or differences, according to this article.

Colour alone can be used to convey meaning, and I don’t like it!

Microsoft wants to emphasize sign language more prominently in video communication in Teams.

Centering Sign Language in AI and design

Developers also have very selfish reasons for better considering accessibility, according to this article.

Selfish reasons for building accessible UIs

Good news of the Month

Mastercard to introduce special cards for the blind.

Mastercard to introduce special cards for the visually impaired people

The USA wants to improve data on people with disabilities.

How States Are Using New Data to Boost Accessibility

An initiative in the USA wants to make hockey more accessible.

Hockey for all

The Scouts, American Boy Scouts, want to make their camps more accessible.

How Scouting America is making its camps even more accessible to Scouts with special needs

An app helps blind cricket fans in London find their way around the stadium.

‘Amazing for blind people’: app helps cricket fan find way around Lord’s

Martell brings the first Barbie with type I diabetes.

Barbie® Introduces First-Ever Barbie Doll with Type 1 Diabetes to Expand Representation and Inspire

XBOX games now display game accessibility.

Accessible Games Initiative Tags Now Available Across All Digital Xbox Experiences

German: In Germany a service called Real Time Text RTT is available. This allows text to be transmitted during a phone call.

German mobile providers launch real-time text

Apple plans to highlight accessible apps for iOS with so-called nutrition labels in the future.

Overview of Accessibility Nutrition Labels

More articles

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